Come Play with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra This Summer!

It's like music camp for adults. For one week in June, adult amateur musicians are invited to rehearse and perform side-by-side with Baltimore Symphony Orchestra musicians.

During the 2014 Academy Week, scheduled for June 14-21, adult instrumental musicians from all over the country will have the opportunity to rehearse and perform, either with the full orchestra or in chamber ensembles coached by BSO members. Participants can choose either the Orchestra Track or the Chamber Music Track.

Participants should be prepared for an intense, but fun, week of making music. Orchestral repertoire scheduled for Academy Week includes music from Mahler's Symphony No. 6 and Berlioz's Symphony Fantastique.

During the week, participants will have the opportunity to attend classes and lectures, and also socialize with each other and BSO musicians. Campers can also sign up for private lessons with the BSO musician of their choice.

The week will culminate in two chamber music concerts and one large concert, in which participants perform with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, led by Maestra Marin Alsop, in Meyerhoff Symphony Hall.

This is the fifth year of Academy Week, the brainchild of music director Alsop. The program enables the BSO to better engage and serve its community, inviting amateur musicians to experience what it is like to play with the BSO for one week every year.

"Orchestras have been trying to figure out how to connect with people who have an innate passion for music but who set that aside for a career," Paul Meecham, the orchestra's president and chief executive, told The New York Times. "We're riding that wave, of people's need for a different kind of participation rather than just sitting in an audience."

In addition to Academy Week, the BSO also provides two-day Chamber Music Weekends, in which amateur musicians play in chamber groups with BSO musicians; and one-day events such as Rusty Musicians, which brings together amateur musicians with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra to rehearse and play through major symphonic works.

For more information about the BSO Academy programs, visit bsomusic.org.