The String Workshop is a multi-generational student ensemble. Musicians of all ability levels are welcomed by more experienced members of the Loudoun Community Orchestra and several professional musicians from the Loudoun Chamber Symphony. Not only do they benefit from their own hands-on experience with their instruments, but they are exposed to the workings of a symphony orchestra from the inside. Many students who participate in the Loudoun String Workshop study their instruments privately. They may take weekly lessons and participate in occasional recitals.
Music is a group activity and a very cooperative venture.
The string workshop frequently has as many as 30 members on stage, each playing his or her own part while listening to others and watching the conductor for information about not only when to play, but how. Ideally, the musicians become one, offering their own unique interpretation of the music. The ensemble experience teaches that, by working together, the whole quickly exceeds the sum of its parts to create a gratifying, exhilarating experience for the musicians. The Loudoun String Workshop can be heard in performance as part of the pre-concert program that the Symphony presents. The pre-concert programs begin with the String Workshop one hour before the scheduled concert.