Harvard’s school music program hosted the 80th annual New England Music Festival over the weekend of March 15 through 17, and despite the snowy, uncooperative weather, the Saturday concert went off as planned, with just an hour delay. The festival may have come and gone, but those who worked with and hosted the 450 young musicians who participated in the festival have been left with warm memories of the experience.
Hosting the festival involved many logistical challenges, with housing being one of the primary ones, given that the students came from all over New England to participate in the festival, and host families were needed to house all of them. Responsibility for that task fell to Eileen Kronauer by default. Her husband, Charles, volunteered to chair the committee, but because the housing was such a major undertaking, Eileen was tapped to take over that part of it.
Kronauer began her campaign to recruit host families in September by announcing the need at the first concert of the year. Over the next few months, notices, emails, and advertisements in local papers followed, and host families started coming forward. Kronauer’s goal was to have all 450 visiting musicians placed by February vacation, but when that week arrived, there were still 120 students left to be placed. At that point, Kronauer said, she started to panic a bit and stepped up her efforts. More emails, phone calls, notices, advertisements, and personal pleas to all third- and fifth-grade students finally paid off, and homes were found for all 450 visiting musicians.
All told, 190 host families from Harvard and surrounding communities volunteered to host one or more students for two nights. Host families provided housing, along with some meals and transportation—most didn’t realize they would be getting so much in return for their efforts. For many host families, housing students they didn’t know was a new experience and they weren’t sure what to expect. Elizabeth Cooper, whose family agreed to host two students after Eileen’s daughter Kristina solicited her help, said that she “agreed only reluctantly at the time,” but after the festival she said she would definitely recommend hosting to others. “The students were a delight,” Cooper said. “The two girls we hosted were charming, considerate, and very sweet with our 9-year-old daughter and good role models for her, even in the short time of their stay. We couldn’t have found better, easier houseguests anywhere.”
Her comments echo the sentiments expressed by many host families. Kronauer said, “The feedback that I have received, both from the musicians who attended and from local host families, was so totally positive and enthusiastic.”
Jim and Diane Hart found that hosting three girls who were “polite, well-mannered, and friendly” was a great family experience that they would not hesitate to repeat. They got a special bonus in the form of a private concert when the girls “demonstrated their lovely vocal talents by singing ‘Danny Boy’ for Jim as he drove them to Lowell on St. Patrick’s Day!”
Debbie Kaegebein was also very pleased with her experience, raving that she “enjoyed my four boys beyond belief” and that she was very grateful to have had opportunity to have that experience with them. “They were polite, talented, fascinating, grateful, and just a delight! I will feel a connection to them for a long time!”
Sydney Blackwell and her family hosted two boys from Vermont who were both singers and best friends. The boys, Ryan Shaefer and Aidan Nevin, said that last year’s festival was a life-changing experience, primarily because of their choral conductor, Jeffrey Redding from Orlando, Florida. Redding inspired them profoundly and pushed them to excel in their music. Aidan said, “I know that singing is what I really want to do and this happened because of my experience with Mr. Redding last year.” Both boys now see music in a brand-new light; as Ryan said, “I would never have thought about music this way before.” They both will be applying to Emerson College and they hope to head to Broadway after college. Blackwell said, “We were all inspired by these boys—and in sharing their experience of Jeffery Redding, they passed on Redding’s wisdom and inspiration to us.”
Kronauer has received many calls and emails from host families who loved their students and found them to be good role models for their children and good ambassadors and representatives for their schools. Although the Friday snowstorm threw a wrench into festival organizers’ plans and precipitated a flurry of last-minute schedule changes, emails, and phone calls, host families experienced an unexpected benefit in that they had the whole of Friday night to spend with their students.
Five families on Orchard Hill Road hosted 19 students and ended up snowbound when plows couldn’t clear the steep road. Some host families took the opportunity to enjoy ad hoc concerts at home and some organized dinner parties with other host families and their students. Two such families on Jacob Gates Road, the Woods family, who hosted four girls and the Stadlers, who hosted two boys, got together Friday night for dinner. Martina Stadler, a fifth-grader at Harvard Elementary School, said, “It was really, really fun. It was an awesome experience. I wish Harvard would host the festival again.”
That is not likely to happen, as the festival is usually held in a new place every year—Vermont next year. Despite all the hard work and challenges, Eileen Kronauer wouldn’t mind seeing it in Harvard again either. “It was fun,” she said. “I would do it again.”