July 18–August 9, 2025
Dmitri Atapine, Co-Director
Hyeyeon Park, Co-Director
Jessica Lee, Young Performers Faculty
Richard Lin, Young Performers Faculty
Chelsea Wang, Young Performers Faculty
DEADLINE: January 10 (applications now closed)
APPLICATION FEE: $70 before January 1; $125 from January 2–10
Music@Menlo’s Smith Family Young Performers Program provides an incomparable experience for some of the most outstanding young musicians from across the country and abroad. Designed for enthusiastic and dedicated string players and pianists ages twelve to nineteen, the program immerses students in a rigorous, nurturing environment where, through intense exploration of advanced chamber music repertoire, they are transformed into the leaders of tomorrow.
Highlights of the program include2025 Schedule
From Friday, July 18, through Saturday, August 9, students will be expected to participate in the program every day of the week except Sundays. Below is the typical schedule, although times may vary depending on evening concert schedules:
| 8:00 a.m. | Depart dorm for Menlo School* |
| 8:15 a.m. | Breakfast* |
| 8:45-9:00 a.m. | Roll Call and Announcements |
| 9:00-9:15 a.m. | Warm-up |
| 9:15-10:45 a.m. | Session I – Ensemble Rehearsal or Coaching |
| 11:00 a.m.-Noon | Master Class or Café Conversation |
| 12:00-12:50 p.m. | Lunch |
| 12:50–2:00 p.m. | Session II – Ensemble Rehearsal or Coaching |
| 2:10-3:10 p.m. | Session III – Ensemble Rehearsal or Coaching |
| 3:15-4:00 p.m. | Interactive Instrumental Session |
| 4:00-5:00 p.m. | Free time/Individual Practice |
| 5:00 p.m. | Prelude Performance |
| 6:00 p.m. | Dinner* |
| 7:30 p.m. | Encounter lecture or concert |
| 9:30 p.m. | Return to dorm* |
| 11:00 p.m. | Curfew* |
| *Students residing in festival dorm only (minimum age of 14) | |
To learn more about the festival’s ticketed events and to view the concert calendar from the 2024 season—which will give applicants and parents an example of what to expect for 2025—click here.
Fees| Application Fee: |
$70 if submitted by January 1 $125 if submitted after January 1 |
|
Placement Deposit: |
$150 refundable deposit due at the time of acceptance; deposit will be refunded after completion of the first program day |
| Tuition: | Full tuition fellowship for all accepted Smith Family Young Performers generously supported through the Ann S. Bowers Young Artist Fund. |
| Housing Fee: | $3,850 for all housing and meals beginning on Thursday, July 17, and ending with breakfast on Sunday, August 10. Housing Support is available (see below). |
Students under the age of fourteen are not eligible for festival-sponsored housing, and families must arrange accommodations on their own, such as Airbnb.
Housing for Students Age 14 and Above
Housing consideration is made for students ages fourteen to nineteen who reside at least forty miles from Atherton, California. Students must be 14 years old by July 1, 2025. Space is limited. Accommodations are available in a Menlo College dormitory, a five minute walk from the Menlo School campus. Students are chaperoned by Music@Menlo residential life staff. The cost per student is $3,850, including all meals beginning with lunch on July 17 and ending with breakfast on August 10.
Rooms are either double or triple occupancy, and students are grouped together based on age and gender. Because students are expected to attend almost all evening concerts and lectures over the course of the three-week festival, the schedule is very rigorous and intensive and may not be a good fit for every applicant.
Students choosing to reside in the dorm are expected to be highly motivated, mature high school students who are capable of making their own decisions, as well as accepting the consequences for those decisions. Participants are expected to manage themselves with a high level of independence and self-sufficiency.
Housing Support
Housing support is available for students residing more than forty miles away from Atherton, CA, by completing this application form and submitting it with required documentation by February 15, 2025. Housing support applications are evaluated separately from the admissions process. Music@Menlo attempts to provide financial support to deserving students as much as possible.
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