Frequently Asked Questions

• Currently there are 133 total students in CCM
• 20 Crickets
• 113 Conservatory
• 20 families have more than 1 child in CCM (some as many as 4)

• 45 reside in Baltimore City (30%)
• 70 reside in Baltimore County (50%)
• 18 reside in Harford, Howard, Anne Arundel, Carroll, Prince George, Montgomery, and Queen Anne counties (20%)
• 45% private schools, 40% public schools, 15% home schooled

2009-2010 yearly tuition varies between $545 and $1995, depending on age, class level, number of hours of training, performance schedule. It averages about $20 per hour of training.

• Currently 30% of all CCM students are on scholarship support
• Everyone pays something, based on the philosophy that one values what one pays for

• CCM, at $20 per hour, costs much less than private lessons, and children also learn better in small groups
• Other music programs quote by the semester, meet less, and don't offer the same level of education

• Founded in 1976 (34 years old)
• Directed by Dr. Betty Bertaux 1976-1988 and 1999-2006
• Directed by Andrea Macon 1988-1996
• Directed by Mairee Pantzer 2006-present

• CCM is a 501.c.3 nonprofit Maryland corporation
• CCM's Board of Directors oversee the CCM General Director (which is the same as an Executive Director)
• The General Director, Ramona Galey, oversees the Artistic Director and directs the administrative operations of the organization
• The Artistic Director, Mairee Pantzer, directs the CCM programs, supervises the faculty and artists, and oversees all aspects of the programs
• CCM's Founder, Dr. Betty Bertaux, also directs the "Sing For Success!" research study, involving 400 public school children, in Hagerstown, MD
• CCM offers childhood music education programs beginning at age 4
• The CCM program is comprised of 11 graded and sequential levels of musicianship classes: Crickets, Beginner 1-3, Intermediate 1-3, and Sol-fa 1-4 (and possible AP Music and other "grad" classes)
• 3 training and performing choirs: Treble, Lyric and Concert Choirs (and sometimes a graduates choir)

• True vocal music literacy in every single member creates choirs of accomplished performers who truly understand the sophisticated musical depths of the music they present
• This comprehension is apparent and palpable even in very young children, and is often astonishing to audiences
• Musically gifted children especially respond to the CCM program, as it fills a deep need that more superficial music experiences (such as meeting only once per week, with no separate musicianship classes) cannot fill

• Age-appropriate
• Play-based
• Taught in small groups
• Developed by CCM Founder Dr. Betty Bertaux
• A hybrid of the Kodály Method and the Gordon Music Learning Theory
• Highly successful concept for teaching advanced music literacy (to read, write and "hear" music) to children
• Using singing, it develops in students the ability to listen with understanding, to perform with artistry, and to read, write, improvise and compose music
• Applicable to music instruction at all levels, from nursery school to advanced adult graduate study

Research very clearly shows that the minimum frequency that music should be studied in order to benefit from efficient and effective learning is twice per week. If your child is simply singing in a chorus and learning the music from tapes or from hearing it played on the piano, then once per week is fine. If your child is actually studying the language of music and receiving training in music literacy (the ability to read and write music), then s/he will greatly benefit from twice weekly classes. Nobody would consider teaching math only once per week, and CCM takes music literacy and the many related benefits for a child at least as seriously as any math course. Of course, the younger children only know how much fun CCM classes are!

CCM choirs often perform in world-class venues such as:

• Carnegie Hall
• White House
• Disney World
• Gordon Center for the Performing Arts
• Meyerhoff Symphony Hall
• Hawaii

CCM choirs have also been televised locally and worldwide.

• It's more like an interview, where music "aptitudes" (as opposed to "abilities") are assessed, as are vocal skills and habits, aural skills and habits, styles of learning, and developmental levels.
• It is a 30-minute, private, and enjoyable series of games, imitative exercises, and physical activities, for which no previous training or preparation is required.
• Children 8 or younger are almost always accepted into the CCM program, in one of 4 different levels, based on the results.
• Children 9 and older will generally need to have had some previous training or musical experience in order to be successfully placed in a CCM class.

CCM often partners on collaborative performances with:

• Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO)
• Opera Vivente (OV)
• Baltimore Choral Arts Society (BCAS)
• Annapolis Opera Company AOC)
• Handel Choir of Baltimore (HCB)
• Baltimore Chamber Orchestra (BCO)
• Concert Artists of Baltimore (CAB)
• The former Baltimore Opera Company (BOC)

Select past and near future performances include tours and festivals in:

• Nova Scotia
• Banff, Canada
• Vienna
• Salzburg
• Prague
• Niagara Falls, Canada