Macon Magazine

ounded in 2006 as a special institute within Mercer Uni- versity's Townsend School of Music, the Robert McDuffie Center for Strings limits its enrollment to just 27 students, who each receive a full tuition scholarship. Since then, the school has taken over the restored historic Bell House, founded a new regional symphony orchestra unlike any other in the country, and taken students on national and interna- tional tours to perform. Alumni have gone on to join top symphony orchestras around the world, win competitions, and go viral on their own social media channels. Founder Robert McDuffie had a lo y goal: "My own hope was to follow the original mandate for the program, and that was to put Macon and Mercer on the map." McDuffie believes the unique curriculum, a hybrid of intensive performance, liberal arts, and business training, is what has made the program quickly rise to the top. "I felt that's what has been missing in higher education in the States, and we were able to confront that because of a supportive university and president." A turning point was bringing on Amy Schwartz Moretti, renowned concert violinist, as the Center director. Moretti describes her 16 years in Macon as amazing: "Culture will always positively influence people, and I do believe we have been part of the positive progress that is happening with Downtown Macon and the pride in our city. We are bringing young people from all over the world to study here who then go back out in the world – and stay here in the area – and carry the positive spirit of Macon and our supportive community." Both identify the recent founding of the Macon-Mercer Sym- phony Orchestra (MMSO), which has bucked national trends with houses that are 90 percent full for classical music on Monday eve- nings, as a highlight point. McDuffie notes that, "We've connected to the larger culture. And that means the world to me." And the world has taken notice. Conductor Peter Oundjian, who has been the music director for prominent symphonies around the world like the Toronto Symphony Orchestra as well as a professor at Yale's School of Music, visited Macon as a guest conductor for the MMSO this year. The concert was co-headlined by Macon native Jasmine Habersham, a soprano heating up the opera world, and was a sellout. Oundjian told the Telegraph: "Two significant new schools have been started to train mu- sicians since I came to the U.S. as a student. One is The Colburn School begun by a multi-billionaire in Los Angeles. The other is the McDuffie Center begun in Macon. That's an amazing thing to achieve and it happened through passion, persistence and a strong relationship between Bobby [McDuffie] and Mercer and his hometown. I love the school and its students who perform at an astonishingly high level… Here, no one is le behind. The extremely talented faculty know their students. It's an enormous gi ." Here, two of the Center's alumni making that critical difference reflect on the impact of their education and experience in building their skills and careers. F "TWO SIGNIFICANT NEW SCHOOLS HAVE BEEN STARTED TO TRAIN MUSICIANS SINCE I CAME TO THE U.S. AS A STUDENT. ONE IS THE COLBURN SCHOOL BEGUN BY A MULTI-BILLIONAIRE IN LOS ANGELES. THE OTHER IS THE MCDUFFIE CENTER BEGUN IN MACON. THAT'S AN AMAZING THING TO ACHIEVE AND IT HAPPENED THROUGH PASSION, PERSISTENCE AND A STRONG RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BOBBY [MCDUFFIE] AND MERCER AND HIS HOMETOWN. I LOVE THE SCHOOL AND ITS STUDENTS WHO PERFORM AT AN ASTONISHINGLY HIGH LEVEL… HERE, NO ONE IS LEFT BEHIND. THE EXTREMELY TALENTED FACULTY KNOW THEIR STUDENTS. IT'S AN ENORMOUS GIFT." — PETER OUNDJIAN JUNE/JULY 2023 | maconmagazine.com 63

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