Stories of Music & Joy: Bronwen Kent

Photograph by Caleb Kenna

Bronwen Kent: A Supporter of MCMC

As the Middlebury Community Music Center (MCMC) celebrates its 10th anniversary, we reflect on the incredible support and commitment of community members like Bronwen Kent, whose journey with MCMC has now spanned years and generations.

Bronwen first became connected to MCMC through her children, who started taking piano lessons with Sadie Brightman, MCMC’s founder. Sadie was a wonderful mentor to Bronwen’s kids, and her dedication to their musical growth was something Bronwen truly appreciated.

What started as piano lessons grew into a deeper connection with MCMC, and Bronwen became one of the center’s founding board members. Her involvement was driven by a belief in the power of music and its ability to build community—a vision she shared with Sadie and the center’s leadership.

Having grown up in a musical family, Bronwen was excited to see MCMC offer a resource in the community where music education was often decentralized and found only by word of mouth. Bronwen’s passion for MCMC grew not just because of the impact it had on her own children, but also because of how it served as a crucial space for community-building, outreach, and educational enrichment in Middlebury.

Throughout her time on the board, Bronwen witnessed the growth of MCMC from a small music center to the thriving hub it is today. When MCMC first started, it was small—mostly one-on-one lessons – and just beginning to find its place. Now, it’s an integral part of the community, collaborating with local arts organizations, offering programs for all ages, and even expanding into other towns. This growth has been carefully managed, and Bronwen admires how MCMC has remained grounded in its original mission while expanding its reach.

Bronwen's children, too, have had their own musical journeys at MCMC. Her oldest daughter studied piano with Sadie for 8 years. Her son found great fulfillment through his piano lessons, while her youngest daughter discovered her passion for the harp after initially struggling with piano. "Sadie was such an important figure in their lives. Not only did she teach them music, but she created an environment where they could grow and discover what inspired them," Bronwen says. Even after her children graduated, Bronwen’s relationship with MCMC continued, as she became a steadfast donor and advocate for the organization.

MCMC’s role in the community has always resonated deeply with Bronwen, particularly the center’s emphasis on building connections. "MCMC has always been about more than just music education," she explains. "It’s about creating a place where people feel welcome and supported, whether they are children, families, or adults. It’s a space where creativity and collaboration thrive."

As MCMC enters its second decade, Bronwen is filled with pride for how far the center has come and the impact it continues to have. "It’s incredible to see how MCMC has evolved over the years. I’m so proud of what they have accomplished, and I’m excited to see it grow even further in the future," she says. Her hopes for the future include more adult programming, further satellite locations, and deeper collaboration with local schools.

For Bronwen, one of the most important aspects of MCMC’s success is its ability to bring people together—whether through music lessons, group classes, or community events. She believes MCMC is a foundational part of the local arts scene, and it plays a huge role in making music accessible to the community. It’s a space where relationships are built, and where music is a catalyst for growth and connection.

As we celebrate our 10th anniversary, Bronwen’s story reminds us of the deep impact MCMC has had on individuals, families, and the entire community. Through support from generous friends like Bronwen, MCMC will continue to create a vibrant space where music flourishes and everyone has the chance to experience its transformative power.

Stories of Music & Joy: Bear Irwin

Photograph by Caleb Kenna

Bear Irwin

Our tenth anniversary is a time to reflect on the amazing community that has grown up around the yellow house at 6 Main Street. One of our very first faculty members was Bear Irwin, a multi-hyphenate instrumentalist and educator who has been a pillar of the Middlebury Community Music Center (MCMC) community from its early days.

Bear has been a music educator in Vermont since 1970, and is an accomplished jazz performer and band leader. Bear’s path in music education began as the only public school music educator serving seven schools in northern Vermont, teaching classroom, vocal, and instrument music in grades K through 12. He remembers the early days as a teacher when he “taught every instrument…. Every wind instrument and every percussion instrument, and early on, even all the string instruments.” He caught a lucky break early on, when the school board voted to hire two more music educators. This expansion allowed Bear to specialize in instrumental music instruction, which eventually led him to MCMC.

Reflecting on his path in music, Bear says that “it was by Sadie's invitation to join [MCMC], and that has made all the difference” in his career as an educator, and in the growth of MCMC. In those early days of the Center, most of the students were either taking piano lessons or voice lessons. Bear brought an expertise that expanded the range of offerings of the center not only to different instruments, but also to ensemble-focused classes, jazz, and improvisation. 

For Bear, the goal of his teaching is to make a deeper impact in the lives of his students. He shares in the belief of MCMC that “our objective as music educators… is helping people to involve the arts in their lives as they become adults.” 

An integral part of MCMC since the early days, Bear has seen the center change and grow in a number of exciting ways. He has witnessed the dramatic increase in staff and administrative support, all while prioritizing the student experience. “We have really wonderful faculty here now. And I think we provide great educational opportunities for students in every area of music, every aspect of music.”

These opportunities have proven to be life changing for some of Bear’s students. He has seen students accepted into conservatory programs and pursue a professional career in the arts. He believes that “all of the students who go through [MCMC] are very successful in finding a way to include music in their lives as they mature into adulthood.” However, he also has noticed how the presence of MCMC has changed not only individual lives, but the community as well. MCMC, for Bear, is engaged in a project of “extending the arts out into the community, expanding the opportunities that are available” for all members of the community to be transformed by the arts.

This collective transformation is inherent to the art of music, according to Bear. “Music and drama involve that collegiality… We like to make music with others and for others.” In this way, music is oriented differently than other types of artistic expression. And for Bear, the art and practice of performance is a way of making connections and giving back to the community.

With MCMC approaching a decade of serving the community, Bear can see the challenges that lie ahead for the organization. “We’re expanding our educational opportunities,” he says, and to meet that need MCMC will have to provide “the facilities [to] meet and match the curriculum, the faculty, and the participants.” One solution that MCMC has found to this has been to foster relationships with community partners that provide additional spaces for performance and programs.

However, Bear still finds something musical and exciting about hosting lessons in the original building, symbolized by the cacophony of sounds emanating from the house on Main Street during peak hours of lessons and events. “When you hear that sound of every room… engaged in the activity of music and music education, it’s a very real indicator of the success” and growing community.

Bear’s vision of the solution to this challenge reflects his journey from a solo music educator in Northern Vermont to his indispensable role in the MCMC community today. For Bear, everything comes back to the “ensemble.” Learning to listen to your environment and respond to the musical expressions of others with your own creative gesture is a practice that extends far beyond a lesson or afterschool group. MCMC’s ensemble cast of talented teachers and motivated students will see it through its many transitions for years to come.  

In celebrating ten years of MCMC, Bear knows that there is “lots to be proud of there.” Bear credits the founding vision and leadership of Sadie Brightman as promoting the tight-knit relationship between the center and the surrounding community. This unique collegiality and sustained outreach builds relationships that have not only lasted a decade, but continue to deepen and expand out to new horizons. 

Driving home after lessons, Bear takes a moment to reflect on the motivation of his students and the “joyous” environment that musical connection generates. MCMC and Bear know that motivation can be infectious, and that music builds and sustains community precisely through joy.

Stories of Music & Joy: The Pickens Family

Photograph by Caleb Kenna

The Pickens Family
Zim, Sophie, Rowan, and Willa

In its ten years, the Middlebury Community Music Center (MCMC) has built a thriving community of music makers and lovers. Students of all ages and skill levels have gathered at the house on Main Street to enrich their lives and the lives of their loved ones. For the Pickens family, music lessons at MCMC have become a point of connection and motivation for all. Zim, Sophie, and their kids Rowan and Willa are inspiring examples of the ways in which music, and MCMC, can be integrated into a family unit.

Zim and Sophie both grew up in Addison County and knew of Sadie Brightman as a talented musician. When they returned to Vermont as adults, Sadie was well on her way to building MCMC into what it is today. It offered a hub of teachers and a diversity of instruments and reminded Zim of the inspiring performances that Sadie had given when they were growing up together. Zim and Sophie were excited to sign up Rowan and Willa and support Sadie’s vision.

However, both Zim and Sophie had their own regrets about music lessons from their own childhood. Zim wished he had taken music lessons earlier, saying “there was no MCMC back then.” Sophie had been tripped up by the technical challenges of learning to read music as a child, even though she really loved music and sounding things out by ear. Now, as a parent, she was concerned about exposing her kids to similar experiences that could risk turning them away from music.

What Zim and Sophie found at MCMC was a nurturing environment that supported their kids through the frustrations and challenges of learning music. Additionally, MCMC provided a community that celebrated everyone’s progress across a wide range of ages and skill levels. Some of the family’s favorite elements of MCMC are the homey details of the house and its decor, which add to the welcoming environment.

Welcomed into the MCMC community as parents, Zim and Sophie both decided to take lessons alongside their kids. They reflected that this decision was incredibly humbling and helped them let go of some assumptions about what being an “adult” entails. By relinquishing a need for immediate mastery, their lessons took on elements of creative liberation and therapy. Sophie and Zim have both experienced their lessons as a catalyst for revisiting old limitations and fears and discovering new approaches to creativity and practice.

Zim has noticed that Rowan and Willa’s lessons have instilled a sense of agency and creative confidence in them. Rowan, who now can play melodies from movies and improvise on the piano, reflects that music is “something that makes me special because… I have a hobby to do and [can] play whenever I want to….It makes it feel like another unique thing I can do is to play music.” 

The whole family has been able to share in this creative confidence. One meaningful moment for them was when Willa discovered a monarch caterpillar in a field. Sophie had been working on a piece called “Metamorphosis” and was excited to share it with Willa in honor of her discovery. For the Pickens family, their collective commitment to practice and sharing music has become woven into their daily lives.

Taking lessons at MCMC as a family has helped Sophie and Zim get a different perspective on their parenting as well. Watching your children struggle through new skills, or push back against the requirements of a practice schedule can be a big challenge. Learning to find a balance between providing structure and remaining hands-off and trusting the process has allowed Sophie and Zim to discover new ways of connecting to and supporting their kids in their musical journey.  

Coming into MCMC for lessons creates a sense of support and community that inspires the Pickens family. Rowan likes hearing the sounds of all the different lessons happening around the building, and Zim notices how the space becomes a meeting place for a community connected through a passion for music - “it gives you a little sense that learning is happening and the notes are in the air. It just makes for a nice ambience that I find inspiring and uplifting.”  

The Pickens Family is also excited about the next chapter in the life of MCMC. They all see MCMC as an engine for fostering community through music. The children love the supportive atmosphere of the monthly performance salons and the parents see more informal gatherings like open houses as ways of activating their own interest in new kinds of music and instruments. 

In all of these ways, MCMC continues to foster a supportive and collaborative community for the Pickens family. This is what makes it a unique part of their life in Vermont. Sophie describes entering MCMC as “a different world,” and not just because of the vintage decor. It is a world committed to cultivating self-expression and creative exploration at any age. These experiences have lasting effects that are not just limited to the time spent in the MCMC. 

Now, Willa even wants to grow up to be a music teacher.