Eyes wrought with concentration, hands taut with precision and hearts wrapped tightly around their music, cellist Sidney Coren '07, pianist Joshua Klein '07 and violinist Graham Patten '07 comprise the Student Ensemble-in-Residence trio, a chamber group sponsored by the Music Department. The SERP trio, as they are more commonly known, is the premier all-student ensemble on campus and pulls its repertoire from a number of genres-from modern classical to traditional chamber music to jazz. They hold one large performance at the end of each semester and give smaller shows throughout the year.

The SERP program, which is coordinated by Lydian String Quartet violist Mary Ruth Ray (MUS), was started before the fall of 2003. After the music department received an endowment to attract conservatory-level musicians to Brandeis who are not necessarily interested in completing a music major. Now in the program's second year, there are, in fact, two SERP groups-the all-sophomore trio and a freshman duo. Prospective participants submit audition tapes, and the most promising applicants then come to the University for a live audition with the Lydian String Quartet. All of the Quartet's members are involved with the SERP trio to varying capacities.

The Quartet's first violinist, Daniel Stepner, coaches the sophomore trio. They rehearse with Stepner once a week and meet three times each week on their own. Rehearsals generally last between 60 and 90 minutes.

"Sometimes practicing the same song again and again is repetitive," Klein said. "However, there is always something new to discover."

Outside of group rehearsals, they practice individually "whenever we have time," Klein said.

"Individually, we dedicate endless hours to mastering our individual parts," Coren said. "Yet in rehearsals, we bear our souls to one another, sharing, communicating and developing the emotions that live inside our hearts."

"Although we each disappear inside our music, allowing the music inside to move us, each inflection is calculated; every phrase is experimented with," Coren said.

Much care goes into selecting their repertoire each semester.

"We know major composers and Dan [Stepner] give us suggestions," Coren said. "When the three of us sat down together [to assemble our fall performance's program], we wanted pieces that complement each other and complete the program, and allow us to push ourselves technically."

Klein commented that this chamber group was different from others because the members perform with each other for their entire undergraduate careers.

"The University is able to draw conservatory-level students, yet students don't have to devote their whole lives solely to musicianship," Klein said.

The three feel that classical music is underexposed on campus.

"There is no apathy, but it is not exposed as well as it could be," Coren said. "However, I think students are willing and excited to support classical music."

The three musicians wish they interacted more with the freshman group.

"We don't get to experience each other's music as much as we could," Patten noted.

They believe, however, that sharing their passion for music with audiences is an important part of the performance experience. While Patten appreciates the opportunity to "give yourself to the audience," Coren summed up the feelings of all three when he explained that the concerts are "the most special experience; everything has been figured out and we are completely free."

"We bare our souls to the audience and we are liberated," he said.

The SERP trio will perform in Slosberg Recital Hall on April 10 at 8 p.m. They will play pieces by Johannes Brahms, Franz Joseph Haydn and Paul Schoenfield.