Students will arrive to Brentwood College on August 1, 2024. Mandatory orientation is at 3:00pm on the day of arrival. Students will depart Brentwood College on Tuesday, August 16, 2024 by 12:00pm.
All information regarding the application process can be found on our application deadline and fees page,found here. The application consists of filling out the complete online application (including all mandatory forms) and uploading a short YouTube video recording that best demonstrates your playing and musicianship. Applications that contain audio recordings will not be considered. The application fee is paid online as the final step in the application process.
The Academy requests the recording to be at least 5-minutes in length. The video recording must be submitted as a YouTube link. Applications which contain audio recordings will not be considered. There are no repertoire requirements for the recording. The recording you submit should demonstrate your absolute best playing and musicianship and will help the faculty to decide your placement and any destinctive honour performances or principal roles at VIMA.
The application deadline is extended to May 15, 2024! Applications sent after May 15 will only be considered if space permits and are subject to a late application fee. More information Found Here.
We continue to accept late applications if space is available. If in doubt, contact us by e-mail to see if we are still accepting applications after the April 30, 2024 deadline.
Please Contact us immediately.
Upon successful application and admission, VIMA will issue a Letter of Invitation to those students who may require an entry visa to Canada. Please have this letter with you when contacting the nearest Canadian Consulate in your country.
Admission decisions will be sent by e-mail by May 31, 2024. Final wait-list decisions will be made by late June. If you have a deadline with another program and need to know sooner, please Contact us.
Most of our students range from ages 10-25. There are a number of talented students under the age of 10, and they must be accompanied by a parent/guardian. VIMA is particularly geared towards precollege students however, older advanced students will benefit enormously from attending VIMA.
Full tuition for 2 weeks (15 nights) including all activities, fees, and room and board is $3,985 CAD. Tuition for off-campus students including all activities and fees is $2,485 CAD for the full session. For parents and/or other family members who wish to stay on campus with a student, the fee is $2,475 CAD, and includes full room and board, among other things. A mandatory registration fee payable by all students during the application is $200 CAD.
Please Click Here for more information about tuition and fees.
Each student will have six private lessons with the teacher(s) of their choice. Those students who want additional private lessons can register for them during the online application process. Every extra private lesson will incur a fee of $150 CAD. If you decide to register for extra lessons after you have been accepted, please notify us of your decision. You can also decline the extra lessons or add more during the Academy. Click Here for more information.
Yes! We strive to make VIMA accessible to everyone who wishes to attend. Financial aid is available and will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.
You can apply for a Scholarship through the online application. This must be done at the time of applying and not after being admitted. Please be aware that large scholarship requests without accompanying need and/or merit may jeopardize your access to financial aid.
There is still hope! We occasionally find some extra spots in May or June as we plan out the room assignments and finalize private-studio lists. Please call the office to check your wait list status before you commit to another program.
VIMA strictly adheres to all Federal and Provincial governments restrictions and recommendations on health. Should there be any government regulations limiting the number of attendees to below 100 by June 15, 2024, the current season of the Academy will be cancelled and ALL paid fees, including the application fee, will be refunded in full.
At VIMA we are extremely mindful of the Coronavirus and keeping healthy. Masks and frequent handwashing are highly encouraged. If students feel at all unwell, they must communicate this to the VIMA administration and we will take the appropriate measures of testing and quarantine, if necessary. Brentwood College provides to-go meals for students who are sick. At VIMA we pride ourselved on keeping our camp healthy and through our team effort, students enjoy a healthy experience!
The Registration fee of $200 CAD must be received at the time of the initial submission of the registration form. The registration process cannot be completed without the proof of payment. Click for Admissions Deadlines.
VIMA accepts payment by Credit Card or Bank Transfer via PayPal OR Interac e-Transfer to academy@vimamusic.ca.
Vancouver Island Music Academy
4912 Cambie St. Vancouver, B.C. V5Z 0K1 Canada
All payments must be made in Canadian Dollars. Please contact us if you need to make payments by wire transfer. You are responsible for all bank fees associated with transfers.
You will receive e-mail notification once your payment has been processed. Please note that late payments may jeopardize your placement.
Cancellations of your Reservation must be in writing via mail or email and received by the following dates: Cancellation received BEFORE May 15, 2024: Half of the Program Fees will be refunded. Cancellation AFTER May 15, 2024: No refund is given. Please note that the initial Application Fee is non-refundable. Please see the Tuition Page for more information.
Please see the VIMA 2024 skeleton schedule here. Please note that the timings of certain events are subject to change.
VIMA classes will take place in the Arts Building and the Bunch Centre for the Arts. Each student’s daily schedule depends on their assigned studio classes and individually scheduled events. Students will have the opportunity to indicate their private teacher preference on the application form, along with the classes they want to take during the Academy. Students must arrange their individual practice time on their instrument in the intervals between the Academy’s scheduled events. Attendance at all scheduled concerts are mandatory throughout the Academy. Time free from lessons, chamber music and orchestra rehearsals, coachings, masterclasses, guest artist events, accompanist’s rehearsals, concerts and off-campus trips is designated as leisure time and may be used for any activity of the student’s choice. There is scheduled recreation time and events every other day, students may use this time as they wish. Some seminars will be optional and students may use this time to practice or have an early bed time if they need.
Each VIMA student is registered for the Chamber Music and Ensembles Program and will receive a minimum of six coachings with faculty members. Placement is established according to your chamber music experience that was described in the submitted student’s application. At the discretion of the Director and Faculty, students may be moved from groups as necessary due to individual music ability, group dynamics, or coaching preference.
Most students will be assigned to one chamber music group for the duration of the Academy. Some strings and piano students will have two groups. Chamber music groups will consist of duets, trios, quartets, quintets, sextets, and octets if necessary. Advanced students are responsible to schedule and manage their own daily rehearsals, but help is available for the younger groups. There are a minimum of tfour chamber music concerts held during the Academy.
Piano Ensembles: each piano student (as their principal instrument) will automatically be enrolled in the piano ensembles program at VIMA. There will be daily rehearsals and coachings with faculty in the afternoons while the orchestras are rehearsing.
*Chamber Music rehearsals and coachings happen every other day at VIMA. Piano ensembles rehearsals and coachings are held everyday.*
The first step is to talk to your accompanist (if applicable) and private teacher. Concert sign-up sheets will be available 24 hours before each concert, and it is the responsibility of each student to sign up to perform. Your private teacher(s) and the VIMA Director select the students to perform in a concert.
All concerts are free and open to the public. Parents should be aware that student performances are subject to changes or cancellations at any time.
The Academy holds daily indoor and outdoor concerts on campus. Weather permitting, the open-air concerts are held on a beautiful ocean front lawn garden. Indoor evening concerts will be held on the main stage at the T. Gil Bunch Theatre Concert Hall. Concert programme information will be available on the day of the performance.
Practice, of course!
Otherwise, there are a variety of on-campus activities. Our Recreation Program offers basketball and tennis courts, soccer, and track and field. Please note with regards to any water sports activities: as there is no lifeguard on duty, any water sport will not be permitted apart from the excursion day. Brentwood College will supply all the necessary equipment for every recreational sport and activity.
Each residence has a common area with cable television and some video games. The entire campus has Wi-Fi. There will be an all day, off-campus excursion which includes sightseeing, hiking, and swimming. The cost of this excursion is included in the tuition fee.
There are many rooms in both the Arts Building and T Gil Bunch Theatre which are designated as practice rooms. The vast majority of student bedrooms are large enough to also serve as their practice room. There are other areas (including common areas) in the residences that could be used for practicing as well. Piano students will get practice room priority.
Students who register for “on-campus” tuition will be provided three full buffet-style meals per day for the duration of the Academy. Students who register for “off-campus” tuition will also have the option to register for full cafeteria privileges. Please indicate this on the application form if applicable to you, and fees will be advised on request. The Food Services at Brentwood offers a large variety of healthy and delicious foods for every meal, and will cater to any specific dietary restriction. Indicate any specific nutritional/dietary/allergy requirements in your application.
Any student over the age of 18 who is living on campus has the option of using the common-area kitchen in the residence house to prepare light snacks. No student under the age of 18 can use the oven in the kitchen. Parents may of course use the kitchen as well.
Brentwood offers excellent and nutritionally balanced meals to us every day of the Academy. We encourage you to take advantage of this wonderful experience.
Please refer to our What to Bring page. Be sure to read over the “what NOT to bring”, so you do not bring more than necessary. We also send a checklist with your admissions notification email in advance of the Academy. If there are any questions, please feel free to contact us.
Students are expected to dress nicely for concert attendance and performance. Bring nice shoes, dress pants or dresses, nice shirts, sport coats or blazers. Shorts or short jumpers are not allowed for concerts. Performance attire for a Chamber and Orchestra Concert is usually black and white, matching colour shirts, or all black. Solo performers sometimes wear all black or long gowns of beautiful colours.
Daily attire is casual summer wear. All students are expected to dress modestly and appropriately at all times. Shoes and shirts are required in the dining hall. Pyjamas are not allowed in the dining hall. The dress code is listed in the Terms and Conditions Document in the application form.
Yes, each residence house has coin operated laundry machines. Bring quarters!
This happens sometimes. If worried, you can always contact the Academy’s office at any time to have an update. The Academy will arrange the phone call with your child.
For students under 18, visitors are allowed solely with the written permission of a parent/guardian. Visitors must sign in at the Academy office, meet students at the Arts Building and are not allowed to enter the residence unless they are a parent, guardian, or relative. Students age 18 or older are free to leave campus at any time and must communicate this to the VIMA Administration. Minors may go off campus with a parent/guardian or designated visitor if they have a Visitor Permission form.
There is free Wi-Fi throughout the entire campus on Brentwood College's secure network.
Yes! If you wish to be a counsellor at VIMA, please let us know. We will fill in and sign your volunteer hours sheet at the conclusion of the Academy.
VIMA is hosted by Brentwood College’s oceanfront campus, which has an international reputation that matches their educational profile as one of the world’s great boarding schools. Sheltered on the pristine coastline of Vancouver Island, the College’s 77-acre campus has over one kilometre of waterfront facing the Gulf Islands and stunning views of a snow-capped Mount Baker. The College is located forty kilometres north of Victoria and is adjacent to the village of Mill Bay (population 3,250). It is less than one hour's drive from Swartz Bay Ferry terminals and Victoria International Airport.
At a nominal cost, VIMA will provide ground transportation to and from Brentwood College at the commencement and conclusion of the Academy’s season. The preliminary pick-up time from these locations will be at 12:00pm on August 1, 2024. For those planning to use the VIMA transportation service, please plan your inbound travel itinerary accodingly.
Round-trip transportation from Victoria International Airport or from Swartz Bay Ferry Terminal to Brentwood college is $100 CAD. A one-way transportation option is also available at $50 CAD.
Flights:
Please arrange your flight to land at the Victoria International Airport (YYJ) before 12:00pm on Thursday, August 1, 2024. Flights which are scheduled to land after 12:00pm will not be guaranteed transportation to Brentwood College on our bus pick-up.
Bus transportation will depart Brentwood College at approximately 8:00am on Friday, August 16, 2024, so please plan your flight out of Victoria accordingly.
Ferry:
Bus transportation will depart Schwartz Bay Ferry Terminal at 1:00pm on Thursday, August 1, 2024. Please plan your ferry arrival to Schwartz Bay accordingly.
Please reserve a ferry for 10:00am or after on Friday, August 16, 2024.
