The lush tranquility of Sweet Briar College’s summer campus belies a steady hum of activity.

From early June to early August the school’s tennis courts, fields and classrooms reverberate with the sounds of learning, from a soccer coach’s shouts of encouragement to strains of music wrought by tiny hands. Summer programs are a staple at Sweet Briar. Companies such as Hilton Head, S.C.-based Van Der Meer Tennis bring children and adults from around the globe to immerse themselves in intensive workshops.

For more than 25 years, the College has provided residential, dining, and instructional facilities to groups ranging from pony clubs to dance camps. Some, such as Van Der Meer, have run camps here since the beginning. The vendors appreciate SBC’s rural, self-contained setting, said Paul Davies, vice president for finance and administration. “Players and coaches can focus on their sports without distraction.”

Some players have gone on to excel as world-class athletes. In June, Liezel Horn-Huber, who trained at Van Der Meer’s Sweet Briar tennis camp, won the women’s doubles at Wimbledon.

For Sweet Briar, hosting the programs offers wide exposure, a chance to attract prospective students, and extra revenue. In addition to income that can be invested in campus infrastructure, the programs provide year-round employment for housekeeping and dining staff, Davies said.

Thanks to the participants’ diversity, some classes are a “real geography lesson,” said Nancy Herr, SBC summer programs coordinator and Le Bistro manager. Students and teachers arrive by trains, planes, and buses at local terminals, where Herr makes sure a ride to campus is waiting. Shuttling the visitors is just one detail of myriad arrangements that Herr sees to — and has seen to in her two decades as coordinator.

The Central Virginia Suzuki Institute, presented by the Lynchburg Talent Education Suzuki School, is one of the longest-standing summer program vendors. One of about 55 workshops held throughout the country that teach the Suzuki method, it is returning to Sweet Briar for its 26th year, said Rudy Hazucha, music director at the local Suzuki music school and adjunct SBC faculty member.

The weeklong workshops are open to students of violin, viola, cello, and piano who study with a Suzuki teacher. Children 12 and younger must be accompanied by their parents. The parents don’t have to play an instrument, but they do learn how and what the child should practice so they can act as surrogate coaches between classes.

“Parental involvement is probably one of the most integral parts of the whole Suzuki approach,” said Hazucha, who studied the method with its creator, Shinichi Suzuki. The philosophy is that every child can develop musical skills equal to his or her ability to develop language.

Music is taught to children as young as 3 by approaching it like language, Hazucha said. First they do a lot of listening. Next they’re taught “where to put the bow on the violin [for example] and where to put their fingers and that’s where the music starts.” Once they’ve mastered some skills they can learn to read music.

Hazucha draws students from up and down the East Coast. This year he has two international students: A 7-year-old from London and an 11-year-old from Indonesia. Many return year after year. A New York City family attending for the 17th consecutive year has enrolled three children during that time, he said. Throughout the week there are two concurrent workshops, one for children and one for adults.

The community also can share in the music. Solo recitals will be held July 25-28 at 1:30 p.m. in Memorial Chapel. The institute’s faculty will present a concert Wednesday, July 27 at 7 p.m. in the chapel. On Thursday, July 28 at 7 p.m. the orchestra and chamber music classes will hold a concert in Babcock Auditorium.

The week culminates on Friday in Memorial Chapel with a piano recital, including organ and harpsichord, at 4:30 p.m. and a string concert at 7 p.m., followed by a final grand performance by all institute participants.

Summer programs wrap up Aug. 5 with the conclusion of Ron Horwege’s weeklong Total Physical Response and Storytelling workshop. Horwege, SBC German professor, organizes the annual TPRS Coaching with Colleagues workshop, which is sponsored by the American Association of Teachers of German. About 30 German teachers from across the country are signed up for the clinic. TPRS is an alternative approach to teaching foreign languages.

— By Jennifer McManamay, SBC staff writer