What makes us special

Suncliff Summer Music and Art Institute is bringing together musicians and artists from Buffalo and around the country. Our mission is to help musicians and teachers of all ages innovate themselves. Our no-nonsense approach to playing and performing, audition-taking, and teaching is greatly needed in today’s world. Whether your ultimate life calling is music, art, or something entirely other, the skills as well as the joy derived from the arts will help get you there.

Our location is one built on innovation and entrepreneurship, along with a deep sense of caring about the betterment of the area: Built in Derby, NY in 1914 by Helen Schoellkopf and her husband, Hans Schmidt, Suncliff on the Lake bears the legacy of the Schoellkopf family; pioneers for harnessing hydroelectric power from Niagara Falls, as well as building tanneries, flour mills, a chemical and dye company, and serving on the boards of an insurance company, several banks, and Buffalo General Hospital, and presiding over a gas company and the Buffalo, New York & Philadelphia Railroad.

Learning to be an artist or musician is learning perseverance, patience, wisdom, time management, developing a strong work ethic, and becoming a problem solver and a critical thinker. At Suncliff, we understand that there is so much more that goes into being an artist or musician than hours in a practice room.

Suncliff on the Lake is innovating the arts. Come learn with us. Share our breathtaking grounds, our caring and inspired faculty, and leave ready to take on your career and your life. A friend once said, “Getting an MBA is so much easier than learning the bassoon.” If you can learn to be a musician or an artist, you can do anything! Each of our eight weeks will focus on a different instrument family, musical genre, or artistic discipline. Our faculty cannot wait to meet you!