by Harvey Y, age 11
When I first joined BYSO, the Bellevue Youth Symphony Orchestra, about 2 years ago, I was not sure if I would like it. At that time, I was getting bored playing piano. My mom suggested BYSO, and told me BYSO is a reputable musical organization for youth. I thought that orchestra sounded better than the pounding of plastic keys and more fun than piano. So I agreed to give it a try.
I fell in love with BYSO after several rehearsals. Unlike my piano teacher, my bass coaches are fresh college grads, and they’re fun and friendly. They helped me make my part of music easier to play and sound better. Sometimes, the cello coach came and plays with me when my bass coaches were not around. He pointed out things in different ways then my bass coaches did, so I was able to combine their thoughts and got better than I would have. To me, playing music is not boring anymore. Sometimes I mess up, but that just helped me get better by learning from my mistakes. I always have a good time there practicing and make music sound like music.
Our conductor, Mrs. Gero, is definitely the spirit of Cadet Orchestra. She always encourages every student to do their best. She is able to catch every mistake I make and points it out to me in a firm way that makes me remember it in my head always. She isn’t that kind of conductor that would just say “good” to anything. She’s a conductor that makes sure everything is perfect and that everything is just the way it should be. And when I do it right she usually makes a comment like “beautiful” or “nice”. Because of her I always remember to do my best no matter what. She helped me understand how much I can improve. I someday hope to make her speechless with my skill.
I love my peers at BYSO too! Without their generous votes, I wouldn’t be able to won the most inspirational award last year.
But not everything you experience in your life goes exactly the way you want. My second year, I failed to rise up into Debut. I guess the idea of “practicing hard and becoming better” started to get kind of old, and I began to drop little by little. When I saw most of my Cadet friends moved up to Debut, I decided to work harder and with more rigors so I could catch up. And this year, I won the “Frances Walton Award”. I guess my hard work had paid off. Now, when I pick up my bass again, energy runs through me and I play fiercely. I have been recharged.
I love BYSO; it has become part of life now. No matter how busy or how tired I am Monday afternoon, I always go there for the practice and pure pleasure of playing with the group. BYSO has not only brought me pleasure, it has also brought me music that I love to hear and play.
