My Participation in The Brevard Summer Music Festival Made me a Better Cellist, Person and Disciple of Christ
I will never forget the first symphony I ever played — the opening chord of Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 7” echoing in the rehearsal room, the community of strings moving and playing in perfect harmony and the woodwinds gliding over the orchestra with a mournful march. It was a feeling like none other. I was blessed to have this experience after attending a summer camp during my sophomore year of high school. While it was the hardest thing I had done on the cello up to that point, it was because of this experience that I chose to come to BYU and study music. Since then, I’ve known that I needed to find a way to mimic this experience and recreate the growth I had all those years ago.
This past spring, I finally decided to audition for a few summer orchestra programs. After preparing and submitting my applications, I waited several weeks to hear that I was accepted into Brevard’s Summer Music Festival as an orchestral cellist. Brevard is a seven-week, orchestral program in North Carolina. I experienced what it is like to play with a professional orchestra, conductor and rehearsal schedules. Each week, we would learn a new symphony, solo accompaniment and overture to perform.
While this was something I knew I wanted to do, it is only because of the School of Music and its Experiential Learning Funds that I was able to attend this program. I am very grateful for their generous funding that helped me to afford this opportunity and really stretch myself as a musician. My experience at Brevard taught me so much, including refining my technique and practicing skills, helping me to strengthen my testimony with uplifting spiritual experiences and allowing me to interact with people from different graduate schools that I am interested in.
A major part of my time at Brevard included learning how to efficiently practice orchestra music. After our performances at the end of each week, we only had a day or two before rehearsals for the next week's concert began. This quick turn around meant that we had a limited amount of time to learn difficult music. At first I really struggled to keep up, but as the weeks progressed, I began to learn how to practice in a way that would properly prepare me for rehearsals.
After arriving at Brevard, everyone auditioned to decide orchestra assignments, teachers and studios. I was lucky enough to study with my top pick of cello teacher, Benjamin Karp. Working with Mr. Karp was the highlight of my time at Brevard. Not only were the other cellists in the studio amazing, but Mr. Karp was a phenomenal teacher who taught me so much about my technique and how I could improve as a musician. He was able to point out small things that had a huge impact on my sound production and gave me different practice ideas that have greatly enhanced my playing.
While I learned so much about the cello and how to be a better musician, one unexpected aspect of my time at Brevard was seeing how my testimony was strengthened. I was the only member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the orchestral program, which meant I spent a lot of time with people who did not always have the same beliefs as I did, and I was given a lot of opportunities to share my faith with others. These experiences showed me how easy it was to share the gospel and be an example to others.
Brevard also gave me the opportunity to interact and talk with people from different schools all around the country. I am interested in getting my master’s degree in cello performance, so it was great to talk with students and teachers from various schools to know which ones I might be interested in auditioning for. Because of the large variety of schools represented, I even left considering certain schools I had not thought of before.
Much like Beethoven's “Symphony No. 7” held a special place in my heart as my first symphony, my time at Brevard will always hold a special place in my heart as my first orchestral summer program. I am so grateful for the time I was able to spend there and feel beyond lucky to have been given this opportunity. It was truly a life changing experience and I know the people, skills and knowledge I gained there will bless my future for years to come.
