Class of 2020 Senior Spotlight!

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David Amouretti, double bass
Essex High

VT Youth Orchestra – 1 year
VT Youth Philharmonia – 1 year
VT Youth Strings – 1/2 year

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jacob Banicki, percussion
Essex High

VT Youth Orchestra – 1 year

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How did you choose your instrument over all of the others?

Amouretti: I started playing double bass because I loved jazz, but soon after I switched to playing mainly classical double bass. I also love how the bass is the backbone of any ensemble it is in, and that others rely on it without even knowing.

Banicki: When I was really young (about five) my grandma got me a drumset to play on. This was definitely the deciding factor that got me to play percussion. When 5th grade rolls around I started playing trumpet even though my heart was in percussion. I then switched 2 months later and the rest is history.

 

What role does music play in your life?

Amouretti: Music helps me make new friends, collaborate with others, take me to new places, and express myself. There hasn’t been a day in the past couple of years that music hasn’t been a part of.

 

What advice would you give to younger music students as they strive to build their skills?

Banicki: It’s never too late to start building your skills as a musician. Practice regularly and work with a qualified teacher and you are on your way to becoming a great musician. A good teacher will help guide you in honing your skills.

 

What do you enjoy most about playing in an orchestra?

Amouretti: I enjoy the feeling of family that comes with orchestra, and how we all come from different backgrounds and experiences to create one piece of art.

Banicki: At its most basic level, I love the music that we get to play. From composers like Tchaikovsky to Mahler, it’s just exciting to play music that you otherwise wouldn’t play. My friends and peers in the orchestra make it a supportive and friendly environment to create music.

 

Apart from orchestral music, what other kinds of music do you listen to? Do other genres influence what you hear in orchestral music?

Amouretti: I listen to a lot of acoustic, funk, rock, and jazz music. I feel like the connection to other musicians and the feeling of truly saying something with your music carries across into my orchestral playing.

 

What other activities do you participate in?

Banicki: I participate in many pit orchestras for musical theater, as well as many jazz bands through school. I also have a rock band with some of my friends.

 

What do you plan to study in college and how did you make your choice?

Amouretti: I plan to study classical music performance in college. I chose this because I realized a few years ago that I could not live without it, and it was one of the few things that truly made me happy in my life.

Banicki: Percussion Performance. I chose this because I love performing for people, and sharing music with others. The feeling that you get when you connect with the audience or listeners is indescribable and great.

 

Congratulations David & Jacob! Your passion for music radiates brightly & we look forward to seeing where it will take you!

Class of 2020 Senior Spotlight!

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Nathan Wu, violin
Essex High

VT Youth Orchestra – 5 years
VT Youth Philharmonia – 1 year
VT Youth Sinfonia – 1 year

 

 

 

How did you choose your instrument over all of the others?

I got started with violin through my elementary school’s orchestra program, which gave students the opportunity to start a string instrument in 4th grade. My first choice was actually the bass, but my twin brother had already chosen the cello, so my parents wisely encouraged me to choose the violin, having the foresight to encourage us to play instruments that would complement each other.

 

What do you enjoy most about playing in an orchestra?

There’s something special about the process of creating music not alone, but with others. I love the inherently collaborative nature of orchestra – it’s like a giant group project where every person has a distinct role. It’s hard to articulate, but I guess it’s the feeling of being a part of something much bigger and grander than yourself while still knowing that you had a hand in shaping that something.

 

What advice would you give to younger music students as they strive to build their skills?

Try to build a community of young musicians around you, whether it be through joining an orchestra, going to summer music programs, or playing chamber music. It’s reassuring to know that you’re not alone in your musical journey. Also, playing music with other people adds a whole new dimension – it’s super fun and requires an important skill set that isn’t practiced with solo repertoire!

 

What other activities do you participate in?

I run cross country and nordic ski for my school. I am also a member of Student Government and enjoy being a part of my school’s Scholars’ Bowl team.

 

What do you plan to study in college and how did you make your choice?

I’m hoping to study either biochemistry/biophysics or computer science, ideally a combination of the two (computational biology). I’ve always been fascinated by the line between life and non-life, and I think that looking at this subject from a computational point of view is especially cool because computational methods enable predictive modeling of interactions between molecules and pathways, permitting an understanding of life’s inner workings on a level impossible with conventional lab or field experiments.

 

Congratulations Nathan! Your musicianship and camaraderie have inspired many students and adults during your time here at the VYOA!