On Saturday, Feb. 19, 2022, several Shenandoah Conservatory music students performed with the Symphony Orchestra as featured soloists after winning the 2021/22 Student Soloists Competition in November 2021. Some of the participants shared their reflections on preparing, rehearsing and performing in this unique collaborative experience.

Preparation

Tell us about how you prepared for this performance. How was preparing for this different from anything else you’ve done?

“So much memorization, and almost all of it was away from the clarinet. Since I’ve memorized the piece before I was worried that the memory was in my fingers. That’s a slippery form of memory; it only works if you don’t mess up. I would be driving to campus, mentally reconstructing the solo to expose any memory gaps. I even wrote it out from memory, so that I would know the solo well enough to recover from any slips.”
– Sarah McMichen ’24 (D.M.A. in Performance) | Clarinet

“This piece was unique for me in that I started with an analysis of the work as a whole the way that a conductor would prepare. This process demanded several months of study before I ever began work at the piano. The result was that by the time I got to the piano and began my practice, the ideas and structural processes were laid out neatly. All that remained was grueling hours of technical practice.
– Szymon Czerniak ’24 (D.M.A. in Performance) | Piano

Rehearsals

What was your experience like rehearsing with a live orchestra? Was this your first time or have you worked with other orchestras before?

“Rehearsing with a live orchestra was extremely educational and inspiring. As a vocalist, when I rehearse with a collaborative pianist, it is still a collaboration and partnership but the vocalist tends to take the lead and the pianist tends to follow because the partnership allows for both musicians to take more liberties in regards to tempo and rhythm. Singing with the orchestra was the exact opposite; it was still a partnership, but I had to adjust and follow the conductor rather than lead myself. It was such an eye-opening experience for me as I have never sung solo repertoire with an orchestra – only ever large choral works like Fauré’s ‘Requiem’ and Handel’s ‘Messiah’.”
– Bailey Kinsella ’23 (B.M. in Music Education) | Soprano

“I have never shared the stage with an orchestra before so being a part of its rehearsals in the week leading up to the performance was really awesome. I think I was more nervous in our first rehearsal than I was when we actually walked on stage for the performance. I enjoyed the advice from both my voice lesson professor Mr. Forest and orchestra director Maestro Wagner: of letting my sound go and move more freely. I felt that having an entire orchestra behind me and my friend beside me helped me feel as though I could let my sound rain more freely than I have in the past. It was definitely a powerful experience that I am extremely grateful to have the opportunity to be a part of.”
– Grace Frame ’23 (B.M. in Music Education) | Soprano

Performance

How did you feel during the performance? What was it like performing for a live audience?

“I was able to give much more of myself to the audience, both within the context of my character and in the music. Interacting with the audience after the show and playing with the music more due to live interaction with the other musicians was the best part of the entire process.”
– Gabriella Pisacreta ’22 (M.M. in Performance) | Soprano

Professional Preparation

How has this experience prepared you or shaped you as a professional artist?

“This experience has actually shaped me as both a professional musician and educator! Performing solo work with a full orchestra is an extremely humbling experience, but as an educator I will be able to better prepare my students for any performances they will have with orchestras.”
– Bailey Kinsella ’23 (B.M. in Music Education) | Soprano

About the 2021/22 Winners

Clarinetist Peter Mattson ’23 is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Music in Performance and studying with Anna Lee van Buren Endowed Chair in Clarinet, Coordinator of Winds and Percussion, Professor of Clarinet Garrick Zoeter, M.M.

Soprano Bailey Kinsella ’23 is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Music in Music Education and studying with Associate Professor of Voice (Tenor) Michael Forest ’85, ’86, M.M.Ed.

Soprano Grace Frame ’23 is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Music in Music Education and studying with Associate Professor of Voice (Tenor) Michael Forest ’85, ’86, M.M.Ed.

Clarinetist Jalen Mims ’23 is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Music in Performance and studying with Anna Lee van Buren Endowed Chair in Clarinet, Coordinator of Winds and Percussion, Professor of Clarinet Garrick Zoeter, M.M.

Clarinetist Sarah McMichen ’24 is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts in Performance and studying with Anna Lee van Buren Endowed Chair in Clarinet, Coordinator of Winds and Percussion, Professor of Clarinet Garrick Zoeter, M.M.

Soprano Gabriella Pisacreta ’22 is currently pursuing a Master of Music in Performance and studied with Assistant Professor of Voice (Soprano) Fotina Naumenko, D.M.A.

Pianist Szymon Czerniak ’24 is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts in Performance and studying with Distinguished Artist-in-Residence, Chair of Keyboard Division and Professor of Piano John O’Conor, Mus.D.

Pianist David Lecuyer ’23 is currently pursuing a Master of Music in Performance and studies with Distinguished Artist-in-Residence, Chair of Keyboard Division and Professor of Piano John O’Conor, Mus.D.