Have you ever met a great musician that wasn’t a good listener? In my experience, truly great musicians are truly great listeners.

Which leads me to. . . We play who we are. More on that later.

Of course, your thoughts are most welcome!

We all want, look for, and sometimes buy what we think will be an epiphany. But it’s the time we put in that improves our music. Learning something new is only valuable when applied.

Taking a lesson doesn’t make you a better musician, working on what you learn at the lesson does. Enjoy the process!

After over 20 years of conducting the Youth Symphony II, Mr. Michael Nakasone waved his baton one last time at the HYS Aloha Concert Luncheon on May 16, 2010. It was a bittersweet farewell as his students played their hearts out with pieces we have all come to know and love in YSII. The YSII program began with “Orpheus in the Underworld Overture” and ended with a BANG! aka “1812 Overture.”  Concert parent Mrs. Hanagami gave a heartfelt farewell speech as she choked back the tears (a rarity, for those that know her) and let Mr. Nakasone know how much she, and YSII will miss him.

Thank you Mr. Nakasone for your many years of hard work, dedication, and love for music & music education and good luck with your future endeavors!

Ok, no more pictures for this blog, bear with me.

Coming on board with HYS, I have been itching to help drive increased interest and mass appeal for all these fine young musicians. Our board is comprised of an all star cast of folks in the business community, but I think next to Selena, I got the biggest mouth, and I’m ready for action!

So I mention more than concerts and I segway to a free concert on 4/11. A benefit for our elders in the Honolulu Symphony. It’s a little different twist on our hotel shows as we will play the Blaisdel. Wow. And did I mention its FREE!

We also have a secret project that will be great exposure for HYS and shoud cause quite a stir. Stay tuned and let’s get some comments flowing. Ey you HYS kids! That means you.

When I decide to write a composition, I generally work on 2 or 3
tunes at a time. Often, they are physically in different places – in
my studio, in my bedroom, in the living room, or outside on a chair.

When I am working on one and hit a snag or feel like I’m not making
adequate progress, I move to one of the other tunes and pick up
wherever I had left that work. This keep me from getting too
frustrated or burning out and giving up.

Keep in mind, this is just one example of many methods, and is simply
what works for me. . . at this time.

I have some very prolific and effective friends who set aside a
little time (like 30 minutes or so) every day to do some writing, as
well as friends who will turn off phones and computers for extended
periods of time and “hunker down” for days without outside contact
when they are writing.

Find what works for you.

Oh, after I finish writing a tune, it will likely go through 5-10
versions before I feel like it’s done. Most often, it’s simply a
matter of taking notes out and simplifying what was originally
written. This happens after hearing other musicians interpret my music.

Don’t hesitate to have your music played! If you wait until you think
it’s perfect, it will never happen and besides, it’s the only way to
hear how other musicians will interpret your music. Which is what
really matters.

Good luck with your writing.

When we think of going green, there are many thoughts, ideas and perceptions that come to mind. Perhaps Hawaii Youth Symphony is not one of those things that immediately strike you. In my frequent trips to Japan, I am amazed at the level of cooperation in the area of recycling. Considering the large population, it’s amazing to see the level of commitment that Japan has to being more green.

The place can indeed be quite decadent and amazing, but...

They are also very conscious of preserving what natural beauty remains.

I am happy to report that HYS is doing its part in different ways to be green. Log onto the website, HYS Report and read the first online report!

Playing an instrument well is to good music as knowledge is to wisdom.

We’ve all heard people who play their instrument well, but don’t necessarily make good music, and I suspect you know knowledgeable people who wouldn’t be considered wise.

Have you also experienced the inverse?

by Dean Taba

Perhaps it was the New Year fireworks that reminded me.  Or perhaps it was the smoke from said fireworks, while making me cough, that helped me to realize that it’s been a really long season.  It only seems like yesterday that I was sitting in the Niu Valley Middle School band room, playing my plastic bassoon, listening to Mrs. O talk.  Granted, I’ve only been in HYS for a year and a half, I’ve learned much and experienced much in that tiny span of time.  Most of those experiences have taken place in this past half a year in YSI.  We’ve learned to express ourselves musically, and therefore socially, together, with confidence, and, I know that it’s influenced me quite a lot outside the walls of the chilly UH band room.  We’ve learned that we can strive for goals that will make Mr. Miyamura proud, and that we can indeed sound like professionals.  I’ve never thought about it, but as soon as I started playing with the HYS, my standards for sounding great have completely been revamped, and I can no longer accept any mistake in any playing I’ve been doing this past semester.  Well, in any case.  I don’t know about my fellow musicians, but Mr. Miyamura’s quotes that he gives us are truly inspirational.  I wrote them down on my music so I wouldn’t forget that this is what music is like, what music should be.  I hope that my fellow musicians have taken these to heart, as I have, because they remind me, each time I read them, that we ARE musicians, and we can create greatness.

“Each of you are like a sponge; you soak up all we do in rehearsal and share it with the audience in concert.”
“Every time I ask for more, it’s a compliment to your playing, because I can do more with what you’ve done.”
“If you question yourself, that’s a problem already.”
-H. Miyamura

Happy 2010, and thanks for reading~
-Reynalyn Callejo

It’s truly hard to believe that half of the YS season is over. All of
the brutal rehearsals were worth it though, for we played an amazing
Na Mele, Winter, and Listen & Learn Concert. Looking back on the first
few rehearsals of this year, the orchestra has grown so much. It makes
me proud to see the new members are playing up to YS1’s expectations.
During the Na Mele concert, we all experienced a magical moment on the
stage: understanding and expressing the music as one. I remember all
of the emotions stirring inside of me as we held a single note during
Nessun Dorma while Willie K was singing. As I was watching Mr.
Miyamura conduct, I also caught a glimpse of other members of the
orchestra exploding with passion for the music. We all put our heart
and soul into the piece with pure empathy, and it is at this stage
that we understood what the notes on the page meant. It was a moment
of surreal, musical involvement. Now that we have all been through
this phase, I am excited to experience what other magic we can conjure
up this next semester. Happy Holidays!

Thank you!
Samantha Neudorf

“When the musicians win, the music losses.” – Abraham Laboriel

I would prefer to hear “I enjoyed the music tonight” over “You
sounded great”. I play my instrument in service of music.

True humility and Egoless playing is simply to do what the music
requires. The music will always tell you what is needed, but you must
be willing to listen.

True humility is not the inability to accept compliments, nor is it
hiding behind the music. It is to serve the music while accepting
responsibility for your actions.

To experience “egoless music” is a rare occurrence and should never
be taken for granted.

by Dean Taba