FALL RIVER: Seven Lockview High band students are thrilled to be doing something they love alongside peers from Cape Breton to Yarmouth as members of the Nova Scotia Youth Wind Ensemble (NSYWE).
Maddi Tufts of Beaver Bank; Isabelle Conrad of Beaver Bank; Keely Lenihan of Waverley; Anneka Miller of Fall River; Samantha Conrad of Beaver Bank; Dylan Rutledge of Grand Lake; and Julianne Le Lacheur of Fall River have all been selected to the NSYWE following auditions.
Keigan Allen; Jill Rowan; and Daniel Moser are also members, but were missing on the day The Laker stopped by.
Tufts said being a member of the NSYWE enhances dedication.
“I think we’re more profound in music and want to find something a little more challenging,” said Tufts, from Beaver Bank.
“It looks really good on a resume to be in it looking for jobs and for university applications.”
Isabelle Conrad said it’s a really big achievement for someone to get into the ensemble.
“It really means a lot after auditioning,” she said.
Rutledge said he was attracted to join band to be around others that love what they do.
“We can all do it together and it creates a friendship forever,” said Rutledge, who calls Grand Lake home.
The students have been doing band between five and eight years in total, most of them starting in Grade 6.
For Lenihan, she got into to music because of her sister.
“We play the same instrument so I always wanted to be like my sister, so going into band I played the same instrument and kept auditioning for the same thing she would.
“Now, it’s more like I really like the people and playing the hard music.”
Tufts grew up in a musical family and knew she wanted to do something in that regard.
“I started looking around the province and NSYWE really caught my eye because I’m a big classical music fan and the repertoire they play there is so much different than the stuff we play in the high school band,” she said. “I think the challenge for people like myself who want to go into music is so beneficial.”
Band is something that unites people, Rutledge said.
“I have friends across the province and some across the country now through playing in band,” he said. “Band unites us to be able to create a beautiful sound out of, basically, pieces of metal.”
Lachey was looking for a group of people to fit in with, and being apart of the band did just that.
“These wonderful band nerds caught my attention and honestly have changed my life,” Lachey said.
Isabelle Conrad said being in band means you’re with like-minded people.
“In school you’re not always with people who take band seriously, but playing in a group where everyone had to audition means they’re really good and dedicated to what they’re doing,” she said.
Tufts said ensembles like NSYWE is all about finding new comfort zones and meeting new people.
“It’s just like a sports team, but a tighter knit family,” she said. “It’s about showing an interest in what your interested in.”
Rutledge said once you finish a concert, the adrenaline rush is real.
“It’s such a great feeling when you’ve finished the most challenging repertoire you can think of and you get a big ovation,” he said. “The moment of silence between finishing and the claps, that’s the best feeling.”
