Quincy Plays Cello: OPYO Andante

I encouraged Quincy to audition for a local orchestra program that meets at the school of the arts in Rogers once a week. There are three orchestras in the OPYO program: Andante for beginners, Presto for intermediate players, and a full philharmonic orchestra for advanced students. Having only played cello for a year, acceptance into Andante would be a bit of a stretch, but I knew Quincy had a chance and it would help her grow in skills so much to have this opportunity.  “No way, I won’t get in” was her response. 

She mentioned this to her fellow cello buddy Zack S, who encouraged that he would try out if she did. She still declined. 

But at 4:30pm on audition day, she said “ok I’ll go for it.”  With the added wisdom that she didn’t have anything to lose if she didn’t get in...but so much to gain from the experience. 

And so, just like a job interview, she showed up and gave her best. Well...her “last minute best”, anyway. She almost played Hunters Chorus or the theme from Judas Maccabaeus, but felt they weren’t polished enough, so she went with the Long Long Ago variation from Suzuki Book 2 and a G scale for her audition. 

She went, she did it, and she loved it! 

We received an email tonight that she got into Andante! Yay! She can audition to “level up” to Presto at the semesters, but I think Andante will be a great fit for her and an opportunity to learn from other orchestra directors than just at school and her private lessons. And anything that gets more music in our home is a bonus. 

I was SO proud of her just for going to that audition and laying out her best and loving it for the joy of the experience.  Why don’t we all give ourselves a pat on the back when we just show up and offer the best we can and love it? I learned a lot about just showing up from Quincy, this week. And if she decides to audition for Presto in the spring, I have no doubt she’ll work hard and go for it. All in, come what may.

We received an email tonight that she got into Andante! Yay! She can audition to “level up” to Presto at the semesters, but I think Andante will be a great fit for her and an opportunity to learn from other orchestra directors than just at school and her private lessons. And anything that gets more music in our home is a bonus.