Video
String Studies at UMass Amherst Department of Music & Dance
0:00 - [MUSIC PLAYING]
0:03 - Every time I pick up my viola, it's just really
0:05 - about not only trying to play my best
0:07 - but really to show the music to people the way I feel it.
0:11 - [VIOLA PLAYING]
0:13 - I see the joy on their faces.
0:15 - I know they're enjoying it, and that makes me happy.
0:19 - The biggest thing about UMass music program,
0:21 - there's really such a strong community
0:25 - between the students in the department and the professors,
0:28 - and they all want you to excel.
0:31 - There's a lot of great faculty.
0:33 - The string faculty is amazing.
0:36 - The teachers here really care for you,
0:37 - and they do want you to do well.
0:40 - What I do see with my colleagues is that they all
0:43 - care about their students for their personal success,
0:46 - each individual student, whether at school or in life.
0:52 - Coming to UMass, I did not expect
0:53 - that I would be playing classical music at all.
0:55 - It was something that I became very passionate about.
0:58 - Sal has been an amazing teacher and mentor to me.
1:04 - He truly built me up technically and musically
1:07 - from literally not being able to play an upright bass to being
1:11 - able to get accepted to a graduate program
1:13 - for double bass classical performance.
1:16 - It's pretty impressive.
1:18 - I've been pushed by everyone in good ways,
1:20 - and I've really been able to grow from that.
1:23 - And they've supported me and given me opportunities.
1:29 - You get to play a lot of different types of music.
1:33 - Chamber ensembles you can play in, studios every week,
1:37 - and you get to work closely with your teacher,
1:39 - with even your studio mates about improving your technique.
1:43 - The way that the students interact with each other
1:46 - is very positive.
1:48 - We're working together.
1:49 - It's not competitive, and I think
1:52 - that has been the best part about going here.
1:57 - So it has this intimate family feel
2:00 - that you might find in smaller schools
2:02 - but with the level performances and opportunities
2:05 - that you find in much bigger programs.
2:10 - Playing the "St. Matthew Passion,"
2:12 - that was probably one of my best musical experiences
2:16 - I've ever had.
2:17 - There was a lot of student collaboration.
2:19 - There was a lot of teachers involved in the ensemble,
2:22 - and we were all working together to tackle
2:25 - this behemoth of a piece and try to make
2:29 - it as beautiful as we could.
2:31 - We got to play with faculty.
2:32 - We got guest singers coming in and kind of put
2:36 - on a show with three rehearsals.
2:38 - It trains us for what we would have
2:40 - to do in the professional world, and that
2:42 - was a really great experience.
2:44 - There are so many musicians who come through here
2:48 - and they do both double concentration
2:51 - in education and performance.
2:54 - We've actually had the opportunity
2:56 - to organize a teacher-training workshop
2:59 - and to help be part of the organization
3:02 - team for Bach Fest.
3:03 - It's given me experience in arts administration,
3:05 - and it made me realize that there's so many different paths
3:08 - that I can take.
3:10 - If you're a young aspiring musician who
3:12 - is passionate about improving your skills
3:16 - and growing as a musician and curious about life
3:20 - and willing to work hard, then UMass Amherst
3:23 - would be a perfect place for you.