Tag: kids

Koa Performed with the Texas Youth Wind Symphony

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"Wind Symphony" Austin, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X-T10, 35mm, f/2.2, 1/125 sec, ISO640
 “Wind Symphony” Austin, 2019

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Outside of school, Koa has been practicing with two music groups, the Austin Youth Orchestra and the Texas Youth Wind Symphony. Today the latter had their spring performance at Bates Recital Hall on the UT campus.

The recital hall is really awesome. Not only are the acoustics amazing, but it has stadium seating so you can pretty much see all the performers from an elevated position. In most general-purpose auditoriums, the stage is elevated, so you need to be in the middle/back rows in order to have a chance to see everyone’s face, and then you are pretty far from the stage. But at the Bates Recital Hall, everyone had a view of their student performer, even in the front rows.

Koa plays percussion, so he was moving around among the different instruments. My favorite was when he played the bass drum in “Of Our New Day Begun”. It was great! And LOUD!

There were a total of 4 pieces in several movements. Please enjoy the videos! (I just used my Fujifilm X-T10 and built-in mic, hand-held, so the quality is not the best. Also, I mainly just made sure Koa was in the videos, so apologies if you weren’t able to see your student)

Austin Youth Orchestra Spring Concert

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"Austin Youth Orchestra" Austin, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X-T10, 55mm, f/4, 1/150 sec, ISO3200
 “Austin Youth Orchestra” Austin, 2019

For the past couple of months, Koa has been rehearsing (as a percussionist) with the Austin Youth Orchestra every week, and today they had their Spring concert. It was really fun to listen to the music today because most of the time, Koa doesn’t perform with strings. It’s a really nice change of pace!

There were three orchestras playing today, and Koa is listed as a member of the top group, but he was asked to play in the middle group as well. He said he had to do a lot of sight reading today since he didn’t have a lot of time to prepare for the middle band. But to me, he sounded great. I’m so proud of him!

Percussion is a fun discipline in the band/orchestra because they have to learn many different instruments, such as marimba, vibraphone, xylophone, bells, triangle, cymbals, snare drum, and timpani. Then there are a few other specialty instruments like the rain stick. And today, Koa said he had to switch between bass drum, snare, and cymbals in one of the pieces. Some pieces, he’s very active, and some pieces he doesn’t even have a part in. It’s very interesting.

Anyway, it was great to listen to the Austin Youth Orchestra. All the kids work so hard, and it’s impressive to hear the fruits of their labor come to life in a live concert.

I hope you had a nice Sunday!

またね〜

Just Realizing that Lots of Changes are Coming

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"Cluttered Corner" Cedar Park, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.2, 1/125 sec, ISO3200
 “Cluttered Corner” Cedar Park, 2019

こんばんは。How’s it going?

As my oldest son gets closer to graduation, it’s finally dawning on me that he’ll be leaving the house in just five or six months. So that means a lot of things that I’ve done each day for many years will come to an end. For instance, I won’t be making tamago-gohan for him for breakfast anymore. I also won’t be picking him up from school. And the dinner table will have an empty chair. All of these make me a little sad. 😢

But of course I am also excited to see what the future has in store for all of us so I will keep looking ahead with a positive attitude. がんばれ❗️

I hope you had a nice day!

またね〜

TMEA Concert Night in Cedar Park

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“TMEA Concert” Cedar Park, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/60 sec, ISO5000
 “TMEA Concert” Cedar Park, 2019

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Tonight we went to listen to the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) concert that Koa was participating in. Last month, the high school band kids auditioned for a spot in one of the three bands, and Koa did great and earned a place in the top band, the Wind Ensemble. They played four pieces, and Koa mentioned to me that he was gonna go crazy on the bass drum in one of them. Sure enough, in the finale of the evening, Redacted, Koa was on bass drum and he was loud and banging away. It was pretty great!

TMEA happens every year, and this was Koa’s second time performing. It’s amazing that the kids rehearse for only a few hours the night before, then a few more before the actual concert, and can perform at such a high level. It’s incredible!

I’m so happy that Koa is so interested in band. It really has shaped his early life for the better and we could not be more pleased!

またね～

Final Marching Band Show

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"State Champs" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X-T10, 55mm, f/4, 1/60 sec, ISO500
 “State Champs” Cedar Park, 2018

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Tonight Koa performed with his 2018 high school marching band for the final time. Marching season is over, but it was an amazing year for the kids – the band won first place in the UIL State Competition which means they are state champions for their division (6A)! It’s an amazing accomplishment and the first championship for them in school history.

Here’s a link to the local Austin news report about the band, and also below is their performance at the UIL competition:

Next up for Koa is a trip to Indianapolis to perform with his percussion group at PASIC. So busy, but he loves percussion. がんばって Koa!

またね～