A mesh of indiscernible noises filled the large auditorium. The entire room was dark except for the delicately positioned lights above the stage. All went quiet. The sound of shoes clanking against the hardwood alerted the audience to a young lady carrying a violin at her side. She walked across the stage and shook the conductor’s hand. Once standing in position, with a nod of her head, she signaled to the oboist to initiate the tuning ceremony. Like a falling row of dominoes, the orchestra tuned section by section. I held my flute and, for the last time, tuned with the Hollywood Youth Orchestra.
That Sunday was the culmination of a hectic summer program for the Hollywood Youth Orchestra. We merged with the even larger Harmony Project Orchestra to form one large ensemble. Rehearsals were extended and the location was changed more than once to fit all of us in one room. I remember searching for bus schedules several times to make the five-hour rehearsals in July. What had been a four-member flute section during the school year, had become a twelve-member flute group that summer, shadowed by several other instruments forcing us to play loudly. The trumpets, who had always been a wrench in the flute players’ ears, had tripled in number.
My last concert with this orchestra was the largest and, surprisingly, most enjoyable. We would be performing selections from popular action films like Superman and James Bond, as well as Disney tunes from Snow White and The Little Mermaid.
I became well acquainted with many of the younger flute players who I otherwise would not have met. Our bond and musicianship skills grew––we had to learn how to play together as a section, to get along and to actually practice our parts at home so that we wouldn’t slow the orchestra’s progress. We put forth double the effort to produce an amazing product.
When the orchestra was tuned and ready, the conductor looked above at the countdown clock on the screen—3…2…1—waiting for the sequence to reach zero. The baton pointed at the percussion section and the drum roll commenced. Everyone in the orchestra went from rest position to play position. The trumpets belted out the initial 
measure from the 21st Century Fox Theme. The concert had begun.
- Jamilah M., age 18
Jamilah is getting ready to pack her bags, bundle up, and head east to begin her undergraduate studies at Dartmouth College. It’s been a pleasure watching her grow, and we wish her the best of luck!!
