- On March 25th,
four Wisconsin high school students
will take the stage here at the Capitol Theater in Madison.
They're vying for top honors in
the Madison Sympony Orchestra's Bolz Young Artist Competition.
These four students are
harpist Maya Pierick,
violinist Julian Rhee,
pianist Vivian Wilhelms,
and pianist Isabella Wu.
You'll get to see their performances live
during our broadcast
Wisconsin Young Artists Compete: The Final Forte
But before you see them on-stage
we thought that you'd like to get to know these young artists
off-stage.
So we're giving each one the chance
to introduce himself or herself to you.
*
- I am Isabella Wu.
I am a sophomore at Madison Memorial High School.
I've been playing piano for eleven years.
My mom was a piano teacher so I grew up listening to music.
I really was intrigued by the piano.
I kept asking my mom to teach me and finally she let in
and that's how I began.
With other instruments,
you usually end up playing one melodic line or two at most,
but with a piano,
you just have to handle all these complicated lines.
It gives a really different perspective
on how contrasting melodies intertwine.
My mother is always very instructive
of making sure your lines are singing
and they're mature, they're developed.
Making sure there's a story along those lines.
[violin music]
When I was in second grade, I picked up the violin.
I joined the Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras
when I was in fifth grade.
I gradually made my way up into the top Orchestra.
It's helped me connect with so many other people.
So it asks you in this problem--
I competed in Math Counts
for all three years of my middle school years
and now I'm a coach.
I try to pinpoint where they need help
on developing their strengths
and also helping them with their weaknesses.
It's a different kind of mathematics.
Having that speed to compete.
I'm also very close with my two younger siblings.
We have lots of fun together.
We like to tease each other a lot,
but they're very supportive of me.
We usually like playing games.
[piano music]
I am playing Rachmaninoff's "First Concerto."
I love how it's very romantic, but sort of dark.
I think that this is
one of the hardest, technically-mature pieces I've played.
[dramatic piano music]
He had huge hands,
so some of the transitions between certain variations
are a little bit harder to overcome,
but I think I've managed to get it out.
I think that throughout history,
people have often turned to music
for their sorrows or their happiness.
And for me, that's a very big part of my life,
and I don't think I could live without that
*