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It was a totally extraordinary experience. The disappearance of the high quality arts from our school systems is a travesty. All this focus on basics -- hell, learning to live a full life is ALSO basic! Trezza was passionate about his orchestra; we had a fairly small high school, but every year we placed about three times as many people in the state orchestra as any other school. My junior year, of all the schools in Pennsylvania, including Philadelphia and Pittsburg, we placed 12 people in state orchestra, including the concert meister, four other first chair violins, first chair oboe, second chair bassoon, first chair french horn, tympani, and a few others. And this was just a normal suburban school. Was a lesson I've never forgotten in how a single teacher with passion and commitment can make a huge difference in students' lives. |
