Wisconsin Young Artists Compete

My name is Sophia Jiang and I'm a freshman at James Madison Memorial High School. I started piano when I was about four years old. I just loved watching the little hammers, like, tinker the strings. I thought it was just the coolest thing ever. I have a very musical family. Both me and my sister play the piano and the violin. I kind of became passionate after watching her play on the stage. I did play with the Madison Symphony once as the winner of the Fall Youth Concerto competition, and that was one of the greatest moments of my life. I loved being on the big stage with a lot of young people in the audience. It pulled my heartstrings a lot. I study with Mr. Bill Lutes. He is such a wonderful person and a wonderful teacher. He's always telling me the stories of the composers and the history of the music. And it really helps me better understand the piece that I'm playing. I also participate in WYSO. I started as a student in Sinfonietta. So I was lucky enough to be the concertmaster for one of the concerts. And I also was fortunate enough to be able to play this beautiful solo. I'm a freshman and we have been doing virtual school all year. We're kind of pulling through it. Clubs are also virtual. I am a part of the school newspaper. I also like to participate in my school's volunteer program. I just love volunteering. It's such a fun thing to do and it really opens your eyes up to the world. During these difficult times, my sister and I are very, very excited to be able to share music with everybody watching at home. It's such an honor to be able to do that.