Our third #impactstory features a PYPO alum whose diverse musical interests have led him to a varied and enriching musical career. PYPO provided the perfect balance of an encouraging and challenging environment for him to develop as a budding composer and pianist.
Calvin hasn’t been in a PYPO rehearsal in eleven years, but as he reminisced about his experiences you can hear the excitement and joy in his voice. He is now an active composer, performer, music director, and teacher in Jersey City, and shares how his time in PYPO was an invaluable period in which he developed his ear, his sense of self, and his appreciation for collaboration in the world of classical music.
“My experience in PYPO was so important because I was taken seriously as a musician. I don’t know what I would have done without it. I was encouraged and supported, and it was such a beautiful way to start getting in touch with who I’m supposed to be,” Calvin said. He soaked up every bit of what PYPO had to offer – the concerto competition, the student conductor competition, the international tour, the challenging rehearsals – and through it all, learned about leadership, discipline, and self-expression.
L: Calvin, front row, second from left, performing on violin after his piano concerto performance, R: Calvin second from left, with fellow PYPO musicians at a Pirates game
Calvin’s musical journey began at the age of four, when his parents noticed his predilection for expressing his emotions by walking over to the piano. “Whether I was mad or happy, or sad, or excited, I would go to the piano and express that,” he recalls. Shortly after that he started piano lessons, began playing the violin a few years later, and joined a boys choir at the age of 8.
“Around age 12, I started composing my own music,” Calvin shared. “My grandfather, who lived with me and my family at the time, passed away. That's really what kicked off writing [music] for me. It was connected to this deeply emotional grieving process.” Calvin kept up with lessons on both violin and piano and dove into composing music.
When he heard about PYPO during his freshman year, he was excited to experience music in a larger ensemble setting. Calvin was homeschooled at the time, and didn’t have as much access to public school music programs. “PYPO came at the right time for me to really lean in,” he reflects. Calvin auditioned on violin and was accepted into the Philharmonic Orchestra for his sophomore year. “The encouragement, the reinforcement, the music-making environment, the regularity of it, showing up to weekly rehearsals.... It really changed my life,” he says.
Not long after he joined, Calvin won PYPO’s concerto competition with the rousing first movement of Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A minor. “It was an important moment in taking ownership of the preparation needed to execute at a really high level. PYPO provided an encouraging environment and outlet for that execution.” Calvin noted that there was a consistent emphasis on the group as a whole, despite the fact that the concerto was featuring him as a soloist. “It deepened how I listened. It wasn’t just about perfect execution of notes, it was about what we were doing together. It was about the spirit of the thing, and that’s just magical.” He had an opportunity to lead the group himself with this spirit in mind when he won the student conductor competition during his senior year.
This emphasis on relationships and team building helped Calvin make friends he stays in touch with to this day. “[Music] really opens the door for deeper friendships, because you get to know the people beyond the music. We're here to make music, and we all care about it, and then you really develop these friendships that last. And it's so beautiful,” Calvin said.
One of his favorite PYPO memories was the 2012 tour to France and Italy, which took place the summer before his senior year. He was concertmaster for the tour and the subsequent season, and remembers performing “Con Te Partirò” (Time to Say Goodbye) on violin during the tour. “I still look back on those pictures and memories so fondly. It was a dream… and the people really made it.”
L: Calvin performing on violin during PYPO's tour, R: Calvin, far left, with fellow PYPO musicians near the Eiffel Tower
After he graduated from PYPO in 2013, Calvin went on to receive his Bachelors and Masters degrees in Music Composition. His work as a composer has been described as “impressive,” and he has “a fine ear for sonority” (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review). He enjoys the intersection of music and theater and working as a creator, interpreter, and collaborator. He is also an active teacher, and is on faculty at the Brooklyn Music Factory and a teaching artist at TADA! Youth Theater.
The mentorship Calvin received at PYPO fundamentally shaped his own teaching philosophy. “It’s about guiding students toward their own light bulb moments. When you see those pieces click, there’s nothing like it. It’s like magic, and it can change the world. When you give students access to their own creativity, and help them synthesize information and work collaboratively, you’re helping them become better people and more well-rounded, invested, engaged people.”
As a professional musician, Calvin is a firm believer in the impact a youth orchestra like PYPO can have on young students. “Not every person who plays in a youth orchestra goes on to be a professional musician. That is great, actually, because the musical training is so much more than the notes. It’s an instinct towards collaboration in a joyful manner, working towards a goal as a group, and knowing that the role you play in the group is integral. The things you learn in youth orchestra are applicable to the rest of your life in such beautiful ways, and not just for the people who go on to become professional musicians.”
L: Calvin with piano teacher Dr. Emma Rocco after Grieg, R: Calvin today! Photo credit Brian Doherty
Our mission at PYPO is to foster a life-long love of music through creativity, empathy, and excellence, and to create lasting relationships along the way. Calvin's story is just one of many in our thirty years of existence. Help make more stories like this possible by donating today! Head to pypo.org/donate to make a gift and help us reach our goal of raising $15,000 for our young musicians by December 31st.
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