NJYS Ensemble Feature: Clarinet Ensemble

by Kristine Peters, Education Coordinator
Wharton Music Center

If you ever listen at the door of the New Jersey Youth Symphony's (NJYS) Hyde & Watson Hall on Wednesday evenings, you might think that NJYS has a collegiate clarinet ensemble in residence. The tone is quiet and focused, and it's not until you peek in that you realize the polished sonancy is being created by high school students. It was a joy to sit in on Bryan Rudderow's Clarinet Ensemble rehearsal and learn more about this special group of NJYS students.

Basic Info on Bryan Rudderow:
Bryan has been with NJYS since 2009 serving in multiple capacities, including conductor and administrative staff. He currently teaches privately in addition to conducting Clarinet Ensemble and Junior Wind Ensemble. He also just had a beautiful baby boy!

Why is Clarinet Ensemble important to NJYS?
It fills this void. Over the last few years we’ve turned away many, many talented clarinetists. They want to play in a group--it doesn’t matter if it’s an orchestra. That’s where Clarinet Ensemble comes in. I love this ensemble because the performance level is so high that I can program devilishly challenging music and know that they can meet the challenge.

What musical skills are you building?
There’s a lot of clarinet embouchure issues at play here. Embouchure is how you use all the muscles in the mouth. We’re building that in the wind ensembles and training the students to play for longer periods of time. One of the biggest challenges for young musicians is their stamina. In the Clarinet Ensemble, I don’t give them a break. We go an hour and a half--beginning to end--with no breaks other than when they’re not being rehearsed. So we’re talking a good hour and ten minutes of serious playing, which is more than a lot of them do in a sitting. I’m helping to develop those muscles so that when they do go to a new Jersey Regions rehearsal or NJYS's Youth Symphony, for that matter, they’re that much stronger. 

What’s the repertoire for the coming season?
Bach's Fugue in g minor, Mozart's Allegro, Beethoven's Minuet and Finale and the stretch, or their most challenging piece, is Astor Piazzola's Histoire D’Tango. 

Why is Community Education important?
When you’re dealing with public or private schools, students might be in a good program, but they might not be challenged to the point that they can or should be. In a community education situation, you have the opportunity to deeply impact students with quality training. It’s an opportunity for those hard-working students to get a bigger and better opportunity. The students who come here and find that they might not necessarily be the best player, and are rather part of a really talented core, propels them in turn to move forward together.

Clarinet Ensemble is for students in grades 8-12 and meets on Wednesdays at 6:45-8:15 PM at 570 Central Avenue in New Providence. You can hear the Clarinet Ensemble in concert on January 18, 2015 at 3:00 p.m. at UCPAC, 360 Hamilton Street in Rahway. Tickets are $15/Adults, $10/Students & Seniors. For more information about the New Jersey Youth Symphony and the NJYS Clarinet Ensemble, visit www.NJYS.org.

Why is Music Important?

By Jacqueline Luberto, Piano Student, Development & Marketing Intern
Wharton Music Center

I’ve been taking piano for eleven years. At the beginning, when I was six, I started to compete in nationwide events. Everything I learned was for the judge and there were strict guidelines on the pieces you could play, the scales you needed to know, and the hours you were required to put into practicing. I continued competing until I entered high school. At that point, I realized that I really didn't really know anything about piano. I had no feelings for playing and it felt more like an obligation than a pleasure.  Along the way, there were definitely pieces I loved and anyone could tell by how I played the piece. Even the judges and my teachers could tell that this one song expressed so much more about playing than an entire repertoire could. I often wished I could compose music for the lyrics I’d write and I wanted to find the passion I had for writing in my piano playing.

Why bother taking up something that does not interest you? Knowing how to play the piano is one thing, but playing it? Playing it is feeling a special connection between yourself and the keys. Each note is a color in a picture you paint and nobody else can, even if the song was composed years ago. Just take the famous piano duet “Heart and Soul”as an example. Almost 95 percent of the time I’ve seen two people play that song, they have never formally studied piano. They play piano more than anyone who just simply  knows how to play piano. They found an interest in this one melody and said, “I really want to learn this.”

That’s why music is important. It doesn’t just bring people together, but it provides an array of feelings and ideas. When you’re sad, you put on a sad song. If you’re at the gym, you put on something upbeat and inspirational. If music was not important, why does it affect our minds so much? You can’t run well listening to “Ode to Joy” but instead “Eye of the Tiger.” I listen to music everywhere. It brings back memories of my first concert, a great party, and more. It does this by telling a story and promotes imagination. I find it interesting to hear how an artist composed their song and what inspired them, why they chose the chords they did, or who they wanted to be affected by this song. I can always tell if a song has influenced my mindset, my attitude, or my mood. Chances are, music has had this effect on you, too.

Jacqueline Luberto has been studying at Wharton Music Center since 2012 and is currently a junior at Gill St. Bernard's School in Gladstone. Outside of piano, she runs cross country and track, along with representing a growing fencing team. She is involved with her school's literary magazine and is an editor for the newspaper.