Students savor opportunity to open for BSO

LYNN – A group of Lynn string students were only too happy to play second fiddle to members of the Boston Symphony Orchestra on Sunday.”It was such a unique experience,” said Tatiana DeJesus, 17, a violinist and junior at Essex Agricultural and Technical High School. “I think we did a good job.”Members of the Lynn All-City High School String Orchestra not only got to hear the world-class Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) musicians perform, the student musicians got to have the musical experts follow them onstage as the afternoon’s main act.Four members of the BSO visited Lynn Classical High School Sunday as part of the orchestra’s Community Chamber Concert program. The program brings hour-long concerts to local communities with limited economic and/or geographic access to the world-famous orchestra.Sunday’s event was the eighth of twelve local concerts this season.But Lynn was only one of three communities to participate in an Artistic Exchange with the symphony orchestra, where a local group of young performers opens for the members of the BSO.That group was the Lynn All-City High School String Orchestra, directed by Brianna Pesce and with string musicians who are students at Classical, English and Essex Agricultural and Technical high schools and Pickering Middle School. All of the students have been in the Lynn Public Schools String Program since elementary school and have gathered twice a week after school to rehearse.The students performed “Preludio” and “Allegro” by Arcangelo Corelli, presenting a selection from the Baroque era.Members of the BSO performed repertoire from subsequent periods. They began with the Beethoven string Trio in C minor, Opus 9, no. 3, from 1795-1796, when the composer experimented with chamber music in preparation for his famous string quartets.BSO cellist Jonathan Miller described their next selection, the Debussy String Quartet in G minor, Op. 10, as like seeing an “Indonesian romantic film with western actors and in a western cinema.” Miller explained that Debussy was heavily influenced by Indonesian music in writing the piece, but translated these sounds into the traditional western musical form of the string quartet.The students and professional musicians gathered afterwards to share stories, advice and questions and praise and some snacks.”We weren’t nervous, we usually are but this one we weren’t,” said Mazina Sang, 17, a violist in her junior year at Lynn English.DeJesus agreed.”I think that with the entire community coming to support us on their own time on a Sunday really helped,” DeJesus said.The assessment was shared by the audience members.”They were amazing,” said Nepheli Beos, 16, a sophomore at Lynn English who plays the flute. She added that her sister Natalia performed in the string orchestra. “I was pleasantly surprised.”The professionals agreed.”It was lovely,” BSO Cellist Jonathan Miller said of the youth performance. “I enjoyed it very much.”