Amidst Northwood’s academic demands and school ensembles, student musicians are reaching beyond school walls to connect with their community. During the O.C. Lantern Festival last Saturday, several Northwood students in the South Coast Chinese Orchestra performed at Segerstrom Center for the Arts to celebrate the Lunar New Year.
The annual event featured a festive combination of dance, martial arts and music. The orchestra performed six traditional Chinese pieces including “The Dance of Yi” and “Spring of Tian Shan,” blending traditional Chinese instruments like the pipa, erhu and yangqin with Western instruments like violin and piano.
“I feel very glad that I can communicate with people of the same culture and represent it,” violinist sophomore Amy Liang said. “It sometimes can be hard for all the instruments to come along very nicely, but with practice, it’s very nice that we can get together and create beautiful music for the audience to hear.”
Founded in 2017, the orchestra has grown from 20 members to nearly 80 performers. Musicians rehearse every Wednesday from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the South Coast Cultural Association Center. While auditions are required, the orchestra’s diversity and frequent performance opportunities give many high school students professional-level experience.
For freshman Selina Zhang, who began playing the erhu at 5 years old, the orchestra presented the opportunity to explore her unique passion.
“I feel proud because there’s only a small amount of people that can actually play a Chinese instrument,” Zhang said. “When I play with a lot of other people, I feel safe facing the audience and it’s like we’re all together forming a strong force. I feel like I belong here.”
The orchestra’s performances are made possible by music director Bin He and orchestrator Siwei Liu, who arrange the repertoire.
“The main purpose is to tell a story through the music, through the performing arts and that’s the Asian culture and value,” He said. “By presenting the whole thing on stage, we enhance our mutual understanding and bring the community together.”
The orchestra is open to all interested students. Find more information at www.sccca.org/programs-cp/south-coast-chinese-orchestra/.
