Young and Talented!

Left to right: Isaac Pastor-Chermak, Nic Wallin, Rian DeFaccio, Grayson Gold, Elizabeth Wollstein, Rebecca Elshaw.

Saturday evening I had the pleasure of attending the Washington-Idaho Symphony's "Young Artists" concert. It is always inspiring to experience a live performance and add to that the excitement of hearing such talented young musicians and you have a stellar evening!

Isaac Pastor-Chermak is a senior at Moscow High School and studies cello under Linda and Bill Wharton. Isaak performs with the Walla Walla Symphony, the Rendezvous Chamber Players and the University of Idaho Symphony and Chamber Orchestras among others. I found his interpretation of the "Adagio-Moderato" and "Lento-Allegro molto" movements of Sir Edward Elgar's "Cello Concerto in E minor" mature beyond his years.

I was particularly struck by seeing exactly how much of the cello's fret board Elgar uses in this work. He uses it all! It's really an amazing piece to listen to and was even more amazing when seeing Isaacs fingers fly over the entire length of his cello's fret board!


Conductor Nic Wallin certainly fits into the young and talented department as well. While he holds a Master's degree from Northwestern University in tuba performance and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in conducting and has extensive professional experience he still looks awfully young! This is his third season conducting the Washington Idaho Symphony. This season he is also conducting some of the Spokane Symphony's educational concerts around the region. Nic hails from Ann Arbor, Michigan and we are fortunate that he now resides in Moscow, Idaho. In July of 2006 he went to St. Petersburg to study and conduct as a participant in the International Academy of Advanced Conducting.


Rian DeFaccio hails from Seattle, Washington and is now a sophomore at Washington State University in Pullman. Rian is studying with Dr. Jeff Savage and the holder of awards including Best Rhythm Section at the 2004 Viking Jazz Festival. Rian brought out both the otherworldly feel to the "Adagio assai" movement of Maurice Ravel's "Piano Concerto in G" and the wonderfully humorous edge to the "Presto" which Rian aptly described as "goofy." It was a pleasure to hear and watch him play.


Soprano Grayson Gold graduated from Washington State University last December with a degree in music. She delighted us with a rendition of "Una donna a quincidi anni" from Mozart's "Cosi fan tutte."
Playing the role of a 15 year old coquette, Grayson displayed a lovely vocal quality along with a flirtatiousness that, according to the lyrics, caused her to "Speak through her eyes..."


Flutist Elizabeth Wollstein introduced me to the "Flute Concerto in D, Op. 283" of the Danish composer Carl Reinecke. She has a delightful, silvery quality to her tone and, like the other young performers, was not easy on herself. Reinecke gives the flutist plenty of opportunity to "show off" during the "Finale" of his concerto. Elizabeth did the piece justice and her beautiful tone came shining through.
She is a junior at Washington State University studying with Anne Yasinitsky. Elizabeth performs with the WSU Symphony Orchestra and Wind Symphony among others.


Rebecca Elshaw sang "Marquerite's Aria" also known as the "Jewel Song" from Charles Gounod's "Faust." I like to think of this aria as the female fantasy song. Why? Because it's all about jewelry ladies! Rebecca sang about opening a casket of jewels, delighting in what she sees and delighting even more in what she sees in her mirror as she tries on the various glittering baubles.

Again, not an easy piece to sing and I was very impressed by her rendition. I would rather stand up in front of 5,000 people and speak than sing in front of five! Rebecca is a soprano from Olympia, Washington now studying with Dr. Julie Anne Wieck at Washington State University. Rebecca performs with the Concert Choir, Madrigal Singers, VoJazz and Opera Workshop.

Ladies.....may I say that you all looked fabulous! Not to take away anything from the men but your dresses were fantastic!

The "Young Artists Concert" showcased not just the talents of these young performers but the legacy being passed onto them by their teachers and mentors, many of whom were performing with the Washington Idaho Symphony that evening.

In a very touching moment, Isaac Pastor-Chermak handed the bouquet of flowers presented to him to his teacher first cellist Linda Wharton and then shook the hand of his other teacher, Bill Wharton.