KHS musicians, symphony pro connect through Adopt-A-School
One of the state’s most accomplished musicians visited band practice at Kinston High School on Thursday and made plans to come back.
Rebekah Daley, principal horn of the North Carolina Symphony, beamed in for a virtual get-acquainted visit that was the first of several sessions KHS band director Leonard Palmer and his students earned by being chosen for the symphony’s Adopt-A-School program.
The program pairs K-12 students and teachers statewide with professionals like Daley, a 32-year-old who took up piano at age 4 and who has been playing the French horn for 20 years. She won her position as principal horn in 2012 while pursuing her graduate work at the Shepherd School of Music.
Palmer expects her presence as a musical tutor during the current semester – even if occasional and virtual – will be especially beneficial to the several students in the band who aspire to earn music scholarships to college.
“One of the things I’m definitely going to get her to do is to provide instruction for our college auditions, to help out with that process,” Palmer said before Daley’s first visit. “I have been working on their solo repertoire, some of the more difficult pieces so they can get scholarships.”
The details of how Adopt-A-School fits into Palmer’s instructional program, which varies from marching band to International Baccalaureate musicians, will be worked out in the next few weeks; but on Thursday, Daley’s presence was a lesson in itself – Palmer’s thinking being that it is easier to be it if you can see it.
“I know our students don’t get a lot of additional help that many of their peers elsewhere get a chance to have,” Palmer said. “I also wanted them to have the opportunity to hear from a professional, someone who is performing on a high level. That way they’ll know what needs to take place in order to be able to play on that level.”
What it takes is dedication and being prepared for those rare times when an opening in an orchestra occurs – not until someone retires in most cases, Daley told the students via Zoom.
“I auditioned for colleges back when I was 17 just like a lot of you guys. I auditioned for about six different conservatories. I knew I wanted to do music and all I wanted to do is practice,” she said.
Earning undergraduate and graduate degrees in horn performance, she went to “probably 20 different auditions” for positions with orchestras. “Basically, what you do is get a huge list of solos and chunks of music from the orchestral repertoire and then you show up with 60 to 100 people and you play for three to five minutes behind a screen, so they can’t tell what you look like or your gender or whatever. Usually they have a bunch of rounds like that,” Daley said.
Her first round with the KHS musicians went well. Palmer introduced her to the students, swiveling his laptop so she could see their faces on Zoom. The students asked questions, expressing surprise that playing in the symphony is a paying gig, and applauded enthusiastically when Daley gave them a sample of her skill with the French horn.
“This is my only skill, so I should be good at it,” she joked.
Palmer promised his students that Daley would work with them on their etudes, or the short compositions designed to improve technique and to demonstrate a player’s proficiency – an essential element for a high school student contemplating an audition for a college band.
“I’m definitely going to make sure she gives you some criticism,” the band director said.
“And hopefully some helpful advice,” Daley added.
