16 minute read
2021 YMU Student
2021
YMU Student Spotlight Hall of Fame
Advertisement
T H E Y O U N G M U S I C I A N ' S U N I V E R S I T Y
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT Azaria Jenkins
CONGRATS!!
I am an A/B Honor Roll 9th grade student at Spring Valley High School and in my personal time, I am also a fashionista who enjoys creating and styling trendy outfits. I have one little brother and one little sister with another little sister on the way. I am very passionate about my goals and I believe "No" is not the final answer because there are always alternate solutions. Music has always been a personal joy and very close to my heart. Besides singing I really love to write. On my musical journey writing has lead me to explore poetry and rapping. In the future, I look forward to a career as a singer/ songwriter working alongside seasoned professionals. "Azaria has really shown some growth lately. She's been more consistent about practicing and she's doing great with retaining the information that we're learning about the voice. Her love for singing has her trying some new challenges, including singing in front of other people. She also came to our first virtual event for voice students and had everyone laughing at her Song Association answers. Azaria has really started to come out of her shell, and I'm proud to be her teacher.
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT Tierra Ingram
CONGRATS!!
ABOUT TIERRA
I am 17 and a junior at Spring Valley High School. I play the piano and have been a student at YMU for about 8 years. I like to listen to music and play new pieces. I consider myself a hard worker and like to try new things. I look forward to exploring music further in the future!
"Not only does Tierra continue to excel musically, but she continues to grow in confidence in other areas. During our Anniversary month, she registered for multiple events and even won the Music Spelling Bee in the Middle/High School Competition. This is a wonderful achievement for Tierra. Not only did she compete in multiple events, but she also wrote part of a song in the Songwriting Masterclass with Ms. Kierra. Tierra is doing exceptionally well in her YMU Ear Training Essentials 2 Course for piano. It's a joy watching her grow not only as a musician but also as an individual. Keep up the good work!" -Mr. Gray, YMU Instructor
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT Kayleigh Clark
CONGRATS!!
ABOUT KAYLEIGH
Kayleigh is four years old and recently began piano lessons at The Young Musician's Academy. She loves going to see Ms. Kierra each week! Kayleigh enjoys the coloring activities in her music books, singing songs, and getting candy at the end of each lesson. She also loves Mozart Mouse, Beethoven Bear, and learning the musical ABCs. She is having a lot of fun learning her first instrument! My student spotlight nomination is Kayleigh Clark. She’s always so excited to come to class, she turns in all of her homework, and she’s very focused and engaged. I love her energy and willingness to try her best in class. She has great diligence for such a young age.
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT ISABELLA WALL
CONGRATS!!
Miss Isabella Wall is affectionately known as Bella in our family. She's full of laughter, love, and tons of questions! She loves to explore and she's extremely curious about the world around her. She loves music and sings ALL the time. Once she masters piano, her goal is to conquer the drums! She has a kind heart and is nurturing to the smallest of God's creations (when she sees an ant, she tries to move it aside rather than step on it��). She loves the park and being outdoors. She loves to draw and create her own stories. She's also an honorary member of Chick-fil-A, as that seems to be her meal choice at least once every week! This month, my Student Spotlight Nomination goes to Isabella Wall. Isabella is an absolute ball of creativity. She is very intelligent, full of questions, and loves the piano. She has no fear in piano class when I ask her to create a song for me on the spot, and she also recently graduated! I'm so proud of you Isabella! Keep up the great work! ~ Kierra Gray, YMU Instructor
KYLEE OTTO
CONGRATS!!
My name is Kylee and I am a 14-year-old freshman at Blythewood High School. I have always been an avid music lover and find joy through playing the piano. I have been a part of YMU for 2 years and love working with the amazing teachers. Ms. Kierra has really taught me how to do things I never thought I could in life. I started with singing but figured out I loved the piano much more. I hope one day, with the amazing things I’ve learned and will learn in the future, I will be able to study it more in high school and college and get a degree in music. I really love being part of the YMU family and learning new things. This month, I nominate Kylee Otto for the YMU Student Spotlight. Kylee is close to finishing her first class in her new books, and while learning new rhythms has been challenging for her, she has continued to grow tremendously! She's also getting ready to leave the country for a few weeks to visit family, and she's prepared to take a portable piano and wake up early due to the time difference, to be able to continue her lessons. I love her dedication and her enthusiasm when it comes to piano class, and she's a joy to teach!
Joshua Adams
CONGRATS!!
My name is Joshua Adams, I am 15 years old and a sophomore at Blythewood High School. I have a twin brother named Jasper that plays drums at YMU. I have been on this journey for about nine years and I'm really glad to see how far I have grown these past few years. Mr. Gray is a great teacher. He has always stuck with me, encouraging me to never give up when I was losing motivation. I am also in my high school orchestra where I play the viola. I started in middle school. When I grow up I would like to become a music composer for movies and video games. I love the YMU community where we are always learning new and challenging things.
This month, I nominate Joshua Adams for the YMU Student Spotlight. Joshua is a very hard-working student and has demonstrated perseverance throughout his musical journey and I'm grateful to be a part of it. Learning anything new is a process and at times will have difficult moments. Sometimes through these challenging times, you will want to give up. However, this is part of the process and that's why at YMU we stress the importance of the parental role in the musical journey. It's important to have a support system that is there to encourage you to persevere through the uphill stages. Joshua has done this several times and has wonderful parental support! Joshua is learning how to play a classical song by ear, and notate (write) it on sheet music. It’s taken a lot of steps to get to this point, but he is excited because it's a song that he truly enjoys. What he has learned at YMU over the years has prepared him for this process. This lesson and the ones to follow will help to prepare him for his dream career, Film/TV/Video-Game Composer. This career choice will allow him to compose (create) music for movies, TV, and video games. Congratulations Joshua Adams, I believe that you can achieve your dreams!
Kasey Lloyd
CONGRATS!!
Katherine "Kasey" Lloyd is 5 years old and was born in Okinawa, Japan. Since she was a baby she has always enjoyed playing in the sand and water at the beach. Her other interests include reading books, arts and crafts, anything with barbie and spider-man, and playing with her big sister Gabby and dog Rocky. Kasey began having an interest in the piano while watching her sister Gabby play. She enjoys playing piano, and she especially gets excited during her lessons with her teacher Ms. Kierra. Her experience at YMU has been a welcomed challenge, and her parents Gentry and Karla Lloyd continue to enjoy watching her progress.
This month, I nominate Kasey Lloyd for the Student Spotlight! Kasey comes to every class excited and ready to learn. She’s very energetic and extremely smart. One thing that I really admire about her though, is that she’s always wiling to try her best. Learning an instrument at such a young age can easily get frustrating, but if Kasey believes that she has tried her best, then she’s content. To have learned that so young is remarkable. Kasey also turned 5 recently, so please join me in wishing her a Happy Birthday!
Christopher Davis
CONGRATS!!
Again, congratulations Christopher!
Keep up the great work! ABOUT CHRISTOPHER
Christopher is a fun-loving, inquisitive, 7-year-old who loves attending his school in Richland School District Two. As early as 5 years old, Christopher has shared that he wants to learn how to play the piano. We thought it was a fad, but he did not stop asking for piano lessons. Over time we realized that he has an ear for beats and a unique ability to memorize patterns. So, we supported his desire to learn piano by enrolling him into The Young Musician's University, where he is flourishing. Christopher also enjoys drawing and painting, telling jokes, video games, trampoline jumping, and science projects. We are so very proud of Christopher and look forward to seeing him grow into the wonderful young man he's destined to be.
This month, I nominate Christopher Davis for our YMU Student Spotlight. Christopher hasn’t been with us for very long, but he’s grown so quickly in playing the piano. He has so much determination to be so young, and his genuine excitement to learn more about the piano is inspiring. Christopher has a very strong work ethic and holds himself to a high standard. I think it’s wonderful that he has such a strong love for music, and I look forward to teaching him and seeing continued growth.
Nixen Roff
CONGRATS!!
Nixen just turned 6 years old and loves to eat pizza. His favorite things to do are play with his brother Adryan, play with his toys, hold his baby brother Aviel, and watch TV. His favorite part of playing the piano is singing along to what he plays. He wants to be a professional singer when he grows up. Nixen said his greatest goal in life is to be friends with everyone. This is such an honor and Nixen is so excited! He truly has learned so much. His dad and I were nervous about putting him in a program that would ultimately challenge him tremendously, but he has picked it up naturally. When we are sometimes lost, Nixen knows when he messes up, even when we don’t catch it. He enjoys playing the piano and singing. For this month's Student Spotlight, I nominate Nixen Roff. Nixen is six years old and he's one of my Little Music Essentials students. He's only been playing piano for about four months and he's already grown so much. I love his excitement for music and his diligence in playing the piano. When he plays a wrong note in class, he's quick to say "Let's start over" and tries it again from the beginning. Nixen is very intelligent and I know he'll do amazing things!
Joshua Campbell
CONGRATS!!
ABOUT JOSHUA
Joshua is a 14-year old honor roll student at Ridgeview High School. He is a percussionist in the marching band as well as the Symphonic Winds Ensemble. When he is not playing music, he enjoys playing video games, swimming, spending time with his twin brother Jaden, and playing with his dog Champ. In the spring, Joshua plans to throw the discus and shot put for the Ridgeview track team. He believes that in order to be successful in life, you have to put God first and work hard. He credits Mr. J for helping him to become a better drummer by keeping him focused and continually challenging him to get better. He also credits Mr. Gray for helping him to become a better mallet site reader, which allowed him to play other instruments such as the xylophone and the marimba. Joshua hopes to pursue a career in the computer field and will continue playing music.
Joshua’s growth has been fun to watch. I remember when there were concepts that he understood, but the challenge was application. He had to learn how to physically execute it on the drumset. Joshua did not allow difficult moments like this to stop him, but instead, he figured out how to execute these concepts as he accepted the challenge. I love how he’s learning new things through exploring ideas of his own. One of the best feelings in the world is to have your student come into a lesson and say, “Hey, I was practicing this, and then I started to play…. ” and it turns out they’ve already started playing the concepts for the next lesson (synergy). I don’t have the words to describe that feeling! It’s an indication of him spending time on the instrument outside the required practice regimen. Deven Jenkins, YMU Instructor
Joshua Campbell has been a YMU student since the age of 4 years old.
