The Sweet Sounds of Youth

The Verdugo Young Musicians’ Association offers kids the opportunity to flex their creative muscle in an ensemble setting

By Teena Apeles

photo by Christopher Rainone

When most people think of an orchestra, an image of a bunch of kids with stringed instruments isn't likely to come to mind. But at the Verdugo Young Musicians' Association, kids are the main attraction.

“Real musicians … only younger” is the tagline for the nonprofit, which was founded in 2001 after concerned parents, music teachers and professional musicians in the area recognized the need for a program that introduced ensemble playing to musicians just getting into their crafts. The VYMA does just that and in an environment that favors cultivation over competition.

Professional violin player and VYMA Associate Director Leslie Woodbury knows all too well what happens when young musicians don't have the opportunity to showcase their skills. “A lot of my students go to private schools, so they didn't have any kind of music program. So no matter how talented they were, no matter how much they were practicing, they didn't get to have the payoff,” says Woodbury. “They didn't get to perform with other kids and have the social part of it, so they quit.”

Headed by Music Director Samvel Chilingarian, who also serves as the conductor of its orchestra, VYMA provides quality music education to kids in a noncompetitive environment through orchestral programs, professional coaching, a chamber music program and even an arts academy that offers classes in music theory, rhythm fundamentals and pop ensemble. VYMA's programs run in 14-week cycles during fall and spring, with a public performance at the end of the semester. Chilingarian and Woodbury stress that VYMA is not a substitute for school music programs or private lessons, but rather another place where kids of all ages and levels can come to flourish.

VYMA has a professional teacher for each group of students in a section, whether it's the first violin section or the cello section. “Schools can't provide what we provide,” adds Woodbury. “They don't have the time or the manpower. In public schools you have one teacher for the entire orchestra and a limited amount of time.”

The VYMA currently serves around 60 kids ranging in age from 7 to 17 —   double the number of kids they started with — representing more than 40 local high schools. The association rents performance and rehearsal space from Glendale's First Congregational Church, where it's not unusual on Tuesday afternoons to hear the Verdugo Youth Orchestra rehearsing a piece by Beethoven or the score from “Star Wars.” Currently the orchestra is tackling James Bond themes, though the normal programming still includes Baroque, Classical and Romantic pieces, of course. The use of popular music, says Chilingarian, is just another way of raising the enthusiasm of the young musicians.

Viola player Michelle Hansen joined VYMA six years ago when she was 11, and now you'll find no greater supporter of the organization. “All the coaches are really accommodating and they're really helpful,” says Hansen. “They don't try to push you too hard and they're really caring. You learn a lot from them without them being mean to you.”

Hansen, who has experience with another orchestra's conductor who was “really harsh and demanding,” was thrilled to return to VYMA after such a hostile environment. “We laugh all the time and get a lot of things done, too — and we play really well,” she says. “I'm just amazed at how Sam and all the coaches get us to play as well as we do while still having fun.”

There is a conscious effort by VYMA staff to not put the kids through the same traumatizing moments they experienced during their own childhoods. That includes the disappointment of not getting selected for an orchestra, which was another reason VYMA was started. While there are many youth orchestras in Southern California, most serve kids at the junior high and high school level who are more advanced in their skills. Some of the parents who helped found VYMA had elementary school children who were not accepted into other orchestras — and not always in the most gentle manner — because their playing wasn't as developed.

VYMA is “all-inclusive,” welcoming kids of all levels to its orchestra and eschewing the traditional seating hierarchy used in orchestras. “There is a tradition we all grew up with that was very brutal,” says Woodbury, “the tradition of pitting kids against each other, and it's counterproductive and damaging. We move people around all the time during rehearsal. They don't even have the concept that they're sitting in the fifth chair and that means they're not as good as one through four. They don't even know that [hierarchy] exists.”

According to Chilingarian, that spirit is what makes the VYMA such a rewarding experience. “We just inspire them and get them to feel good about themselves and do the best that they can,” he says. “At least that's where my job ends. I know that I've done what I intended to do, whether they become musicians afterwards or stop playing their instruments.”

For kids like 11-year-old Noah Sonderling, a violinist, other orchestras simply didn't give him the opportunity to play with kids his own age. He joined VYMA in February after his school music teacher suggested it. “I get to work with kids close to my level,” says Sonderling. “I don't want to sound conceited, but in my school there are a lot of kids who aren't as good as me.”

The VYMA does have quite a few things to gloat about. A group of its youngest violinists appeared in rocker Ozzy Osbourne's music video in 2001, and many of its chamber groups have won competitions. Recently, even the folks at the prestigious Los Angeles Philharmonic took notice. The VYO was selected as one of eight youth orchestras for the inaugural cycle of the L.A. Phil's Youth Orchestra Partners Program, launched in 2006 to nurture the next generation of concertgoers and participants. As part of the program, VYO receives valuable instruction from L.A. Phil musicians, including instrumental coaching, master classes and workshops.

Karl Montevirgen, manager of the Young Musician programs at the L.A. Phil, credited the selection of the VYO to “Samvel Chilingarian's strong musical leadership, the high artistic quality and dedication of the young orchestra members and the dedication of the VYO staff and community of parents.” The partnership culminates in a performance by the young orchestra at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in November, a dream come true for musicians of any age.

The Verdugo Youth Orchestra's spring concert is June 2 at 3 p.m. at the First Congregational Church at 2001 Cañada Blvd., Glendale. For more information on the Verdugo Young Musicians' Association, contact Samvel Chilingarian at (818) 951-6482, or visit www.vyma.org .