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Student Life Pianist practices her pianoforte Claire Guo
Co-Student Life Editor Sophomore Angeline Ma still remembers when competitions made her nervous, when walking up to that sleek black piano brought sweat to her fingers and butterflies to her stomach. But that’s not her now. No, now Ma is delving into her tenth year playing piano with a score of accolades to her name. She’s won awards in the International Young Artist Piano Competition, the Chopin International Piano Competition and many more. She has consistently been accepted to PianoSummer at New Paltz, a prestigious international camp that completely covers the tuition of fewer than 30 kids each year. Most recently, Ma is one of only 18 students to receive a scholarship from the Chopin Foundation of the United States for the 2017-2018 school year. The national program annually awards scholarships of $1,000 on a competitive basis, rewarding pianists for a distinctive interpretation of famed composer Frédéric Chopin´s work. But despite all that, Ma believes it was the more local Greenfield Competition of the Philadelphia Orchestra this last March that transformed her approach to piano. “I realized that there were certain things lacking, like authenticity, in my playing, and that onstage I was more worried about the right note than actually feeling and giving a more genuine interpretation of the music,” Ma said. “I don’t know what it is exactly about that competition that helped me realize that, but after that, I started playing more from the heart.” Ma typically practices two to three hours every day, polishing about three hours of memorized material—mostly classical pieces from renowned composers like
Chopin. Since she finds piano more tiring than homework, practice takes place soon after coming home and before starting the latter. Through hours and hours of practice, Ma has learned how to “truly listen” to herself and recognize potential improvements. Unintentionally, that mindful listening has expanded beyond piano. “It’s helped me become more self-aware in everything that goes around me, like perception of time, and it’s helped refined my senses in a way, especially my ear,” Ma said. “Also, without having the strong appreciation for music, I wouldn’t really have this appreciation for all the everyday sounds, too. And everyday sounds can be inspiring—it’s like they’re all music.” Ma is taught by Philadelphian Susan Starr, an accomplished pianist who has performed in recitals and with orchestras worldwide. Starr says Ma is easy to teach. “Oh, Angeline is a wonderful student. There’s so much that I don’t have to explain to her and she learns very quickly and she is very talented,” Starr said. “I am expecting great things from her.” Ma is currently preparing her repertoire for four more competitions. Then applications for summer scholarships will follow—and in the more distant future, applications for music schools like Juilliard and the Curtis Institute. As she prepares for those future opportunities, Ma intends to remember what she’s learned from the Greenfield competition and perform her craft with the authenticity that music demands. She hopes others will do the same with their own passions. “So, as with music, the things that you do, they have to come from your heart. You have to will it.” Ma said. “Like it’s not something somebody else tells you to do, or something that’s right—it’s something that makes you happy.”
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Tuesday, October 10, 2017
Claire Guo/The SPOKE
Keyed up: Sophomore Angeline Ma plays from memory on her piano at home. Ma received a Chopin Foundation of the United States scholarship.
Exchange students come to ’Stoga
Courtesy Jenn Weintraub
Exchanging support: Seniors Maria Klammer, Nam Nguyen, Jules Basset, Gonzalez De Ugarte and Rodrigo Lorencin stand together on the back porch of Lorencin’s host family, the Weintraubs. They left their home countries as part of the American Field Service student exchange program to experience what high school is like in the United States.
Dhivya Arasappan and Olivia Thompson Staff Reporters
Five new exchange students from countries around the world walk the hallways at ’Stoga this year as part of the American Field Service (AFS) program. They have left their homes and families to experience what high school is like in the United States.
Jules Basset - Hosted by Jeanne & Don Braun, Kathleen & Chakib Bouhdary For senior Jules Basset, moving to the United States as part of the student exchange program was part of the plan. When a friend from France recommended the program a few years ago, he knew he wanted to take action. “For two years I asked my parents and last year they said okay. I always wanted this,” Basset said. Making the switch was difficult. Basset needs to speak English while doing well in his classes and making friends. “It’s different for all people, but for most we learn really fast,” Basset said. Basset is appreciative of his exchange families and his family at home for helping him through a difficult transition. As for his friends back at home, he recommends everyone try the exchange program. “It’s a really perfect experience. I think that all people need to do this. It’s really really cool,” Basset said. Gonzalez De Ugarte - Hosted by Karen & Bacilio Palomo Senior Gonzalez De Ugarte moved to the US from Chile after learning about the exchange
program through his best friend. He has realized that coming to the United States was an important decision for him to make. His main goal at ’Stoga and in the United States is to learn English. “There (are) a lot of things I know, but not in English,” De Ugarte said. “It is going to help me a lot in the future.” As far as cultural differences go, the size of the school and number of students is a big one. It is especially difficult for De Ugarte, whose school in Chile had about 800 students. “The people are really different. There are all groups inside, it is really hard. They are already started, so it’s hard to get in a group. (In Chile,) we don’t move from that class. We know each other really good. We can always see each other after school. Here, it’s different,” De Ugarte said. De Ugarte regards his future in America as uncertain, but possible. He would like to go back to Chile for college, but perhaps come to the United States for education after.
Maria Klammer - Hosted by Erin & Michael Shine Unlike De Ugarte or Basset, senior Maria Klammer found out about the exchange program through her school. She said that she was happy to
move to the United States. The United States “is big, but the people here are very nice,” Klammer said. Klammer has enjoyed sports both in the United States and in her home country of Austria. She was athletic in Austria and noted that there are fewer days to train here in the US. A big difference that Klammer noticed right away is the size of Conestoga. While she said that it was confusing at first, she has since grown accustomed to it. Klammer came to the United States wanting to learn English while also making friends and having a normal senior life. She said that for her it wasn’t hard to make friends and having met many people through her involvement on the track team, is looking forward to the rest of the year.
Phuong Nam Nguyen - Hosted by Judy & Bruce Weintraub For senior Nam Nguyen, an exchange student from Germany, coming to America was a bit of a culture shock. “I expected it to be very similar, and it came out to be very different actually. It’s still all Western culture. I just say it’s a little bit more colorful because of all the different cultures here. It’s just like amazing. Everything is here. That’s something that I appreciate a lot,” Nguyen said. Nguyen is a self-taught pianist and has an intrinsic love for music. He taught himself to play at the age of 13 with the aid of his note-reading skills, YouTube videos and a close friend. “Three and a half years ago, I started to play piano because there was some soundtracks and few little tunes that I wanted to play, nothing more. And then
a friend of mine also started to play. It escalates to a point where we compete against each other who learned the fastest or harder tunes. We’ve put a lot of time and effort and now it’s part of my life,” Nguyen said. While music is important, Nguyen hopes to be a psychologist in the future and better understand human thought processes. “I was wondering how our brains work, how do we know what things are right and what things are wrong,” Nguyen said. Currently, he is taking Psychology at Conestoga to work towards his goal.
Rodrigo Figueiredo Lorencin Hosted by Jenn & Craig Weintraub Staying in America for his senior year as an exchange student is a serious commitment for Rodrigo Lorencin. Maintaining his grades and playing tennis are his main priorities. It is what will ensure his return to the U.S. for college. Lorencin is taking classes such as Geometry, Anatomy, Physiology and U.S. History. “When I come back to Brazil I go finish (school), and I need my time here to finish the year in Brazil. So I need good grades here to show the people in Brazil to see if I pass,” Lorencin said. As for tennis, Lorencin is a competitive player who trains at the YMCA every day. It is not something he does for fun, but something for his future. “I try to make college here. So I try to make a scholarship here because I play tennis. For my future I would like to play professional (tennis). If I don’t play professional, I have the second option which is to be a doctor,” Lorencin said.
Duty calls: Student volunteers smother smoke Matthew Fan & Scott Hennessy Staff Reporters
’Stoga students volunteer at the Berwyn Fire Company to help respond to the 2,000 EMS calls and 900 fire emergencies it
handles each year. The fire department was founded in 1894, but the Junior Firefighter and EMS program
Matthew Fan/The SPOKE
Fighting fire: ’Stoga students volunteer at the Berwyn Fire Company through the Junior Firefighter and EMS program. The program started in the 1950s, letting volunteers help respond to the 2,900 emergencies called in each year.
started back in the ’50s. “There have been about 30 ’Stoga students who have taken part in it since I became an officer five years ago,” Fire Captain Evan Brazunas said. Currently, junior Scott Meisen and seniors Ashley Kramer, Matt Smith-Tucker, Venul Fernando and others take part in this program. Miesen joined in 2016 while the seniors joined in 2017. If a student wants to join, he or she has to apply, get interviewed and be voted in by the general membership. Then the students train in-house for about a month. “They actually need to want to become a fireman,” Miesen said. “It takes time for people to train you and it is very serious.” They work about 10 hours at the firehouse each week. They assist the firemen by cleaning debris, bringing out the fire hose and getting supplies and tools from the truck. One of their most important duties is setting up the fire hydrant, which is “the lifeline” ac-
cording to Brazunas, at the scene of an active fire. They must earn the trust of their mentors. “You have to prove to them that you know what you’re doing. You have to earn it and show devotion,” Smith-Tucker said. If there is an accident during the school day, the students are notified. “I get a text message to come if there is an emergency. It is not required to come—it’s all volunteer,” Miesen said. Kramer said that she will go if there is an urgent emergency and if all of the volunteers are needed. Despite the level of commitment, the students enjoy the job. “The fire department is like a home outside of home,” Kramer said. The reasons for joining the Junior Firefighter and EMS Program are varied, but the students all have a passion for the job. “It was a childhood dream since I was four,” Miesen said. “It always interested me.” “The experience is nice,” Kramer said. “I like seeing what
happens before the hospital.” Fernando joined because he likes helping people. “It makes me a better person,” he said. And for Smith-Tucker, it simply runs in the family. “My dad was a firefighter in New York City for 27 years,” he said. Although the students enjoy volunteering, they are not sure whether they want to become firemen in the future. “As a volunteer? Yes. As a full job? No,” Miesen said. “I’m not 100% sure I want to do this for my career, but it has afforded me new opportunities,” Smith-Tucker said. Fernando sees the EMS program as a stepping stone to his goal. “I want to become a doctor,” he said. “Being a fireman is a good second option.” Despite their volunteer status, these students carry out their commitments with earnest. “Don’t think light of what we do. Take us seriously,” Miesen said.
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