Lake Forest Academy students Sienna Yang ‘27 and Davin Lee ’26, were recently selected to be part of the Illinois Music Education Association. They competed against hundreds of other talented musicians in Illinois to secure their spot in the association. LFA’s orchestra spends countless hours practicing to create musical masterpieces, as recently seen at their fall concert. Yang and Lee’s hours of practice have not been overlooked. The LFA and the Illinois orchestra community have seen their hard work over the past few years.
Yang emphasized the importance of practicing as she has seen her hard work and long hours of practice finally pay off. She mentioned that she has played violin since second grade, having started around eight years ago. With this, she has been given musical opportunities and is also a part of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra. The motive for this practice stems from the love for the instrument and “the performing aspect because it makes me happy when I see people enjoying the music.” Being selected as a member of this association makes her feel that all her hard work has finally accounted for something.
Earlier in the year, she and her classmates sent in video auditions for the association. Lee and Yang were then picked as finalists and later selected to be a part of the concert on November 9th. They will perform at Glenbrook South High School in a statewide concert, hosting incredibly talented musicians from all over the state. This concert enables both LFA students to show off their musical talents and learn from other talented musicians.
Lee is LFA’s renowned clarinet player. He has been playing for a long time and has even had the opportunity to play at Carnegie Hall. He is also a part of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra and has dedicated many hours to perfecting his playing.
Both of these talented young musicians have devoted a lot of time and put in the necessary effort to get to where they are today. The endless hours of practice and experience have pushed them to this next level, and we, as a community, cannot wait to see where they will go next.
