By Staff Writer, Colleen Park

It was seven years ago when he first felt the allure of music tugging at his heartstrings. It was to be a fascination that would last a lifetime. The following year, he picked up his first instrument and began to play.

            For sophomore Jonathan Adrias, music has been a part of his life since the fourth grade. That was when he first started to learn how to play the clarinet, which is just one of the eight instruments he can play. At this point, the list includes piano, drums, saxophone, alto and tenor, xylophone, oboe, and a little bit of flute.
            When he first picked up the clarinet, Adrias had little idea of the life-long fascination he was about to embark. After watching jazz band member Carolyn Mills (’07) play the instrument in elementary school, it just seemed like fun to him.
            “I saw her play when I was in the third grade and she was in the fifth grade. She was such a talented player. I wanted to be just like her,” Adrias said.
            Since then, Adrias has significantly polished his musical skills, improving so much that Mills herself is more than happy to have motivated him to play.
            “[It is] cool to have someone so good be inspired by you,” Mills said.  
            As he entered middle school, Adrias was presented with opportunities that edified his interest in music, specifically marching band.
            “[Marching band] showed me another aspect of music [because it] incorporated marching in a military fashion,” Adrias said.
            Marching is one of the more thrilling facets of music, he said.
            “You have to multi-task. Focus on posture, instrument carriage, and
memoriz[ation of] sheet music,” he said.
 

            Marching band may have also been the catalyst to his enthusiasm for learning new instruments. In the seventh grade, he joined the Toll Middle School marching band with the clarinet, becoming a drum major the next year. It was not until high school that he added drums to his arsenal of instruments.
            “I wanted to broaden my musical knowledge through instruments,” Adrias said.
            He admits that some instruments were easier to learn than others because of their similarity. His two years of piano experience made it easier to learn to play the xylophone for marching band. For Adrias, his preferred instrument remains the clarinet, having the longest experience playing it and thus having more skill with it.
            “I like how you can do both concert and marching style,” Adrias said.
            Not only does he strive to learn and improve, but Adrias also helps others in the music program according to his best friend of three years and fellow marching band member Janet Kim (’09).
            “[He] tries to help other people. Whenever there is new music, some people have trouble with it so he helps them with the rhythm and reading,” Kim said.
            Music is as much a part of his social life, as most of his friends are also a part of the music program.
            “Without music, [he] would be a completely different person,” marching band member Maneeya Imlay (’08) said. “Music brought him to most of his friends.”
            It is apparent that music is a major part of his life since he dedicated his school day and free time to playing. Besides the morning and after school practices that marching band and drum corps required of him, Adrias voluntarily practiced an additional minimum of two hours on weekends.
Imlay, impressed with his dedication, simply comments, “[Music is the] first thing he does in the morning, [and the] last thing he does at the end of the day.”