DCYOP Violinists Star in Spring Concerts

By Sandy Choi, Community Engagement and Digital Media Manager

As we return to the University of the District of Columbia’s Theater of the Arts for our end-of-season concerts, two of our own violinists will take the stage in solo performances – one a veteran of the program and the other a brand new member of the DCYOP family.

Whitney Bruch, an eighth-grade student at St. Stephens and St. Agnes School in Alexandria, Virginia, is an ISL champion for cross country with a record mile time, a regional science fair first prize winner, and a lead volunteer of a Handwriting Club for ESL students. Somewhere in between all of that, she finds the time to study the violin and play in both the DC Youth Orchestra and Young Virtuosi (YV) chamber orchestra.

“I really enjoy being part of the YV,” Whitney says. I have made a lot of friends within the group. It is one of the best parts of my week. One of my favorite parts is that Mr. Solomon shares funny stories with us, and when I ask him questions, he always fully answers them and encourages me.”

Whitney has been a member of DCYOP since she joined the Young Artists Orchestra six years ago. She currently studies with Leo Sushansky and Kim Fisher, and she began her violin studies at the age of six with Emil Chudnovsky. For Whitney, it’s a dream come true to make her solo debut performing the first movement of Mozart’s Concerto No. 3 with the YV on the May 15^th afternoon concert.

“Getting to play the Mozart Violin Concerto No. 3 with the YV is a great honor, and I am so excited to get to perform as a soloist. Ever since I was eight years old, I have wanted to pursue music professionally, and I am so honored and thankful that Mr. Solomon has chosen me to play with the YV.”

At just six years old, Aurora Su had only been studying violin for three years when she joined the Young Artists Orchestra as one of its students this past fall. She has been studying with Magdalena Richter since she was four years old, and recently started to also take lessons with Emil Chudnovsky. Aurora will be performing the first movement of Vivaldi’s Concerto in E Major with members of the Young Virtuosi on our May 14^th afternoon concert.

“I like being with the orchestra playing together with many instruments,” Aurora told us. It has been her first experience playing with an ensemble and she has really loved being able to rehearse and perform with other students.

Aurora has already won several competitions including the first and second rounds of her division in the 2022 Crescendo Competition, which gave her the opportunity to make her debut performance at Carnegie Hall earlier this year.

“I loved it!” Aurora exclaimed when asked about the experience. “I felt happy and joyful playing on the stage. The hall was so big, bigger than I expected. I loved the sound. I like standing up on a stage and performing.”

Aurora’s love of music goes beyond just violin, which she says she was drawn to because she liked its beautiful sound. She also plays the piano, and enjoys composing and improvising on both instruments. She frequently shares her love of performing on her Instagram account (@aurora_su_violinist), where she has over 3,200 followers. Aurora is also an avid artist who loves to read non-fiction books, especially about animals and famous historical figures, and write her own poetry.