Marysville fourth-graders to perform with the Seattle Symphony

MARYSVILLE — Fourth-graders here are practicing for an experience of a lifetime.

Early next week, Marysville students will make music with the Seattle Symphony in Benaroya Hall.

They and students from more than 100 other schools around the region are set to play their recorders and sing, accompanied by the Grammy award-winning orchestra.

The symphony staff, touched by the shooting at Marysville Pilchuck High earlier this school year, waived fees and made sure that fourth-grade students at most of Marysville’s elementary schools were able to participate.

Music heals, they said.

Concerts with kids are part of the symphony’s music education outreach curriculum, which is based on New York’s Carnegie Hall Link Up program. Rhythm is the focus of this year’s “The Orchestra Rocks” program.

At Sunnyside Elementary, Jace Maier, 10, said he can’t wait to perform “O Fortuna,” the famous tune from Carl Orff’s cantata “Carmina Burana.”

“I like the repetitive beats of that song,” Jace said.

It’s heady stuff.

Students will play and sing the tune “Come to Play,” participate in a minimalist, modern composition “In C” by Terry Riley and in a rhythmic call-and-response piece with the Chief Sealth High School drumline.

They will listen to the orchestra play a movement of Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4, Holst’s “Mars” from “The Planets” and Grieg’s “In the Hall of the Mountain King” from “Peer Gynt.”

Denisha Delatour-Nash, 9, is excited, but nervous about the upcoming concert. Her friend, Brandy Mendoza, 10, is thrilled about the trip to Seattle.

“I’ve never even been to a symphony concert before,” Brandy said. “I am so happy.”

Ava Ferris, 10, said she already knows she will remember the concert for the rest of her life.

“And I will tell my children all about it,” Ava said.

That’s the goal, said Stephanie Rodousakis, the symphony’s school program’s manager.

“We want students to become musicians quickly and have a successful musical experience,” she said. “But we also want to build symphony audiences of the future.”

Rodousakis previously worked with Carnegie Hall and teachers in New York City schools involved in Link Up, from which the Seattle program is drawn.

About 10,000 students will play with the symphony over the course of Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Because students will fill the seats in Benaroya, the interactive concerts are not open to the public.

“It’s a different experience than most adults have had when they were children,” she said. “These students actually get to play with the orchestra. And someday they may say, ‘Hey, I want to go hear the symphony. I really enjoyed that.’ ”

At a time when music isn’t necessarily a part of the curriculum at many elementary schools, and especially where children don’t have money for private music lessons, the outreach is especially meaningful, Rodousakis said.

“Our goal next year is to serve all the children in the Marysville School District,” she said.

Earlier this spring, violinist Richard Marshall, who is best known by his Coast Salish name Swil Kanim, was hired by the symphony to help coach the Marysville students and get them ready for their concerts with the orchestra.

Last week, Swil Kanim talked with the students of music teacher Brenda Ehrhardt at Sunnyside.

“The program has been amazing,” Ehrhardt whispered while she watched. “The kids love it.”

The children followed Swil Kanim with rapt attention as he played a scratchy, squeaky version of “Twinkle, Twinkle” to a round of laughter.

“That’s how I sounded when I was your age and first started playing,” Swil Kanim said. “Music takes practice. Think about playing a video game. You play over and over to get a better score. When you can go through your music without making a mistake, well, whoohoo! High score! You’re cool!

“But what if you do make a mistake? Just focus on the next note and keep playing.”

Then the violinist performed a composition of his own, written in a minor key.

Some of the students told him it sounded sad.

In response, Swil Kanim’s violin became a fiddle playing “Turkey in the Straw.”

“Try to stick out your bottom lip and listen to this,” he said.

Nobody could do it.

Finally, Swil Kanim played the theme music by John Williams written for the movie “Jaws.”

At the end one startled boy fell back in his seat.

“Every feeling has a song and every song has emotion,” Swil Kanim said. “When you play with the symphony orchestra it is important to have the notes down so you can feel the emotion of the music. Practicing means honoring your skills, gifts and talents.”

Gale Fiege: 425-339-3427; gfiege@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @galefiege.