Lives Behind The Instruments

Malik Johnson
Cellist Malik Johnson spent 10 years with MYSO, initially joining Progressions (shown here), and graduating from the Senior Symphony in 2017. He is currently at DePaul University in Chicago, majoring in cello performance.

One of the highlights of Malik's MYSO experience was accepting the 2015 National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award from First Lady Michelle Obama on behalf of MYSO, along with MYSO Executive Director Linda Edelstein.

From Tiny Desk to Kanye West
In 2018, Malik appeared on NPR's Tiny Desk program with the Matt Jones Orchestra, which eventually led them to performing on stage for a Kanye West opera at the Hollywood Bowl in 2019.

Gwen Jorgenson
Olympic gold medalist is not the normal career path for a MYSO graduate, but it happened for violinist Gwen Jorgensen, a 2004 Senior Symphony graduate. She won gold in the Olympic triathlon in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and became the first American triathlete, man or woman, to win an Olympic Gold medal.

Gwen's mother Nancy, a music teacher herself, looks back and says, "some of her [Gwen's] practice habits in sports are habits she learned in music. It's rare to have a spectacular day. It's usually small progress day after day. You just have to put in the time."

Julian Rhee
2018 MYSO alumnus Julian Rhee has already established himself as an internationally-recognized violinist. In 2018, he was named a Presidential Scholar in the Arts, the winner of the Aspen Music Festival Violin Concerto Competition, and winner of the Johansen International Competition. An active chamber musician, Julian’s string quartet won a coveted Gold Medal at the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition and the M-Prize International Chamber Arts Competition.

Most recently, Julian was the first prize winner of the 2020 Elmar Oliveira International Violin Competition.

Composer Isabelle Kramar
A pianist since age four, Isabelle's compositions have come together through piano. She also teaches artificial intelligence workshops for middle school girls. Her parents emigrated from Ukraine in 1996, and her mother marvels at the opportunities Isabelle has received through MYSO.

Her first composition, The Infinite Waltz, was premiered by the Metropolitan Symphony in the spring of 2019.

Lyle Rivera
Lyle, a Jazz Studies guitarist graduated from MYSO in 2019 and is pursuing a degree in Jazz Studies at New York University. . He says, "MYSO provides a safe space for young musicians to improvise as well as perform written music. Improvisation, like any skill, requires a curious and confident mindset."

Rhea Karnick
MYSO flutist Rhea Karnick plays the flute in both the Wind Ensemble and Flute Chorale. She has explored western music, jazz and traditional East Indian musical styles. She has learned to play the tabla, a traditional Indian instrument, and debuted her skills in front of a 200+ live audience in India.

Edna Bosseau
Edna joined MYSO in the first Progressions class in 2003. She said, "I was learning good habits at MYSO without even realizing it." She was the first person in her family to graduate from college, and now teaches calculus and geometry at Carmen High School South in Milwaukee.