Student guitarist Molly Manarchy at DC's premier concert venue. . . the White House
On Wednesday November 4, I had the opportunity to fly down to Washington and be part of the White House Music Series. For this series the First Lady brings in musicians from all over the country and from all different styles. I was able to assist Sharon Isbin in a classical guitar workshop in the Blue Room. Sharon Isbin held a master class where she taught both Tim Collobre and I in front of 25 classical guitarists from the Levine School of Music. Following the master class, she coached the Levine School’s guitar ensemble, which Tim and I also had the opportunity to take part in. The students involved in the program were all different ages, from grade school to high school.
From there, we joined the other groups of musicians—pianists, violinists, and cellists—in the East Room to hear their performances, play our guitar ensemble piece, and listen to an inspiring speech by the First Lady. It was so wonderful that she could relate to the hardships, struggles, and wonders that we all experience in our travels as musicians. She said, “If you believe in yourself and put in your best effort, there’s nothing that you can’t achieve. And those aren’t just lessons about music. These are really lessons about life.”
It was such a magical experience. There were over 100 musicians from all over the country, all different ages. The beautiful sounds of music traveled through every room in the White House. It was so much fun and such an honor to be part of this group that could fill the White House with music. It was a humbling experience as well to be surrounded by children and adults with so much passion, dedication, and love for music! Music truly formed a magical circle and bonded us children and adults together. It left us with happy hearts, inspiring us all to follow our dreams with even more passion and love for our music.
—Molly
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