~Ruben Lee, Class of 2024 

When I started playing the cello in third grade, I had no idea how much it would impact the next five years of my life. From creating many great memories to learning valuable lessons, the cello has been an essential part of my life. In the Summer of 2016, I started my cello career; I practiced consistently and learned the basics of the cello. 

During this time, my ambition to become a great musician grew. So, in the hopes of becoming a better cellist, I decided that I wanted to join an orchestra, and that marked the start of my journey at the New England Conservatory of Music, one of the premier preparatory orchestras in New England. During the beginning years, I consistently climbed one orchestra level per audition. However, in the Fall of 2023, I jumped two levels and was placed in the Youth Repertory Orchestra. 

At first, I was ecstatic; it was another opportunity to improve and showcase my skills on the cello. However, just from the first rehearsal, I realized that I was in over my head. The complexity of the music as well as the skill of the cellists were much higher than I had expected. For the next couple of weeks, I struggled to get a solid footing on the music and felt inferior to my fellow cellists. Arrogantly and wrongly, I had assumed that my talent and skills would be sufficient. In truth, I was not prepared to play at that high level of music. I had let my guard down, and my attitude did not match my passion for wanting to get better at the instrument. 

By dwelling on my shortcomings, I was wasting that opportunity to improve. I questioned myself, if I kept being safe and staying within my comfort zone, how was I ever going to improve? With newfound inspiration etched in my mind, I was determined to work harder and rise to the challenge. I abandoned the mindset of being the best cellist in the room or being the youngest; now, I was at the bottom, in need of working up to my goals. 

Because of my new-found attitude, I was able to go beyond the “expectations” I had of myself. The mental barrier that said, “That’s good enough” was broken. Due to this new experience, I have learned that talent is not something that works well alone and that hard work needs to be accompanied. 

Just like a pen and paper, used individually, they have limited capabilities. However, when used in harmony, there are an endless amount of possibilities that emerge.