Tuba Player Ready for College Game Days

1st chair senior Adriana Derksen’s favorite memory playing in orchestra is her freshman year visit to Chicago to play the tuba with upperclassmen. “It was just a great experience to have, to travel with the band and play in a professional symphony center which was really cool, because obviously, the sound is amazing,” she said.

Now nearing her final high school concert on May 10, Derksen’s many years as a Campolindo musician is coming to an end. Fortunately, she expects the performance to go well. “I think overall it will be a good concert, which helps with moving on from it because the worst thing would be that regret from ‘yeah band was fun’ but the last concert I had wasn’t what I wanted it to be,” she said.

It certainly won’t be the last time she ever plays, however. Derksen committed to Ohio State University, where she plans on continuing her musical talents in their band. OSU is known for its major sports programs, from football to hockey, which Derksen hopes to take advantage of in order to play in both the concert band and pep band.

“I think it will just be a really good way to get into the school spirit and really see what the school has to offer because we also get to travel with the teams to playoff and different rallies on campus,” said Derksen.

The shift from a more formal course of music at Campolindo to an extracurricular in college may also help her pursue more of her individual music tastes. When she can fit practicing the tuba in her schedule, said Derksen, she plays music she “wanted to learn” more than rehearsing for concerts.

Beyond college, Derksen said the future for her music is uncertain but hopeful. “It’s hard to say now. I’d like to continue in a community band, but I also know that I’m not going to study music in college specifically, so if I continue it will be on the side when I have time for it,” she said.