Harmony Magnet Academy senior Jaydyn Justice Drake received the chance to do what few have had the opportunity to do when it comes to Carnegie Hall's mission: Bringing the Arts To Life.
Drake performed at Carnegie Hall last week with a talented high school students from across the country in a concert choir as part of Carnegie Hall's Honors Performance Series. Drake performed with the other students in one of Carnegie's spacious halls that had 2,804 seats. “It was incredible,” she said. “The space is huge.”
Selection for the Honors Performance Series requires a nomination/recommendation from a music professional. Nominees receive an invitation with a nomination certificate and program and application details. Applicants submit a completed application form, performance biography, and audition recording. Completed applications are reviewed by an expert board of music professionals. Selected musicians are assigned to ensembles based upon voicing/instrumentation requirements.
Drake and the choir performed six numbers, including a song about the people of the earth and one of the world's most popular songs, Ave Maria the prayer to the Virgin Mary. They also performed the Seal Lullaby and Clap Phrase, a 7-minute song involving clapping and also Get On Board Little Children and Where Your Bare Foot Walks.
Before Drake and the students could perform they had to go through two intensive rehearsals totaling 18 hours. In the first rehearsal they dove right in without even warming up. “That was really intense and brutal,” said Drake, admitting some of the students weren't ready to dive in without warming up.
The students rehearsed and performed under the direction of conductor/composer/songwriter Dr. Andre J. Thomas, Visiting Professor of Choral Conduction and Conductor of Camerata at Yale. Drake said she enjoyed being conducted by Thomas.
She said while Thomas said a lot of the same things her other instructors have said, he provided more of an anecdotal way of teaching showing “like how it works” and “this is how I do things. I really liked that.”
Drake said she also enjoyed performing with the other students, saying she made friends with one student who wrote a song that's going to be performed at Juilliard. “They were all incredible,” she said. “It was a lot of talent in one room. It was really cool.”
About the rehearsals and performance, Drake said, “The experience was really interesting.”
Drake also received a chance to watch the Broadway musical & Juliet twice, once with the lead actress and once with the understudy as Juliet. She said she enjoyed watching the differences of the two performances. “It was really cool,” she said.
She added she also impressed with the set design. “I really liked how they incorporated the set design into the story. It was a cool experience.”
Drake has been involved in theater since she was 9 years old. She has performed under Dr. Mary Shaw with the Barn Theater Junior Company and for four years at the Junior Theater Festival in Sacramento and Houston.
She said she's thankful for a supportive family, her father, Justin Drake and her mother, Jesika Bowker. As far as her immediate plans, Drake plans to perform at the Our Heroes Dreams Spectacular a week from today at the Buck Shaffer Theater and the Porterville Memorial Auditorium.
Drake will also be featured in a showcase on March 8 at the Barn Theater that will feature a video of her Carnegie Hall performance.
As far as after high school while Drake said she plans to eventually study English and Theater, the time is now to pursue her dream.
She said she will “hit the ground running and try to make it as a performer.”