In the Spotlight: Gavin Zimmerman
Shawnee Sparling
Issue date: 1/27/10 Section: Arts and Culture
Many people distribute their time variously in different areas with no main focus. However, junior Gavin Zimmerman focuses most of his time on music and the outcome gives him a great sense of pride for himself.
He spends much of his time every week devoted to the three instrumental ensembles on campus, wind ensemble, jazz ensemble and orchestra.
After several years of constant dedication to his music, he has been awarded the honor of performing in an honors band at the college level.
His hard work and love for music has taken him to new heights and shows him that his dedication is paying off.
"It's a band that you have to apply to get into," explains Zimmerman, "and [getting in] makes you feel like you're one of the better players because you have to actually work to get in to it."
The honors band is a two day event that Zimmerman looks forward to and finds to be an overall fun experience.
"The honors band is like a conference band for high schools only it's for college," says Zimmerman, "They send us the music to practice on our own and we go up there the day before the concert and we have group rehearsals for the first time and then we have a group rehearsal the next day in the morning and then we have the concert that afternoon. It's just a fun extra thing to do during the semester."
Though music is only his minor area of study, he still hopes to incorporate music into his life after college.
"For me, it's been a pretty big thing," says Zimmerman. "It's a hobby; it's something that I wouldn't mind doing on the side [but] not as like a full time job."
Just like many things in life, the music world does not come without its downside. However, for Zimmerman, the challenges are only slight road bumps on his way to success because knowing how to play many instruments gives him a lot of background.
"Being able to play four instruments can get very hectic and confusing," says Zimmerman. "I play my two main instruments, euphonium and trombone. On the side, for fun, I play a little guitar and piano."
His constant strive towards excellence is greatly inspired by his grandfather for always believing in him and pushing him toward his greater goal for a successful life.
"One big [inspiration] was probably my grandpa," says Zimmerman. "He was one of the main people in my family who wanted me to actually finish out school [with a] decent education, but sadly he's not around anymore."
With life there are ups and downs but on the continuing journey we all have hopes and aspirations. Zimmerman aims high and greatly hopes for a better tomorrow, just as many of us do.
"I'm hoping that [the music department] gets more students to come down to the concerts which are very enjoyable if you like music," says Zimmerman, "and [also] having maybe a couple more groups start up on campus. My plans are to hopefully start a small brass group, such as quintette or quartette and a jazz combo."
He spends much of his time every week devoted to the three instrumental ensembles on campus, wind ensemble, jazz ensemble and orchestra.
After several years of constant dedication to his music, he has been awarded the honor of performing in an honors band at the college level.
His hard work and love for music has taken him to new heights and shows him that his dedication is paying off.
"It's a band that you have to apply to get into," explains Zimmerman, "and [getting in] makes you feel like you're one of the better players because you have to actually work to get in to it."
The honors band is a two day event that Zimmerman looks forward to and finds to be an overall fun experience.
"The honors band is like a conference band for high schools only it's for college," says Zimmerman, "They send us the music to practice on our own and we go up there the day before the concert and we have group rehearsals for the first time and then we have a group rehearsal the next day in the morning and then we have the concert that afternoon. It's just a fun extra thing to do during the semester."
Though music is only his minor area of study, he still hopes to incorporate music into his life after college.
"For me, it's been a pretty big thing," says Zimmerman. "It's a hobby; it's something that I wouldn't mind doing on the side [but] not as like a full time job."
Just like many things in life, the music world does not come without its downside. However, for Zimmerman, the challenges are only slight road bumps on his way to success because knowing how to play many instruments gives him a lot of background.
"Being able to play four instruments can get very hectic and confusing," says Zimmerman. "I play my two main instruments, euphonium and trombone. On the side, for fun, I play a little guitar and piano."
His constant strive towards excellence is greatly inspired by his grandfather for always believing in him and pushing him toward his greater goal for a successful life.
"One big [inspiration] was probably my grandpa," says Zimmerman. "He was one of the main people in my family who wanted me to actually finish out school [with a] decent education, but sadly he's not around anymore."
With life there are ups and downs but on the continuing journey we all have hopes and aspirations. Zimmerman aims high and greatly hopes for a better tomorrow, just as many of us do.
"I'm hoping that [the music department] gets more students to come down to the concerts which are very enjoyable if you like music," says Zimmerman, "and [also] having maybe a couple more groups start up on campus. My plans are to hopefully start a small brass group, such as quintette or quartette and a jazz combo."
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