Sophomore Rishabh R. was recently awarded the distinction of “first bass” at the New Jersey Music Educators Association All-State Orchestra auditions. NJ’s All-State and Intermediate Orchestras consist of the highest-performing high school and middle/junior high school musicians, respectively. 

In March, string auditions are held for the All-State Orchestra, while auditions for the winds/brass/percussion/piano/harp are based on their All-State Band auditions. Eligible students who have participated in their corresponding regional ensembles can audition, and those who are accepted perform in concert at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City and NJPAC in Newark during the month of November.

On the heels of this achievement comes another accolade for Rishabh; on Sunday, March 24, the young bassist, who is also an accomplished pianist, played Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata (3rd movement) at the International Young Artists Competition held at the County College of Morris in Randolph. In his first-ever piano performance at the competition, Rishabh was a bronze-award-winner in a field of over 130 other performers. The event was one of a series of competitions organized by the National League of Performing Arts, Inc., a nonprofit committed to “cultivating the artistic development of students through a variety of educational opportunities, such as offering competitions, master classes, workshops and seminars.” 

Along with his brother, Dhruv ’25, who is a Friends of Music Scholar at Pennington, Rishabh has volunteered at the Lawrence Senior Center in Lawrenceville, NJ, performing both bass duets and piano and bass pieces. The musically-talented pair planned and executed two, forty-minute performances last summer which were thoroughly enjoyed by all those in attendance. 

Congratulations, Rishabh, on all your success!