Harmony in the Hallways: Redwood Musicians

With the busy lives of Redwood Rangers, it can be hard to dig through and see all the work that goes into holding the title of a Ranger. Here, we see a deep dive into the lives of Redwood Musicians.

By: Tara Khazaeizadeh

Through the traffic on Main and the rush through Vista, a symphony of conversations echo on the walls, ranging from what the lunch plans are, to how to ditch 3rd period. However, these conversations are much more intricate than an outside audience may perceive.

Unbeknownst to the author, different conversations have different ideas and different thought processes. A conversation that may seem “nerdy” or “weird” from another perspective may actually be a deep dive into what one person considers their work, like when a jazz group gets together to talk about why that last improvisation didn’t work so well, or why an Orchestra sounded more out of tune than normal, the eventual culprit being a stray viola in the back that stayed in the car for too long.

But then arises the question: Why? Ranger musicians expand on their experiences. 

Nicholas Ramirez, ‘25, is a mallet percussionist for the Ranger band and has been involved with music since 5th grade.

He currently holds positions in the Redwood Marching Band, Wind Ensemble and Concert Band, and on a weekly basis devotes, “7-8 hours a week without counting class time to band.”

When asked how he feels about it, Ramirez is, “Tired, but [he’s] gotten used to it after so long, but has found ways to have fun during it.”

With starting so early in music, Ramirez says, “[His] freshman year marching band performance was terrifying. It’s so scary to see so many pairs of eyes all staring in your general direction, possibly at you or someone you know. It also didn’t help that [he] was rusty performing during COVID because of the time quarantine took from us.”

“However nowadays, [he] hardly gets worried performing for an audience. The main thing that freaks [him] out now is doing good at competitions, and performing [his] show to perfection.”

Jazrine Nieto, ‘25, is a flutist for the Redwood Wind Ensemble, as well as the head drum major for the Redwood Marching Band. When asked what motivated her to do music, “[her] parents were always really involved in the kids choir at church. Doing dance and cheer as a kid also got [her] into music and rhythms as well. [She] absolutely loved it and thought it would be really interesting to learn.”

“Something that really caught my attention was that in movies similar to Jurassic Park always had a lot of band and orchestra in it, and [she] thought it always sounded so good,” says Nieto. 

It’s interesting to think how something so innocent as a movie or small dance recitals can motivate the rest of the population of musicians of the world, and how it can expand on what the future holds for musicians, despite the false and negative claims that music is dying out. The reality is that music lives inside everyone, and no matter how hard you may try, it will always find you, because of the passion and uniqueness that every person holds. 

When asked how her experiences led her to be the musician she is today, Nieto responds, “Honestly, I didn’t think I was going to stick with band, because I always loved dancing. I was convinced I was going to do Cheer, but I didn’t. [Band] just kind of happened, and now I really enjoy being able to read music and play it.”

Music, depending on composers and genres, fluctuates between different moods. However, from student perspectives the most memorable fluctuates between different pieces, unique to different students. 

Emily Brennan, ‘25, has been playing cello since 5th grade and now sits first chair in the Redwood Advanced Orchestra. “[Her] most memorable moment is when [she] played a duet with [her private teacher] Dr. Walden for [her] scholarship recital. That duet was really personal to [her] because [she] got to choose it. [She] also loved it because [she] was able to learn more dynamic skills and the piece came out nicely with [their] added dynamics.“

Nieto also shares a communally experienced memorable moment from, “[her] old school, Azle High School in Azle, Texas. As a freshman [she] was involved in the Indoor Winds Ensemble, and one time [they] performed an eight-minute show, and [they] went all the way to Dayton, Ohio to perform in WGI Championships, and eventually take second place in the World Class. It was a crazy experience, but so much fun.”

“It was a little harder to keep up with them playing-wise, but it was fun performing shows with them because knowing that you’ll never perform with those exact people again and performing a show that sounded good, it was definitely an experience,” says Nieto. 

However much music may be influential and moving to young lives, music can run its course. Music can find some young in their lives and others much later in life. Music can decide to stay with you for a few years or for it to be all that you do for the rest of your life. Or, music can simply be in everything you see, everywhere, all at once. 

Nieto says, “I think these will be my last years playing. As much as I love music, I just don’t see myself going further with it in college. If I can pick up little gigs once in a while, then yeah, definitely! But I don’t know, I really want to learn another instrument, like a guitar, so that could be my goal.”

The final answer that you are searching for, the “Why” of it all, is still unknown. There are stories of famous, world-renowned musicians who had no concept of music until later in their lives, and other prodigies who stopped music once their 18th birthday hit. Arguably, destiny plays a major role in music.

Whether or not it’s your destiny to continue in it, or if music was there to form you into the person you are, and to eventually let you go only to live inside you for the rest of your mortal life. Why? 

“Because that is what a great performer does.” – Nicholas Ramirez.

Tags: music, music in redwood, orchestra, rangers, Redwood, redwood band, redwood gigantea, redwood high school, redwood journalism, redwood music, redwood rangers, rhs, rhs band, rhs music, visalia ca