Brier resident Aidan Stanciu is a senior at Edmonds-Woodway High School. He’s also the concertmaster in his school’s orchestra and a second violinist with the Seattle Collaborative Orchestra (SCO), a diverse, multigenerational performing arts organization. Music director Dr. Anna Edwards founded SCO in 2012 with a commitment to increasing gender and racial diversity in symphonic classical music. 

Although Stanciu has played with his high school orchestra and the Cascade Youth Symphony Orchestra for a few years, he said that rehearsing alongside seasoned professional musicians in SCO is elevating and refining his skills. 

“I like being surrounded by people that are better than me,” he said. “My stand partner, Sande, is a retired Seattle Symphony musician, so that definitely pushes me a lot more than if I was playing alongside other high schoolers.”

Stanciu’s first performance with SCO is on Tuesday, Nov. 12. Details and tickets are available here.

Learn about Aidan’s musical journey below.

Did you grow up in a family that was very musically inclined or supportive?

Supportive, yes. Inclined, no. I was the person that went for music out of nowhere. I was 8 or 9and I was just like, “I want to play the violin!”

I didn’t really like classical music initially. I don’t know if you know the band Trans Siberian Orchestra – you hear their “Carol of the Bells” rendition on the radio every year at Christmas time. I originally heard that. And then that night I went home and we listened to pop electric violin music. That’s actually what initially got me into violin, not classical. I started taking private violin lessons when I was 9.

Is there a specific era or certain composers that you like?

I feel like every younger classical musician says this, but I love the Romantic era, specifically the Impressionist era, which is the late 1800s and early 1900s – composers like Saint-Saëns and Tchaikovsky.

Is being part of SCO your first experience playing with musicians of such a diverse range of ages and experience?

Yeah, a hundred percent. I was one of three freshmen to join my high school orchestra, so I was definitely surrounded by people that were better than me back then, like seniors. But this is definitely my first experience playing in such a diverse, multi-generational group.

What are some of the benefits?

Being surrounded by people that are better than me. I definitely have incentives to practice a lot more when I feel like I’ve got to live up to these phenomenal musicians around me. 

I’ve used this quote a lot, especially during college essays, but my dad always would tell me, “If you’re the smartest person in the room, you’re in the wrong room.” I’ve really followed that because I think it is really, really healthy to have people that are better than you and smarter than you around you.

What’s distinctive about Dr. Anna Edwards’ approach to classical music?

It’s really cool how she brings out underrepresented artists. I always like reading more deeply about sides of classical music that aren’t really talked about much. 

Dr. Anna Edwards is a very, very good conductor and she conducts it as if we’re the Seattle Symphony or some other major group. It feels very professional and that whole atmosphere allows for a lot of growth. I really, really like the way she guides rehearsals – they keep moving, they keep moving. If you miss something, then you better come to the next rehearsal with it fixed! You feel pressure, but it’s very good.

Are you planning to study music in college?

That’s my main goal right now. I’m applying to Western and Central Washington, which actually have phenomenal music programs. They’re more budget-friendly compared to Berklee in Boston, which is extremely difficult to get into. I’m also applying to four conservatories in the UK, and to Oberlin, Whitman and the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. So I have big reaches!

A few weeks back Dr. Anna Edwards did a little presentation for an hour before rehearsal on college prep for music students, which was very, very helpful. And my private teacher, who’s a phenomenal musician and has been teaching for a very long time, has been very, very helpful in leading me through the application process.

What would you like to do after college?

For a lot of musicians, it’s this pick and choose between “do I want to go all in on performance and join a major symphony or do I want to go into teaching?” But in general, it’s actually very much both – there’s no single musician out there that is only doing one thing, except these crazy soloists that make a bunch of money.

Everybody, if they perform in an orchestra, they’re also teaching students on the side or they’re teaching at a high school or doing gigs at weddings and doing chamber music. It’s a mix of everything. Originally I was going to go all in on political science but then I realized I don’t want to have a career where I can’t play my violin every day. 

— By Clare McLean