Christian Gonzales, a violin student from Julliard School of Music, is coming back to East County to perform with his first orchestra— the East County Youth Symphony— as a soloist. The concert is on Nov. 15 at 7 p.m. at the Kroc Theater as a celebration of his success, his extraordinary talent, hard work, and his passion for violin and classical music.
“ECYS was founded 16 years ago, and Christian is our first alumnus who waws accepted into Juilliard,” said East County Youth Symphony co-founder and Artistic Director Alexandra Keegan.
During his performance, Gonzales will play “F Mendelssohn Violine Concerto in e-minor” and Symphony No. 3 “Scottish.”
“Mendelssohn’s concerto is one of the top 10 favorite violin concertos in the world. Its music is bright, elegant, and sophisticated,” said Keegan. “The melodies flow beautifully building a perfect ear-pleasing form. I believe this concerto is always better when performed by a young violinist. I look forward to the Christian’s interpretation of this masterpiece, and I’m confident that it will be brilliant.” Keegan said Gonzales joined the ECYS in 2012, while in middle school.
“The fact that ECYS was one of the stepping stones for him on the way up to Juilliard makes me very happy,” she said. “This upcoming concert is an exciting event for all of us – ECYS team, all donors who fund our tuition free program for kids, and our audiences. Christian’s extraordinary talent, his passion for music, his hard work, and his success is an inspiration for our current students and hundreds of music kids from local schools who are coming to this performance. Sometimes, all it takes for a young musician to realize that anything is possible is to see someone who already made it through that path.”
Gonzales, now 23, will graduate from Juilliard in May 2024 with his master’s degree of music in violin under the mentorship of Greek violinist Areta Zhulla, who became the first violinist of the Juilliard String Quartet in 2018, named Young Artist of the Year by the National Critics Association in Greece, and the Triandi Career Grant and Tassos Prassopoulos Foundation Award. Visit www. christian-gonzales.com.
