By FRED KRONER
fred@mahometnews.com
Annie Bao has a feel-good goal.
Whether she is thinking about her current avocation or her future profession, happiness is what she envisions as the end result.
“I want to put smiles on more people’s faces,” Bao said.
She started with herself.
Bao has been happily playing the violin for years.
“Ever since I was little, I have watched my older sister (Connie) play the violin and piano,” Annie Bao said. “When she practiced, I wanted to join in and accompany her with a few screeches on her strings and bangs on her keyboard.
“I was beyond ecstatic when my mom let me be ‘just like my sister’ and start playing violin and piano as well.”
The starting point was clear. She was 5 years old. The end point is not.
“I fell in love immediately with the violin,” Annie Bao said. “I cannot imagine not playing the violin. It is my hobby, my therapy and a way of expressing myself and my emotions.”
The example that Connie Bao set before graduating from M-S in 2017 provided a tough bar for her younger sister to attain.
“She was actually the first chair, concertmaster, of the All-State Orchestra her senior year,” Annie Bao said. “I look up to her as my role model.
“She received a perfect score on the ACT, and she also played violin in ILMEA State Honors her junior year.”
Last weekend, Annie Bao was back in elite company. The Mahomet-Seymour High School senior was one of 158 students state-wide selected for the Illinois Music Educators Association (ILMEA) Honors Orchestra.
Bao was among the 48 violins in the Honors Orchestra.
After two days of rehearsals with the other teen-agers, they performed Saturday afternoon at the Peoria Civic Center.
“I felt prepared for the concert,” Annie Bao said. “The intensive rehearsals, though hours-long, were a blast with such a charismatic and skilled conductor (Jeff Edmons, director of the San Diego Youth Symphony).
“He gave us valuable strategies and did an extraordinary job shaping our playing. I actually had more butterflies for the performance than the audition because I wanted to thoroughly convey to the audience everything the conductor had instilled in me.”
Bao was the only violin player from M-S who went through the original audition process last fall. On Thursday in Peoria, another audition took place with the candidates earning a spot with either the Honors Group or the All-State Group.
Bao was a repeat choice for the Honors Orchestra.
“The concert went well, and I feel like everyone’s hard work had paid off,” she said. “I became emotional thinking about how this would be my last concert here.”
The journey started last October when Bao auditioned for a spot in the ILMEA District 6 band. Statewide, nearly 25,000 choral and band students participated in the first round of the auditions.
When the teen-aged musicians arrived in Peoria last week, they had an idea of what would be expected when they went before the judges.
“I was given excerpts and scales ahead of time, but I was told specifically which excerpts and scales to play on the spot,” Bao said. “I was assigned sight-reading as well.
“Everything was solo work for the judges.”
The judges could only hear – but not see – the individuals as they auditioned.
Prior to her turn, Bao gave herself a pep talk.
“To prepare mentally, I tell myself, ‘I can do this,’” she said. “Even if I mess up, keep going and strive to make the rest of it better.
“I take deep breaths and shake out my arms and legs before walking into the audition.”
Bao does not play in the Marching Band at M-S, but has been involved with numerous school-related activities. She was a co-captain of the tennis team in the fall.
She has also participated in Student Council, WYSE team, Science Olympiad and chemistry team.
The highlight is the chance to showcase her talents in Peoria with the high school Honors Orchestra.
“It means the world to me to be in the Honors group,” she said. “I am so grateful to be led by outstanding conductors and to play alongside such talented musicians.
“I have been in IMEA State Honors (Orchestra) for three years, and every year has been an incredible experience.”
Bao seldom refuses an opportunity to play.
“I have always loved comforting others and seeing people happy, and I feel blessed to be able to do so through my performances at nursing homes, fundraisers, churches, luncheons, and building foyers,” she said.
She is a past winner of the Peoria Young Artist Competition for both violin and piano, and performed with the Peoria Symphony Orchestra.
The concert, she said, was “in front of elementary through high school students, to entertain them and to educate them on the power of music.”
There will be a parallel between her own musical and academic endeavors next fall when she enrolls at Duke University.
“My passion for helping others began through music, and I will develop this further through studying biology,” Annie Bao said. “As a doctor, I hope to provide people with the same support and comfort that music has given me and so many others.”
