NBHS Students, Rock Violinist Make Music Together

New Brunswick High School students are making music with a pro this week. 

Bobby Yang is a rock-influenced violinist whose style of playing has earned him praise and accolades from a number of music journalists. 

Yang is at New Brunswick High School through Friday to work with students in band and orchestra, culminating in a Friday night concert.

On Wednesday, Yang and musicians Eric Donnelly and David Cannava performed for the students, tearing through songs like Led Zepplin's "Kashmir" Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" and "Royals" by Lorde.

Holding a shredded bow after the spirited performance, Yang urged the students to have patience and be persistent. 

"If you do have a little passion, practice and don't give up, because it's a long road," he said.  

Yang has served as an artist-in-residence at schools all over the country, playing before 25,000 students in five years and preaching the importance of "passion and practice."

He started playing the violin and piano at an early age at his parents' insistence, but said he did not really enjoy the violin until his teenage years.

A lover of rock music, Yang was "running directly from MTV to the piano" to play the songs he had just seen in music videos. After meeting other people his age who played, Yang said he began to experiment on the violin and developed a real passion for playing, he said.

Based in Las Vegas and Los Angeles, Yang and his band, "Bobby Yang and his Unrivaled Players" have toured all around in the world. 

Students were wowed by Yang's performance.

Senior Daisy Herrera, 17, has been playing the viola for four years. Before that, she played the cello, but "kept the passion" and picked up the viola.

"I always look forward to playing my instrument," she said.

Kody Guedes, 17, plays the trumpet, the result of attending football games and hearing the marching band play. The trumpet is what stood out the most to him, he said. 

Band and orchestra students at the high school are able to make music courtesy of a grant from VH1's Save the Music Foundation and Cablevision, which brought $230,000 worth of new musical instruments into the school, according to Lee Neamand, Supervisor of Fine, Visual and Performing Arts. 

The district has also been recognized by the the NAMM Foundation with a Best Communities for Music Education designation. 

Playing together creates a connection between the players when each does their part, said senior Juan Aguilera, 18, a violinist. 

"We're like a family," said senior Shaylah Jackson, 17, a viola player. "We work separately to bring it together."

Yang and the students will perform at 6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 13 at New Brunswick High School. The concert is free and open to the public.