Hello Oprah Show!
This is Matthew Dane Peavoy. I just turned 15 years old. I'm a classically trained accordionist and pianist from Central Alberta, Canada. I've been playing piano since I was 4 and accordion since I was 8.
Normally the words accordion and classical never meet in the same sentence, but I have put a unique twist on this largely traditional, yet absolutely magnificant instrument. I have come to love the classics, being much more complicated and appreciated by everyone that I play for. I have been found to get numerous standing ovations, while also being able to bring some audience members to tears with my interpretation and feeling of the piece. This is what sets me apart from other performers, as I literally feel the music and listen and enjoy it while I play.
The accordion is the only instrument that can represent a full 50 piece orchestra, and I have not found an instrument that I can't represent with this versatile instrument [piccilo, oboe, violin, basoon, organ, snare drum, egg shaker, etc]. The accordion, unlike instruments like the piano for example, can make notes start soft and grow into grand chords, like many wind instruments. I can also represent the violin's bowing by use of the bellows and I have discovered how to make the accordion laugh and cry.
The accordion is also one of the most difficult instruments to play, balancing bellow control, note accuracy, dynamics, touch, phrasing, which bass buttons to press [impossible to see], and all at the same time remembering to breathe [least important to me, yet very crutial!]
I have been through many competitions and great performances. I have competed numerous times in local festivals on piano and accordion. I have performed at the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, in August of 2007 with the Calgary Jarosh Accordion Ensemble. I have also competed in the American Accordion Association/American Teacher's Guild International Competition in Washington D.C, placing second in one category.
My greatest achievement to date is winning the Red Deer Festival of the Performing Arts' top award, out of 6,000 people, which was a performance opportunity to perform with the Red Deer Symphony Orchestra, which took place on December 8, 2008, with Maestro Claude Lapalme conducting. I played this piece, Czardas, with the full 50 piece orchestra backing me up, along with playing Ave Maria that evening. It has been the highlight of my musical career and an absolutely amazing experience!
I am currently also studying Grade 10 Royal Conservatory piano in addition to playing Trombone, Alto Sax, Euphonium, Trumpet, and numerous percussion instruments. I have also arranged several pieces for my Junior High Band, and composed several pieces on piano and accordion. I have also been referred to numerous times as a prodigy on accordion and piano, though I am not yet willing to place this title on myself.
I hope you enjoy these selections, "Czardas" and "Dark Eyes" as much as I do. Please listen to my other submissions. This opportunity would revolutionize the entire accordion world, as this style of playing is largely unknown.
Thank you!
Matthew Dane Peavoy
Nahshon O’Neil Hollis was born in Bermuda to parents O’Neil and Shawn Hollis on May 6th 1995. He is a 13 year-old self-taught imaginative oil painter that has a very fine talent and an eye for perfection and detail.
Nahshon attended Wee Learn Nursery which at the young age of two, first said he wanted to be a famous artist. Even in the earliest of his childhood could you see he had a God-given gift when compared to his peers. Most of his nursery years of work are in the hands of his nursery teacher that he would draw a picture for daily. At age six he attended Elliot Primary School. From here is when his talent became more evident to everyone around him. On career day, he dressed up in a painter’s shirt and a beret and boldly repeated that he wanted to be a famous artist. He got more involved and won many prizes for school related art competitions. He has won in three Junior Spring into the Arts awards and City Hall art competition awards, back to back Peoples Choice Awards and placed third in the Adult Quick Art competition for the Bank of Butterfield Art Festival, all in the age range of eight to ten. He was also a winner of the “One World, One People” competition for the Declaration of Human Rights for the United Nations. He has also been featured in events such as the Premiers Concert where he ‘wowed the crowed’, a beautiful and tranquil presentation of his pieces in the Spring into the Arts constructed by his music teacher, live painting for raising funds for “PRIDE” and also the RG and Bermuda Homes & Gardens 2008 Edition magazines. He has also made a great accomplishment at his current age of thirteen in showcasing his works in his very first art show at the newly revamped Masterworks Museum of Arts located in the beautiful Botanical Gardens.
Nahshon was inspired early in his life watching cartoon doodling when he was just in his pampers. He was greatly inspired by Bob Ross who he frequently watched any chance he could. From there, he branched onto his own mystical-style filled with more texture and a more classical look.
Nahshon has been selling his art since age nine and to date has sold about twenty pieces. Nahshon’s parents and sister Shanna give as much support as they can for their talented member of the family. He strives for perfection and detail in his art which can be lucidly shown in his latest pieces. He creates colorful, bright, serene and spiritual pieces which some viewers say can even be portrayed in his landscapes. Nahshon still plans to become the artist that he wants to be and hopes to help and inspire the world through his fine art.
You can visit Nahshon's website at:
http://www.nahshonsartworks.com
Hi Oprah,
Let me start by saying that my wife and I are big fans of your show! We, along with our 7 year old son, caught the episode with all of these talented kids from around the world and we loved it. Especially my little boy!
Attached is a video of my son this past summer hitting balls at our local driving range. He was 6 years old here and he's been playing since he was 3 years old. Enjoy.
Cheers,
Eric Reyes
Almira is 11 years old. She is a musician, singer, song writer, and teacher. Her main activities besides school are play soccer, teach guitar, and write music. She plays several instruments including acustic guitar, bass, harmonica, keyboard, and drum. When she performs, often she uses a loop station machine to allow her to add several instruments on her own to accompany her singing on the stage. In this video, she is playing her original song 'Chillax' with acustic guitar and harmonica.
Sadie Hamrin is 8 years old and has been playing the violin since she was almost 4. This piece is one of her current favorites, "Polish Dance," by Edmund Severn. Sadie takes lessons with Dr. Michelle Laliberte in Bemdji, MN. She is home schooled and plays the piano as well. Aside from violin and piano, she loves to read, play soccer, run in track meets, and cross country ski.
www.myspace.com/jessevickrocks
Jesse and Jacob have been musically inspired from a very young age, and they are now at a point in their young musical career where they are prime and ready to share their incredible talent with the rest of the world.
Jesse is only 15 years old, and he is the Lead Guitarist and Lead Band Member of the Jesse Vick Band. Jesse is accompanied by his younger brother, Jacob, age 12, as Vocalist and Bassist. The Jesse Vick Band's unique line up of original music, coupled with such young and rarely seen talent and impressive rock covers is what sets the Jesse Vick Band apart from the pack. Their major music influences include George Lynch, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Jason Becker and Yngwie Malmsteen.
Jesse has always had an interest in music. He began playing guitar at the age of 9, and he has excelled in his guitar abilities beyond anyone's imagination considering Jesse has never been professionally coached. It was through Jesse's devotion and love of music that directly inspired his younger brother, Jacob, to also discover his inner talent as vocalist/bassist/rhythm guitarist.
The Jesse Vick Band is truly on the verge of a major breakthrough with their latest demo release of "Redemption", "Dreams", and "You Got to Let Go. The preview response of these three songs has been extremely positive, and it's just a matter of time before this killer demo gets into the hands of major festivals, guitar shows, and promoters.
Already Jesse has many accomplishments to his name. Guitar Player magazine, September 2007 issue, features Jesse in the Editor Boy's Big Eight highlighting "Meltdown," as "it portends Vick's impending guitar heroism."
Jonathan is 5 years old and spends alot of time doing math for fun.
Since he was very young, he has been very interested in letters and numbers.
He now can read and write and do some math in his head and on paper.
Hope you enjoy the video.
Thank You,
Tanya
My daughter, Yaning, who just celebrated her sixth birthday, started learning Chinese harp when she was three and a half years old in Beijing China. She now plays the Chinese instrument, called Zheng in Chinese, under the guidance of Wang Changyuan, one of the most famous Chinese harp masters in the world. Yaning enjoys her music very much and plays publicly occasionally, such as at a show hosted by UNICEF and at a performance of Asian arts at Princeton University. She has entered an international Chinese harp contest, the finals of which will take place in Hong Kong early next May. I'm happy that she loves music.
My son made this a few months ago at 5 1/2 years old. He draws all day long and decided to make his drawings into a movie. He came up with the story, drew the characters and background and with our direction of teaching him the software, he brought them to life with this movie.
Mayumi is 13 years old and has been singing since she was 5. She is always invited to sing solo for Christmas midnight mass or service . This particular song was the song that she sang for the candle light service which made a lot of people cry.
Mayumi also sings Broadway musical songs e.g. "Les Miserables", "Miss Saigon", "South Pacific", "Sound of Music", "Wizard of Oz", "Annie" and "Secret Garden". Mayumi is an accomplished violinist , pianist and is currently a member of the prestigious Hawaii Youth Symphony. When people hear her voice they always assume that she is taking voice lessons but the truth is she has never taken any voice lessons. She is a regular singer of the national anthem and Hawaii Ponoi at Stan Sheriff Center for the University of Hawaii Atheltic Department. She has been invited to sing in numerous community events both in California and Honolulu. She also dances hula.
Despite all her accomplishments, she remains humble.
Kelsey Williamson is an aspiring singer who hopes to make it big one day.
12 years old , a 7th grader and honor roll student. she is also a cheerleader at her middle school.
Kelsey has participated in many local and national talent contests.
Her most memorable moment on stage was singing a duet in concert with Billy Ray Cyrus Nov 2007.
Kelsey would love for you to visit her music sites and please leave comments if you like
www.myspace.com/kelseylynnmusic www.youtube.com/kelseywilliamson
thanks for this opportunity
She learned this piece (Theme from "Witches' Dance" by Paganini) when she was 4 years old. Now she is in Suzuki book #3. She is a vehement reader and loves to paint, dance and act.
TJ Murphy is a 12 year old guitarist. Born on 1/27/97 in Winter Haven Florida. He has been playing guitar since he was 9 years old.
Hi. My name is Alexandra Valmorbida. I am a 14 year old singer/songwriter from Melbourne, Australia. I have been singing since I can remember and began writing songs only about a year ago. I find songwriting very gratifying. Sometimes I write from life experience but at 14 years of age, I don’t have a lot of that, so sometimes I just use my imagination and tell a story. I love reading, so I get lots of ideas from reading. Songwriting is a bit like being an author. I try to pick topics that people will be able to identify with. Most successful songs are about relationships, good or bad, happy or sad. This one is about a relationship that’s over. I hope to continue writing songs and to someday become a recording artist.
Alexis Jordan Bentinganan has been singing since she was 20 months old. She is constantly singing...in the shower, on the potty, in bed...you name it! Along with "God Bless America" and "Amazing Grace" her repertoire includes "Dancing Queen", "Fly Me To The Moon", "Take Me Out To The Ballgame", "Do, A Deer (from the Sound of Music) and her scale up and down (from Do to Do!) She also knows all the childrens' classics such as "A,B,C's" and "Old MacDonald". She picks up new songs all the time and is steadily expanding her range. And since 2 years old....she's always kept a tune (she's never really out of tune as witnessed by the video!) Enjoy!
Jordyn started singing before she could even string together a proper sentence. At age 2 she performed onstage at a church festival, and she has been performing ever since! I have never seen a child so passionate about music. She loves it all, and naturally picks up songs and instruments. Without any vocal or instrumental lessons, I have seen her grow from a toddler belting out a song (albeit while-butchering the lyrics,) and pounding on the keyboard, to a promising young singer who can sing show tunes, pop, and opera, write her own songs, and play the piano, harmonica, and guitar. Jordyn also loves to act and dance, and frequently performs in musicals. She also writes her own scripts and at times, has turned our house into a theater! In Kindergarten, Jordyn wrote a scaled down version of the musical "Wicked," cast it with children from her class, designed fliers and tickets on her computer, and held rehearsals during recess at school. In first grade, she put together a band called "The Super Stars," asked Santa for a guitar, and went to work writing songs, rehearsing, and designing a website for the group. She even wrote a book about the band called "The Super Stars," which was professionally printed and read at her school. On any given day you can find Jordyn with her music notebook, where she writes lyrics to the songs she has composed on her computer. Jordyn is a very driven young lady and I have no doubt she will make her dreams come true. That dream of hers, has been the same as long as I can remember- to star on Broadway, and open a farm for homeless animals.
Jordyn receives a lot of accolades and attention due to her musical abilities, but she never lets it go to her head. I know as her mother, I am biased but I am just so proud of her humility and her heart. Like most families, we have certainly dealt with our share of hardships and loss over the years, but Jordyn always seems to remain positive. In addition to being an excellent student, she is a great friend, daughter, sister and budding humanitarian. Jordyn has volunteered with me at a local crisis center for years, entertaining the little children as I help their mothers. She is always willing to lend a hand, and she is rarely argumentative (well maybe a little when is comes to picking up her room!) One thing I have always tried to instill in both my children is, if you don't use your talents to help others then you are wasting the gift God gave you. Last Spring Jordyn was in a local production of "Annie," when she met an amazing young man named Tyler Page, who started the organization Kids Helping Kids (www.kidzhelpingkids.com .) 10 year old Tyler, had been inspired while watching an episode of Oprah, and started this awesome group that does exactly what it says, it allows kids to help other kids! The children in the group all have various talents, and with Kids Helping Kids they can use their talents to provide support and inspire other children. Jordyn is so excited to be a part of this group, and wanted me to mention it.
I haven't allowed Jordyn to audition for an agent (much to her dismay.) I prefer to allow things to happen naturally, and we decide which opportunities to pursue together. Right now Jordyn is in between shows, so she is working on her own pod cast, and writing "Eloise, the Musical." She is also now teaching her self to yodel, after seeing the young lady do it on Oprah (thank you for that!)
There are a lot amazing children on this site, thank you for taking the time to include my little one among them.
I love music and i study piano since 3 years old. thank you for seeing my recital.
God bless you.
Isabel
Hi Oprah,
My name is Anita Gormley and I'd like to present to you my amazingly talented son Sean Michael.
He is twelve years old and is very gifted in many different areas, among them math and music. What makes him so special is that he has these extraordinary gifts because he has Asperger's syndrome which gives him the ability to do math very easily. He can convert almost any number into binary form. He also won second place for his school in a regional math competition. He has perfect pitch and plays the piano beautifully. He especially loves to play classical and ragtime. Here is a piece he composed called "The Colors of Autumn".