'I honestly cannot believe that it just has been two years already,' she said. 'The time flies.'
In her position, Jeong worked closely with Reno Chamber Orchestra music director Kelly Kuo. 'As many people already might know, as an assistant conductor, we need to cover for the music director … During the rehearsals, I needed to sit in the audience, and then Maestro Kuo asked me some questions during the rehearsal, such as, how's the balance? What's the issue? So we always have some communication during the rehearsal to make sure that we can make the best music possible for our audience and members.'
Her position as assistant conductor also included 'lots of community activities, such as I went to a senior center and or I visited several high school or middle schools in Reno, and I got to work with many students over there.'
'We are like missionaries as an assistant conductor,' Jeong says. 'We need to make sure that we let people know that here we have this great ensemble making music.'
For the future, Jeong is looking for other conducting opportunities, along with devoting time to her one-year-old child. She also has a larger goal in mind. 'Eventually what I wanted to do, hopefully I can do it sooner, is that I wanted to establish an organization myself, like El Sistema,' the famous Venezuelan music education program. 'I really value education, in part because I also taught at the university and then worked with students. So that's one of really important value for me. I do believe that music could impact on young people's lives so much.'
For more on Yoona Jeong, yoonajeong.com.
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Support for 'Arts on the Airwaves' comes from The Nevada Arts Council… a state agency that provides public funding and support to artists and organizations, that benefit Nevadans in cities and rural communities statewide. More at NVArtsCouncil.org.
