New York violinist and Indiana University High School student Lila Claire Pollack may have come up with the most enticing recipe for mashed
potatoes east of the Mississippi -at least, that's what her friends think. "I'm known for mashed potatoes," Pollack says. "I put all kinds of secret ingredients in them."
Pollack, 17, likes having a variety of ingredients in her life, too: violin practice, classes at the Manhattan School of Music, private music lessons, auditions, solid friendships, and schoolwork with the Indiana University High School diploma program. She hopes to use these ingredients to create a recipe for success that will one day gain her admittance to the music conservatory of her choice.
Pollack came by her love of music naturally. Growing up, she had a musically gifted uncle and grandfather. She doesn't think there was an exact moment when she decided to make the violin her life. Rather, she says, that decision came in stages. "The more I practiced, the better my playing got. The better my playing got, the more performances I played in. The more performances I played in, the more confidence I had. Eventually, I was hooked."
Today, she is so hooked that she spends four hours a day practicing. In addition, she's taking three classes at the Manhattan School of Music, where she plays with the MSM Philharmonic Orchestra. She also plays with Manhattan 's Interschool Orchestra Program. And she takes lessons once a week from Julliard's Naoko Tanaka, whom Pollack calls "Yoda." "She's a really wise, good person, and these qualities show when she plays. As a performer, she has great technique and musicality. As a teacher, she uses different teaching techniques depending on a student's strengths and weaknesses."
This past summer, Pollack worked on her own strengths and weaknesses by participating in the nine-week Aspen Music Festival in Colorado . The festival included studio classes, masters classes, concerts, and the opportunity to play with an orchestra. "The best musicians were there," says Pollack, "and all of my closest friends were there."
Given her hectic schedule and her desire to spend more time practicing, Pollack decided she needed a flexible way to earn her high school diploma. The Indiana University High School diploma program, she says, "was the best way for me to get an education. By taking independent study courses through Indiana University High School, I can work on my own schedule. That is really important to me, because no day is the same."
Pollack is currently taking courses in English literature, economics, and history. Her favorite subject, she says, is English. Her favorite instructor is Dan Bopp. "He's positive and encouraging," she explains. "He's not intimidating; I feel like I can ask him a lot of questions. At the same time, I have a lot of respect for him."
Bopp, in turn, has a lot of respect for Pollack. "Lila Pollack," he says, "displays literary insight rarely seen in high school students. She is an accomplished writer who consistently presents her views in thorough, well-organized, and well-documented fashion."
Pollack admits that earning her diploma through independent study can be a challenge. But, she says, "if I want something badly enough, I'll go for it; and music is the thing I want the most. I know that if I don't finish my diploma, I can't get into a good conservatory."
A good conservatory, Pollack explains, requires applicants to have a good understanding of musicality and technique, good SAT scores, and a high school diploma. She is working every day to hone her musicality and technique, she has already successfully taken her SAT, and she hopes to earn her IUHS diploma in May or June of 2006.
If she's got the ingredients right, Pollack will be admitted to a respected conservatory sometime next year. Given her talent with recipes, her efforts are likely to succeed.
