On Saturday, April 1, 2023, students, parents, teachers, friends, and families enthusiastically gathered onto the campus of ʻIolani School in Honolulu to attend and participate in HMTA’s first in-person student recital since the onset of the global pandemic. Despite the date this recital was held on, it was no prank or joke (and was never intended to be)! During the registration process, HMTA recital committee members Alexander Peña and Alyssa Hironaka received numerous recital sign-up forms from students eager and grateful to be able to share their music with a live audience. The program filled to its 1 hour capacity very quickly and well ahead of the March 29 registration deadline!

Held in ʻIolani’s Castle Building, the program was very diverse and captivating and was not just filled with works by Beethoven, Vivaldi, and Debussy, but also Cécile Chaminade, Joanna MacGregor, and even Bill Withers. In addition to all the fantastic pianists and violinists who performed was a string quartet who beautifully performed the second movement of Beethoven’s String Quartet in G Major, Op. 18, No. 2, which brought the recital to an amazing and memorable close.

Several of the recital performers were students who won prizes during the 2023 Hawaiʻi State Music Competition, held this past March. It was a joy to rewatch these performers after HSMC and they all sounded extraordinary.

This recital was made possible thanks to the hard work of the HMTA recital committee and each and every student, teacher, and parent. HMTA sends a very special mahalo to Cremona Violin Hawaiʻi, whose sponsorship supports HMTA student recitals. The business’s owner, Michael Wong, stopped by to watch and was very thrilled and impressed by the passionate young musicians he saw.

More HMTA recitals are on the horizon and will be announced in our email newsletters and on our website and social media once dates, locations, and formats are finalized.