Whiz Kid: Sydney Noble, Musician

Whiz Kid: Sydney Noble

School/Grade: Cielo Vista, Sixth Grade

City of Residence: Rancho Santa Margarita

Whiz Kid Achievement: An honor roll student at school, Sydney is also an exceptional baritone player in the school band and a part of Tijeras Creek Little League.

Key to Awesomeness: When it came time to choose an instrument in the school band last year, Sydney Noble chose a unique instrument: the baritone. He enjoyed being in band with his teacher Mike Mekata and wanted to expand his knowledge of the instrument outside school, too. He took up private lessons with Cheryl Suwardi and has since become an outstanding student and player.

According to Suwardi, Sydney makes an excellent Whiz Kid because of his “dedication to music, strong work ethic and outstanding progress this school year.” The baritone is no easy instrument to master; it requires one changing the lips’ embouchure to play different notes and using one’s ear to play the correct notes. Sydney has done a great job at this and also demonstrated his air control by using a strong air stream and holding long tones. Within just a short time, he also learned to read music and performed challenging pieces at the music studio’s Christmas concert and in the school's band concerts as well.

According to Sydney’s mother, Suwardi has “been instrumental in developing his love for the baritone.” Sydney appreciates that Suwardi has made learning fun, and Sydney recently composed the song “The Lone Wolf” for a baritone solo this spring. He has highly enjoyed studying music history with a focus on the history of brass instruments and has found that the most interesting aspect to playing the baritone is being able to perform beautiful music.

Sydney will attend Rancho Santa Margarita Intermediate in the fall and continue to play baritone in the band there. He is currently on the Cielo Vista Honor Roll and a first baseman on a Tijeras Creek Little League team. When he isn’t busy studying, playing the baritone or throwing a baseball, he enjoys traveling. His favorite spots include Mount Rushmore and Juneau, Alaska.

For his outstanding performance on a unique instrument and his dedication to his studies and extracurricular activities, Sydney Noble is this week's Whiz Kid.