For Gunn High School siblings sophomore Brandon Kang and senior Jenna Kang, music isn’t just a hobby — it’s the rhythm that’s synchronized their lives for years, bringing them closer together than most siblings.
Jenna has played violin for 13 years, and Brandon has played cello for 10 years. In that time, Jenna was accepted to the prestigious National Youth Orchestra and Brandon won Best Low Strings Soloist at the Orchestra Cup. Their devotion to music stems from a childhood dream inspired by their mother’s love for a church praise team, an ensemble that leads congregational singing.
“When my mom went to church, she would always see this praise team, a cello and a violin duet,” Jenna said. “And it was just a dream of hers for us to be like them.”
This dream instilled a sense of community and togetherness in them, driven by the possibility of joining a similar praise team. This led them to join various youth orchestras, including the California Youth Symphony and the Gunn High School Chamber Orchestra. Both also perform for charity orchestras, including Hop3Box.
Participation in multiple youth orchestras comes with lots of dedication. Practice takes up much of their free time, with the siblings often spending two to five hours a day practicing.
“You have to practice every day,” Brandon said. “If you miss one day, maybe it’s not that big of a deal. But after two days, your hands get cold. You can’t play anymore.”
When preparing to audition for summer camps, the amount of practice per day can skyrocket, reaching up to 10 hours. While there are challenges with staying motivated through long periods of practice, both Brandon and Jenna said that the benefits outweigh the drawbacks.
“What motivates me is that you might not hear a lot of progress from practicing for two weeks on something. But when you reach the three-week, four-week mark, you typically see some progress, and the hard work pays off,” Jenna said.
It hasn’t all been smooth sailing, though. Overcoming rejections from summer camps and competitions has been a recurring challenge for the two. Throughout middle school, Jenna faced more challenges than she had ever before due to increased competition for auditions. But she used these challenges to her advantage, learning the importance of having moments of rejection.
“It shouldn’t be competition that motivates you because you lose that kind of extrinsic motivation,” Jenna said. “Getting rejected is hard, but you also have to open up or else you can’t really survive in the music world.”
Although music is a core component of the siblings’ lives, they highlighted the need to balance a musical career with life.
“Music shouldn’t be the only thing you do in life,” Jenna said. “I wouldn’t spend 14 hours a day slaving away for music. It’s not worth it.”
Looking ahead, the Kangs hope to use music as a force for good. Brandon is currently partnering with the Bay Area Music Project on a workshop aimed at making music more accessible to underprivileged students. Jenna, on the other hand, is looking to study the intersection of neuroscience and music in college.
“The path of a musician is not linear,” Jenna said. “It takes steps, and it takes consistency to be great.”
