Music scholarship awarded

The Bear Valley Springs Cultural Arts Association has awarded music scholarships the past few years. This year, the club received a recommendation from Gayel Pitchford, the music teacher and founder of the Tehachapi Symphony Orchestra, for one of her students whom she has deemed worthy. The scholarship award is $1,500.

Pitchford introduced the young recipient, Sarah Frias, as a talented violinist, but also a tenor saxophone player in junior and senior high school. Pitchford indicated that Frias has also written some of her own music.

But let's allow Frias to speak for herself. As she grew up, she told us, her family stressed how important it was that she go through college. Her parents wished they had done so when they had the chance.

This coming school year, three members of her family will be in college, which will strain the family finances. It stresses how much her scholarship means to her in terms of financing her education.

She comes from a musical family and the violin she plays was owned previously by her grandmother whom she never met.

Sarah was the marching band's Drum Major for two years and has participated in countless concerts and musical performances. She even played First Chair in the saxophone section of her high school orchestra's concert at Rabobank Arena and played a lovely solo.

Sarah plans to use the scholarship funds to purchase her music books and sheet music for performances.