Guest Artist: Dustin Breshears
Dustin Breshears, violin
Dustin Breshears in rehearsal
Dustin Breshears looks forward to performing the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto with Symphony Parnassus this coming Sunday.
It’s just the second time he will have played the concerto in concert with an orchestra, and he relishes the challenge. “You have to fit in, as well as lead the orchestra,” which is more complex than practicing with piano accompaniment or alone, he said.
Dustin, 11, is the winner of the 2018 Symphony Parnassus / San Francisco Conservatory of Music Competition, an annual event that features some of the brightest upcoming talent in classical music.
In addition to the Mendelssohn, Dustin is also performing a violin solo within Hindemith’s “Symphonia Serena” with the orchestra. (Also on the program is Khachaturian’s Waltz from “Masquerade.”)
The concert, led by guest conductor Emil de Cou, is on Sunday, Nov. 18 at the Taube Atrium Theater in San Francisco. (The concert is at 3 p.m. and tickets are available here.)
Symphony Parnassus has the honor of once again showcasing a talented member of the Breshears family; last season, Dustin’s younger sisters Starla, 10, a cellist, and Valery, 9, a violinist, both had won the Parnassus / SFCM competition and were soloists with the orchestra, performing Haydn and Mozart concertos, respectively.
“I was sort of jealous,” Dustin says with a smile, though he did get to perform with his sisters during an encore at the January concert. The trio of young musicians perform as Little Stars Trio, and frequently busk for tourists in San Francisco’s Union Square.
The trio has toured internationally to festivals and events in Mexico, Argentina and England. This past year in Los Angeles, they performed on “Little Big Shots,” an NBC-TV variety show hosted by Steve Harvey that showcases youth performers ranging from musical virtuosos to martial arts experts. The show aired in March this past year.
Dustin and his sisters also participate in the Pre-College Program for up-and-coming classical musicians at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and all attend the Crowden School, a music school for grades 4-8 in Berkeley.
The Breshears parents Dustin Sr. and Julie—both pianists and teachers—along with their six children formerly resided in Chico but relocated to San Pablo this past summer to be closer to music opportunities in the Bay Area. Two of the three youngest, Colin, 6, and Delilah, 3, are already taking lessons on the violin and cello, respectively. Serenity, at 19 months is the youngest Breshears, will take up the violin, according to Dustin Sr.
Dustin Jr. says he likes living in the Bay Area and being close to all of the music opportunities for his growing career. He’s enjoying his new school and having fun at the conservatory, where in addition to studying violin performance, he is learning to compose. He also enjoys drawing when not playing the violin.
This Sunday’s concert will be special for Dustin, not only because of his performance of the Mendelssohn concerto, but because it is his 12th birthday. Happy birthday, Dustin!