Brainerd girl wins Heartland Symphony junior youth audition

Brianna Jensen of Brainerd is the junior winner of the Heartland Symphony Orchestra's youth auditions. Andrea Jakubowski of St. Cloud is the senior winner.

The two girls will be soloists at the Heartland Symphony Orchestra's spring concerts, "New Voices -- Orchestral Bon-bons."

Jensen is a student at Franklin Junior High School in Brainerd and studies piano under Brainerd instructor Michelle Sakry-Winkelman. From 1992 to 2002, she was enrolled in the St. Joseph's School of Music piano program where she was taught both the suzuki and traditional piano method.

Jensen often plays pieces in a number of different keys, just for fun, and has numerous short compositions. She enjoys acting, volleyball, softball and running.

Jakubowski has been playing cello for six years, starting in fifth grade. Her first private instructor was Thea Stockinger, director of the Discovery Elementary School orchestra. She is currently studying with Hong Wang, who teaches cello in the Twin Cities area. She enjoys playing in the symphony and chamber orchestra at Apollo High School in St. Cloud.

In addition, Jakubowski has been playing piano for nine years and is currently studying with Ann Du Hamel.

The Heartland Symphony Orchestra will perform "Fugitiva Overture" by Franklin Charles Doane-Arkulary of Duluth, winner of the young composer contest. Doane-Arkulary, commonly referred to as Flip, is a 17-year-old composer.

His first interests in songwriting came through rock music and involvement in various bands. Whereas his initial musical goal was to write rock songs, he found a more comfortable idiom in classical music. Doane-Arkulary, who signs his compositions "FDA," writes for solo piano, guitar and ensembles looking for new music and a "21st century edge." He has written piano sonatas, brass suites, songs for winds, arias and symphonic music.

The "Fugitiva Overture" is from the opera Doane-Arkulary is writing, titled "Fugitiva," the story of a Greek slave living in the 1st century C.E., who finds God, freedom and martyrdom.

Doane-Arkulary's goal is to become a professional composer of all sorts of music, but especially classical music.

"One day I'd like to see classical music as a more popular medium than it currently is," he said, noting his challenge will be to make that vision into a reality.

"New Voices -- Orchestral Bon-bons" will be performed 7:30 p.m. April 24 in the Aitkin High School auditorium, 306 N.W. Second St.; 7:30 p.m. April 26 at Tornstrom Auditorium, Washington Middle School, 804 Oak St., Brainerd; and 2:30 p.m. April 27 in the Charles Martin Auditorium at Little Falls Community High School, 1001 S.E. Fifth Ave.

Tickets are available at the Aitkin Independent Age, The Brainerd Dispatch, Bridge of Harmony of Brainerd, Bookin' It Bookstore and the Great River Arts Association in Little Falls. To get a season brochure or to order tickets by phone call 1-800-826-1997.