For the past fourteen years, senior Steven Pruss has been creating music with his violin and his hard work is paying off.
“I am the winner of the Omaha Area Youth Orchestras Concerto Competition and the Cherokee Symphony’s ‘Young Artists Competition,’” Pruss said. “I am the concertmaster of the Omaha Area Youth Orchestras Youth Symphony, the OPS All-City Orchestra, and the Benson High School Orchestra, as well as the Co-Concertmaster of the NSAA All-State Orchestra.”
Pruss first picked up the violin when he was three years old and it was only because his mom made him do it. However, Pruss fell in love with it.
“Being a violinist is fun, I can play any song that I hear on the radio by ear without music,” Pruss said. “It can be stressful, especially when it comes to playing for groups of people.”
Like in the movies, love comes when it’s least expected. Pruss felt the same when he realized that he had fallen in love with playing the violin.
“It was two summers ago in Brevard, North Carolina, at a summer camp called Brevard Music Center,” Pruss said. “By the end of the month and a half, I had a completely different point of view on classical and romantic music.”
At this moment in time, he doesn’t aspire to be somebody else but working on becoming somebody who inspires.
“I aspire continuously improve,” Pruss said. “I will never stop learning or practicing because there is room for improvement.”
With his kind of mentality, this kind of fire and drive can only take him to new levels when it comes to pursuing his violin playing dreams.
“I do plan on furthering my passion for the violin after high school,” Pruss said. “I want to continue indulging in competitions, playing concertos with orchestras as a soloist, playing in my university’s orchestra, and making it into a professional orchestra.”
As Pruss gives the world new music to listen too, the violin is has also given him memories, opportunity, recognition, and an exciting future to look forwards to.
His talent has not only been recognized in Omaha, but Hasting has taken an interest in ability too.
“I was invited to perform as a featured soloist with the Omaha Symphony and the Hasting Symphony Orchestra,” Pruss said.
Beside his unending adventures of playing the violin, he has other dreams too.
“After high school, I plan to major in Biochemistry and go to medical school in hopes of eventually becoming a surgeon,” Pruss said.
Pruss has managed well with keeping track of his schedule to balance his life as a three-sport athlete, member of the National Honor’s Society, HOSA, and a Let-4 Senior in Benson’s Army JROTC program.
“I keep track of all of my lessons, meets, concerts, rehearsals, and more in a book,” Pruss said. “That way I always know when and where I need to be.”
Sometimes sacrifices must be made to make room for what’s important, and Pruss has gotten acquainted to a world of sacrifice.
“When my violin schedule starts getting busier, I have to sacrifice working out so that I can make time to do my school work and go to sleep,” Pruss said.
Pruss feels that it’s important that he utilizes his position as a successful violinist to advice those who working on filling his shoes.
“Never give up and always practice is my advice to people whose passionate about the violin,” Pruss said.