This week’s spotlight shines on Warwick Valley Middle School eighth-grade musician Zoe Link. Zoe has used her exceptional drive to excel at the viola. She has been an all-county musician every year since fourth grade, but her interest in music began much earlier. She started music lessons before she was five.
“Music is important to me,” Zoe said. “It has really become part of my identity. I started at the age of four and a half. I was asking to play the violin before I could even talk! I also sing in ‘Jubilate,’ which is a church choir, and I assist with Treble Choir. Ultimately my goal is to perfect my sound.”
“It’s so admirable that she commits so much time to perfecting her craft,” WVMS Principal Georgianna Diopoulos said. “Yet she manages it all and is such a well-rounded young lady. She is also a model student.”
Besides having the drive to work hard as a musician, Zoe also trains hard as a swimmer. She competed on the Warwick Valley High School varsity team last year and this year. Her events are the 100-yard breaststroke and freestyle. Sometimes Zoe uses music in her head, whether it is a recent orchestra piece or a popular song, to help her stick to a pace while swimming.
“Zoe is a very driven student,” her music teacher Christy Brown said. “She puts her all into everything she is committed to. It has been exciting to watch her musical growth. I know that she practices during her lunches and the commitment continues at home with even more practice. She is one of the most dedicated and hard workers I have ever had. I look forward to seeing her really explode when she goes onto high school orchestra.”
