Justin Kolb, pianist extraordinaire, visited several of Delarc’s facilities on Wednesday 3/14. Justin made his concert debut at age 10 in solo performances with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Gary Symphony. He is an extremely talented performer who travels 4 months each year during his concert tours throughout Eastern Europe, Canada, and the United States. However his home base is in Delaware County, NY which he says is the most rewarding place to play. He states that people in the Catskill’s area don’t take great music for granted.
Justin has been associated with The Arc of Delaware County(Delarc) for almost a decade. His long relationship with Delarc began when George Suess, Exec. Director requested that he give a recital at a Christmas event at one of Delarc’s facilities. While performing, he noticed the effect that the music had on his audience. “When I played softly the people became very quiet and when I was playing loudly they also became louder. I found it fascinating that they instinctively tracked along with the music. I stopped playing and there was silence. I asked if there was anyone that would like to play. All but 2 (people) came forward to express themselves musically. It’s my personal judgment that for both the audience and myself, it was an empowering and powerful experience.” Since then, he has been delighting people at Delarc each year, providing entertainment, instruction, and encouragement to individuals and groups of people. Justin shared that he feels that artists have an obligation to share their talent with others. After Justin’s visits you can see the huge impact that he has on the people of Delarc by the excitement and smiles on everyone’s faces. He shared that this program has been a very rewarding experience for him as well.
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