Adam Adler’s “Cassiopeia”, played by the Strings Attached Orchestra at our 2016 Family & Friends Year End Concert.

Adam Adler, first place winner of YCI2016

Adam is sixteen years old and is in grade eleven at the Anne and Max Tanenbaum Community Hebrew Academy of Toronto. Adam has had an interest in music since he was two years old, walking around the house playing guitar. He started piano lessons at the age of four. In addition to piano, Adam also plays guitar, saxophone and drums. He started composing music at the age of ten and has written many pieces for orchestra, choir and concert bands. He continues to be inspired to write songs and can often be found sitting at his piano composing. Adam won second place for his orchestral composition “Hard to Say Goodbye” in the Ontario Registered Music Teacher’s Association Music Writing Competition in 2013 at the Ontario level. He also won first place in his age group in the Amadeus Choir Song Writing Competition 2015. Aside from his passion for music, Adam enjoys playing baseball and volleyball and loves skiing in the winter. Recently, Adam has developed an interest in graphic design as well as video and photo editing. He also spends quite a bit of time making mash-ups of current songs and DJing parties and events.

Cassiopeia, commentary by Adam Adler

This piece starts off with a simple melody. As the piece evolves, more and more layers are added. There is the introduction of a new contrasting melody which is added to the original melody while that continues to build. The song ends with the return of the simple original melody. Listening to this melody reminds me of the open, unending sky and naming the piece after a constellation seemed most representative. Cassiopeia is a five star constellation. Each star represents one of the five strings in the piece and just as the individual stars come together to make up the constellation, some shining brighter than others at different times, each instrument played together makes up this piece.