Ah so let me tell you the story of how this happened. My friend and I brought cellos into the Upper West Side Apple Store in New York City after a rehearsal at Juilliard. My friend had just bought an iPhone 4S and she was looking to buy a case. We finally picked one out and while checking out, an employee saw our cellos and said he would give us a iPhone 4S case for free if I played the cello. I called his bluff, and this is what happened.

Unfortunately, just as I started playing, he said "Wait, no I can't actually give you the case!" But I said, "I don't care!" and kept playing on! I didn't actually have a camera on me at the time, but a Genius Bar employee came downstairs from the first floor and started recording me on his iPhone! He sent me the footage later in an email and then I uploaded the footage just for you guys on YouTube!

Every person has their idols: the people they look up to. One of mine was Steve Jobs. He was a leader, an innovator, a game changer, and someone I deeply respected. One might ask, "why would a musician look up to a businessman?" I believe there are some universal characteristics that make incredible people who they are and what they represent. When someone is passionate for the love of their craft, you can tell and you can feel it in your bones and your core. Steve Jobs resonated with my core in that I saw these things so intensely in his soul. 

In many ways, his presence on earth helped shape me. I became fascinated with technology and liberal arts because of him. My presence on the internet would not have existed without his inspiration and my subsequent motivation to go out and change the world. 

Because of these things, I choose to pay tribute to Steve Jobs in the way I know best: through music. Bach's Cello Suite No. 5 - Sarabande.

Ah! My first video from college has been released. In it, I play the famous soundtrack from the French movie "Amelie". It is one of my favorite movies of all time and the soundtrack is incredible. I teamed up with Bob Lou, an accordianist two floors below where I live and decided to play this song for YouTube.

Incredibly, we filmed this at 5 AM after rehearsing for about 45 mins. We were both really tired, but the amazing serene shot of the famous Low Library at Columbia University in the background was really rewarding. I especially like the ambient noise the water fountain in the background adds. The official name of the song is Le Waltz D'Amelie by Yann Tiersen. Watch the video and let me know what you think in the comments below!