Alum Update from 10-year-old Pianist Ray Ushikubo

When Ray Ushikubo was on our show last year at the tender age of nine he wowed the audience with a jaw-dropping performance of Frédéric Chopin’s Grand Valse Brilliant, Op. 18. Recently we heard from Ray with some exciting updates. In January, he performed from Beethoven’s Piano Concert No. 1 with the Young Musicians Foundation’s Debut Orchestra at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles. The concert included several renowned guest conductors such as John Williams and Michael Tilson Thomas, and we were thrilled to learn that the guest conductor at the helm for Ray’s piece was himself a From the Top Alum – Teddy Abrams, who played bassett horn on our show a decade ago!

This spring, Ray is looking forward to playing several Mozart pieces with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. Click here for more info. We wish Ray lots of luck in his upcoming concert and fully expect to hear more from this little dynamo!

Ray with John Williams, Michael Tilson Thomas, Joey Newman, Teddy Abrams, and Richard Kaufman