photo by steed media service

Yusef and Talon Williams are an anomaly — notable teens on the classical music scene. While they both appreciate hip-hop and more contemporary musical genres, the 15- and 16-year-old brothers are accomplished cellists. The accomplished Cass Technical High School students have been playing since third grade and while they say their futures are in the high tech and natural science arenas, both expressed an interest in continuing their studies at the famed Juliard School of Music.

The creative and expressive musical duo perform together and separately at concerts throughout the metropolitan area and the state. Yusef, the younger of the brothers confides, “My ultimate dream would be to play with Yo-Yo Ma. I think that can happen and then I’ll be satisfied.”

Talon on the other hand says he doesn’t aspire to play with an orchestra, “I will continue to play for my own personal enjoyment and maybe some special occasions.”

“We like hip-hop,” says Talon. “But I would rather hear a less repetitive and driving beat ... I want harmony,” adds Yusef. The Williamses’ commitment to music has required that they make certain sacrifices, like giving up membership on school sports teams. “When I was on the football team we had practices every day, and I kept missing them because of music commitments,” says Yusef. “My coach would get upset with me, and I eventually decided I needed to make a choice between devoting the majority of my time to sports or music. I chose music, it comes first with me,” explains Talon.

The brothers contend, “Anybody can get to this, our 2-year-old niece doesn’t know it’s not dance music. She dances every time we play, especially at dinner.” And then they played. roz edward

Send this Article to a Friend
facebook