PHOTO/ Tyler Lau The ECKHO quintet performs at the eighth-grade showcase, representing the high school orchestra programs. Junior Ellen Tang, a violinist, arranged their quintet rendition of “Paint it Black” after the song gained popularity from the Netflix show “Wednesday.”
By Jessica Lu,
Staff Writer
As the ECKHO quintet propped their sheet music onto the stand and readied their instruments, they exchanged glances with each other to cue the start of the piece, a classical arrangement of “Paint it Black” by the Rolling Stones at the eighth-grade showcase on Feb. 1. As they began to play, the sweet melody unraveled from their fingertips, and the music from each of their instruments combined together harmoniously. Every note, chord and phrase blended themselves into a mesmerizing piece that stunned the audience.
The ECKHO quintet is a chamber group formed by juniors Ellen Tang, Hayley Tang, Chloe Luong, Kayson Chen and Owen Su. Unlike other chamber groups with the traditional instrumentation of two violins, a viola and a cello, ECKHO has five members, most of whom can play different instruments. The addition of an extra member in the chamber group allows them to add interesting parts to their pieces, such as different types of percussion. In the group, the Tang twins and Luong play the violin, Chen plays the cello and Su plays the viola.
The quintet unofficially formed near the end of their seventh grade year, as they were all in Oak Avenue’s orchestra. They often skipped lunch to practice in the music room and eventually found themselves playing in the same group over and over again. After coming up with a name to call themselves and becoming more official as a chamber group, they recieved offers to play at events.
“We felt that we all got along with each other really well,” Luong said. “The music that we all like and play blend well in a way that sounds good and is our own sound. I feel like if we have anyone else in our group, it might sound different.”
ECKHO has played for events such as this year’s eighth grade showcase and assemblies, as well as lunchtime performances at the Senior Circle. Outside of school, some of their gigs have included a wedding and Lights on TC. The chamber group plays music from all different genres, ranging from classical, pop and musical theater. In addition, they also play arrangements of pieces that they put together themselves.
“I think the cool thing about art is that a lot of the time, you make it yourself,” Hayley Tang said. “If we want to play anything, we’ll either find it online or arrange it ourselves, and then we can play it. It sounds nice, and it’s very fulfilling.”
ECKHO is currently trying to expand and go into freelance territory, hoping to be able to reach different people outside of their community. In addition, they recently started a chapter of the nonprofit Kreative Kiddos, which is dedicated to reaching out to underserved communities and providing them with STEM and music education. Their chapter focuses on music, and helps give opportunities to those who don’t have access to well-rounded and funded music programs.
“We were friends first and then a group second,” Ellen Tang said. “So, in addition to playing music, we just love spending time together. We have shared interests and things like that, so that makes us more cohesive as a group.”