Elise Essenmacher has always had a love for music. It started eight years ago when she began taking private viola lessons. She has played all throughout her time here at Berkley and is now the Principal Violist of the Berkley High School Symphony Orchestra. Elise’s love for music usually has her spending her Saturday mornings playing with Detroit Metropolitan Youth Symphony, where she is a dedicated member and also Principal Violist. She is the President of BHS’s Tri-M Music Honor Society, and an All-State and Michigan Youth Arts Festival Violist.

“Being a part of the BHS orchestra program has taught me the importance of creativity and perseverance.” states Elise. She has also spent time traveling with the BHS Symphony Orchestra to MSBOA Orchestra Festivals. Her favorite memory over the last four years of being a part of the BHS Orchestra was “the trip to New York City. We performed at Carnegie Hall, one of the most famous concert halls in the world, which was an incredible experience.”

Elise plans to continue playing viola in the fall where she will be attending the University of Toledo Honors College to study engineering. She hopes to continue playing viola in the university’s orchestra. One piece of advice she would like her fellow orchestra classmates and underclassmen to know is to “continue to enjoy music in whatever form works best for you! It is a great way to relax and to think creatively about the world around you.”