nwasianweekly.com
June 24, 2006

Marcus Tsutakawa: an unsung hero

Touted recently in The Seattle Times as the force behind the best high school orchestra in the country, Marcus Tsutakawa has never been one to seek out the limelight. He makes the strongest impact when the cameras are not around, inside his classroom, when he’s with his students.

We want to take this chance to thank Tsutakawa for his decades of dedication to music, to young people and to the community. Throughout his nearly three decades of teaching, he has been an inspiration to countless students, as well as parents and community members.

You don’t become the leader of the best high school orchestra in the U.S. by setting low standards. “Tsut,” as he’s affectionately called in the halls of Garfield High School, sets the bar high for his musical ensembles. His method of teaching shows that young people can achieve great things if they are expected to excel. Several of the orchestra’s alumni have gone on to become outstanding music professionals; some have even followed in the footsteps of their mentor by becoming orchestra conductors. Many, many others have become leaders in their careers and communities, and that’s partly because of their high school orchestra conductor, who instilled a sense of maturity and leadership in them when they were young.

Tsutakawa has also proven to be an effective motivator of parents. The reason why the Garfield Orchestra is able to perform around the world — and its members are exposed to a multitude of cultures — is because of the fund-raising efforts of the parents. As most inner-city public schools know, such commitment from parents is hard to come by. But in Garfield’s orchestra program, parents are excited and motivated to help, and that’s due in large part to Tsutakawa, who has made the orchestra worth everyone’s time. He rallies parents to volunteer, raise money and serve as chaperones on trips because he knows that without them, his orchestra won’t have the chance to perform in international settings like Europe and Japan. These trips are a thrilling component to the experience of being a musician.

We think it’s important that children be instilled with an appreciation for music while they are young. Reading music and even composing their own pieces exercises a part of the brain that wouldn’t otherwise be used. Music offers people a new perspective on the world and a way to express themselves. It expands the mind and encourages different, more creative ways of thinking. Music is a necessary and invaluable part of a child’s education.

We thank Tsutakawa for being a wonderful advocate and representative of music education. With hundreds of students under his tutelage every year, he is making an enormous impact on Seattle’s youths. He is not just any teacher; he goes beyond the call of duty to coax outstanding performances from his students. He pushes them to always do better — because he knows they are capable of it.

His students walk away from Garfield with respect for Marcus Tsutakawa the man and, perhaps more importantly, a deep respect for music.

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