Rhode Island must have been way different from Hawaii for obvious reasons, what were some of the changes you had to endure?
I got there (New Port, Rhode Island) in the summer, when it was hot and humid, but I quickly became acquainted with the biggest difference between Hawaii and New England: cold. Cold, cold, cold. School was cancelled one day, not because it had snowed, but because at 25º below zero with the wind chill, it was dangerous for students to stand around outside waiting for a bus. It was nice to have the seasons change, and initially, winter was fun. It got old pretty quickly, though, and hung around for eight months too long.
Newport was a nice town, despite the cold. I lived twenty or thirty meters from the ocean, and I could walk to the best surf break on the east coast in ten minutes. Granted, surfing in Rhode Island required a thick wetsuit, but it was surfing nonetheless. Historically, the area had been home to the very, very wealthy during the turn of the twentieth century. They left, but their mansions stayed, and the city maintained several of these huge, beautiful homes, perched on cliffs overlooking the ocean. It was definitely an enjoyable place to live.
My new high school was Rogers High School, a public school with about 800 students. It was hard to get used to such a small school after Moanalua. Our band had about 30 people in it: my brother and I were the whole trumpet section. There was no real marching band, and when we interacted with the strings, which was rare, we barely could be called an orchestra. I did have fun with that band, but it was always a different feeling than the great times I had in Hawaii.

I understand that your move to Rhode Island was due to your father’s involvement in the Military. Do you have any negative feelings towards the military because of your multiple moves?
I definitely stand behind my father and his job with the Army. Moving around so much was never easy, but I can’t say I ever wished that he had a different job. I am proud of his dedication to our country, and I have the utmost respect for him and a high appreciation of how difficult his job is.

Describe your musical experiences after leaving MoHS until today.
As I mentioned earlier, I spent my junior year at Rogers High School in Rhode Island. It was a small band, but I ended up taking private lessons that year and saw my playing ability improve quite a bit. We weren’t too great, but we weren’t terrible—there were a few decent musicians. We played in New York City and spent a few days there, which was fun, but of course the experience didn’t approach London and Paris.
My senior year was spent attending Elk Grove High School, in Elk Grove, California. This school was a little bigger than Moanalua, and had a decent band program. I marched, played in concert band and jazz band. It was my first experience with jazz, and our director was a jazz musician, so it was a lot of fun to learn from him. Our uniforms could not have been more similar to the new Moanalua uniforms: the only difference was a gold stripe instead of a silver stripe. In terms of travel, our marching band made a trip down to Disneyland, and paraded down Main Street.
I do not play at Stanford, though I am considering shaking the rust off my trumpet playing technique next quarter and playing in a jazz combo. The marching band here is…unorthodox, to say the least, and the orchestra and wind ensemble are tremendous time commitments.

How have the teachings from the MoHS music department helped you in your life thus far?
The greatest lesson I learned from MoHS music was to live passionately. I remember seeing the passion that every Moanalua musician pumped into his or her music, and instinctively knowing that it was the right thing. I only spent two years playing the trumpet at Moanalua, but in that time I began to learn how to play music with my heart, and more importantly, how to live life with that kind of feeling.

What are some of your most cherished memories from the MoHS music department?
This is going to be a long list. I remember…spending rookie week in a daze, wondering just what I had gotten myself into, and then going to the first marching band practice and finding out. Asking someone what time it was every fifteen minutes during marching practice, until I knew the length of fifteen minutes so well that I didn’t have to ask anymore. Standing at attention in the rain and mud for what seemed like eternity one night when our effort disappointed Mr. Seta. Yearning for the sun to drop low enough behind the buildings to shade the field during weekend workouts. Trying to do a march to the rear in the mud and rain. Band Camp. Wearing stickers on my arms for initiation during the first full day of band camp, and having a distinctive design tanned into my arms that didn’t go away for a few months. Going up against the drum major in a boxing match as a scrawny freshman. People running one lap after practice to get in better shape. Finishing practice ten minutes late and thinking about how early we finished that night. Doing the field show for twentieth time during practice. Doing the field show for the first time in Aloha Stadium. Getting goosebumps during parts of the show. Parkin’ and blowin’. How it seemed to rain every time we performed our field show in the two years I was there. Letting off the balloons during pep band at football games. Freezing in London and Paris my freshman year.
I remember…concert band with the awesome class of ’05. Standing up for the first time as Mr. Seta stepped onto the podium. Playing at Ala Moana Center. First tasting the powerful feeling that I have only ever felt playing onstage with Moanalua bands. Learning orchestra music for the first time. Trying to learn orchestra music for fiftieth time. First putting on a tuxedo to perform with the symphony orchestra. Practicing after school during the spring semester. Going to orchestra camp. Being glared at by the strings when they heard how out of tune the trumpets were. Running from baseball practice to after school rehearsal, dirty and sweaty. That incomparable feeling during rehearsal when we were almost perfect. That unforgettable sensation during a performance when everything seemed to lock in. Watching the symphonic wind ensemble and aspiring to be a part of it one day. Playing in the symphonic wind ensemble and wishing I could always be a part of it. Looking at some of the upperclassmen and wondering why they moved so much when they played. Being gawked at because I moved so much when I played. A cell phone going off in the audience during a concert at McKinley, right as we finished playing a heavy, dramatic piece. Waiting to walk on stage at PCC. Springing straight up as Mr. Seta walked towards the podium. Drinking in the final moments of my last performance as a member of the MoHS music department.
I remember our performances of “Honolulu City Lights,” and imagine that I’m flying in, around 9:00 in the evening, the shimmering lights spreading aimlessly out below me

What routes, musical and educational, have your siblings taken after leaving the MoHS system?
My sister, Jennifer, graduated from MoHS c/o 2003 and is currently a junior at the University of Pennsylvania. She does not play her clarinet at college. My brother, Patrick, is a junior this year at Elk Grove High School. He plays the trumpet in the jazz, concert, and marching bands.

How was your senior year of high school? The happy memories?
Senior year was a blast, despite the fact that I came in to Elk Grove as a first year senior. I ran cross country in the fall, and our team earned a sixth place finish at the section championships. We made a trip down to LA for a race and managed to spend some time at Disneyland while we were there. Our field show for marching band was “Pirates of the Caribbean,” with music from the Disney movie. As I said earlier, I played in the jazz band, which was a great new experience. By winter break I had completed all of my college apps and was looking forward to the last part of my high school career.
Winter and spring brought competitions for concert and jazz band. I also played on the varsity baseball team, and we won the section championships title (it doesn’t go any higher for baseball in California.) Of course, I decided to attend Stanford, and made a couple of trips down to the campus. I floated through the final senior events: senior prom, senior picnic, graduation rehearsals, etc. I spoke at graduation as the valedictorian and ended my high school years wearing blue and gold.
As seniors tend to do, I bonded a lot with Elk Grove’s Class of ’05. My senior cross country friends and I took an RV down to San Diego to watch the national high school cross country championships, and hit the beaches. During the spring, I returned to San Diego with the baseball team for a preseason tournament. As they say in northern California: senior year was “hella” good.

What emotions did you experience when opening your acceptance letter from Stanford?
The first emotion I felt when I saw the envelope in the mail was a release of tension. All that stress that begins to build with the first application drained away in that moment. Then, of course, I felt thrilled to have gotten in to Stanford. I remember wanting to go there as a kid because it was the only school I’d heard about that had a great baseball team. I guess that the final emotion I experienced was a deep sense of relief: I made the decision to attend as soon as I saw the envelope, so it represented the end of wondering about where I would go, and the beginning of another adventure.

So how is college life at Stanford?
College life is wonderful. Stanford is on a quarter system, and this quarter I am taking four courses. The work is there, and it is difficult, but not life-consuming—it really only becomes hard if one falls behind. My professors are all very good this quarter: my math professor is a rocket scientist (seriously) and my humanities professor is a widely read author. It is very interesting to be able to learn from them and talk to them on a one-to-one basis during their office hours.
Of course, there is a little more to Stanford than classes. I’ve had a couple of chances to explore San Francisco with friends during the quarter. My friends and I have also checked out Palo Alto, the nearby town, a couple of times. On-campus, there is always something going on. A cappella groups are very popular here: I had the chance to see a concert by two of our best groups, Fleet Street and Talisman, this past Friday. There have been innumerable performances, both by students and traveling groups that stop at Stanford, which I’ve attended. The Dalai Lama visited our campus earlier this year, but tickets had been sold out since last year, so I didn’t get a chance to see him.

What is your degree? And what do you plan to be when you grow up?
I am going to major in civil engineering, and I hope to get a masters in structural engineering. If I ever grow up, it will be my job to design buildings that won’t topple in an earthquake and bridges that won’t collapse under a tsunami.

Is there anything you would like to say towards any of the band directors, or your class, or anyone else?
To everyone I was blessed to share my two years at MoHS with: you are an awesome group of people, and I hope you are having the best of times. If you want to say hi, ask me a question, or do some catching up, feel free to shoot me an email at clight8@stanford.edu