Music has been a throughline in Linus’s life from his earliest days, from playing the piano as a small child to singing in choirs for the New England Conservatory (NEC) and with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Today, you can also find him in Commonwealth’s Chorale and Chorus, even as he dips his toes into behind-the-scenes work conducting and composing. Keep reading to learn about his musical influences (spanning the past 400 years or so), his appreciation for poignant late-night comedy and po’boy sandwiches, and more from this sophomore from Charlestown, Massachusetts.

Getting to Know You

What is bringing you joy right now? 

Music. I'm just starting to get back into the piano, and I'm really enjoying it. And we just had Chorus and Chorale rehearsals, and they’re really fun; we're doing some French carols for the winter concert.

What is your favorite book (or a book you’ve re-read)? 

Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro. I just love the way it's written. It so beautifully describes the world of this British butler. The plot isn't thrilling, but the way it's written, you can't put it down.

What are your favorite comfort foods? 

Catfish po’boys. My mother's from New Orleans, and I love all the food there, but especially catfish po’boys. Every time I go to visit family down there, it's the first meal I eat.

What was/is your favorite class (at Commonwealth or elsewhere)? 

I really enjoy the in-depth discussion on the books and texts we read in English and how we take such a different approach to analysis. In middle school, we really only looked at “big” ideas; now, we zoom in on language and look at, well, what is this author doing to weave these big ideas together? 

Another class I'm really enjoying is Conducting. It seems so simple on the surface, but then you realize, Oh my God, conductors are doing so much at once! They're analyzing the score, they're cueing people, they're keeping everyone on time. It's really interesting to learn.

When do you feel the most enjoyably challenged?

When I'm working on an assignment or a piece of music that stretches me and makes me want to spend longer on it, because I really want to do it well. We have these vocab assignments for English where we have to pick out ten words that we didn't previously know from the text and then define them and use them in an example sentence. My challenge for myself is to always create the wittiest possible sentences I can; I am not satisfied until I come up with something clever and original. I usually spend far too long on that, but it's fun.

What never fails to make you laugh?

Jon Stewart [from The Daily Show] and other late-night shows. I think they play a big part in journalism today. I know it's sort of silly, but they get factual and reliable information to people, and at the same time, they manage to make it funny and engaging, which I really admire. Like, John Oliver gets into heavy topics and manages to raise awareness about problems with everything from school lunches to traffic stops, but he also makes it entertaining, and that can create change.

What are people most surprised to learn about you?

I sing opera. My favorite opera I've done is probably Wozzeck [by Alban Berg]; it's a piece about the tragic effects of war on humanity. It’s really harrowing, and definitely a very twisted, complex opera, but I think it is especially relevant given how much suffering is happening because of needless wars right now.

Coffee or tea? 

Definitely coffee. I need my caffeine!

Pen or pencil? 

I like the way pens write, but I like the erasability of pencils, so probably erasable pen.

Fall, winter, spring, or summer?

Summer, definitely. Don't get me wrong, I love school. But I love warm weather. 

Life as a Commonwealth Student (and Beyond)

What was your first impression of Commonwealth and how has it mapped to your experience? 

My first impression of Commonwealth was “wow.” When I came in for my visit days, it was just “this is a community of people who really love learning and love going to school.” And everyone just felt so welcoming. It was sort of love at first sight. Although the workload is higher than I had imagined, my expectations were the reality. It really is a close knit community of people who love learning.

Using metrics besides grades, how do you define “success” in your classes?

Enjoying learning and feeling like I’m getting something out of every class.

Tell us more about your musical career: When did you start and how? How has your musical practice evolved over time? And what do you envision for the future?

Well, I started playing piano at age four because my parents read an article in The New York Times about music being linked to better neurological development in children! Then, when I was five, we visited an abbey in Europe and went to a mass there. After the Abbey, we went on a road trip, and for those entire two hours, I sang the final hymn of the mass on repeat, and my parents were like, “Huh, maybe we should put him in a chorus.” So I joined the NEC Prep choruses, and it sort of just took off from there. 

I joined another chorus with North End Music and Performing Arts Center, and the director cast me in my first opera, playing the titular role in The Little Prince by Rachel Portman. From there, I sang in Turn of the Screw by Britten three times, then I had the honor of singing first Wozzeck and then Chichester Psalms with the BSO. Then in eighth grade I went from being a boy soprano to being a bass in about four months, which was a big change. I'm still navigating that change, and it can be frustrating at times, but I'm continuing to sing. There’s joy in performing and joy in working on a piece. 

I want music to be something I continue doing all my life, but I don't want it to become my job, because going into the music industry is not easy—not at all—and I want to be able to continue enjoying music. I don’t want to lose my love for music if I try to make it a profession. 

You’re also new to conducting and composing. What inspired that?

I wouldn't consider myself even close to a composer, but I like experimenting with it. Composing, I feel, is like writing, except you get more “composers’ block,” if that makes sense. It's hard to hear something in your head and transpose it onto sheet music and have it be something you're happy with. 

And, obviously, conductors are the glue of most types of music, and I think it's really important for musicians to learn conducting. It gives you an additional respect for the conductors, and it might be useful someday. You never know. 

What are some of your musical influences? 

I have influences from a lot of different genres. Beethoven, Mozart, and Bach are the obvious ones, but I also find myself very influenced by Handel and Britten. Some more modern influences are the Talking Heads, The Beatles, and Kendrick Lamar.

How do you spend your time outside of Commonwealth?

I do a lot of homework. This summer I got into competitive sailing, and I sail on Commonwealth’s team. I also read a lot, and I play chess on the side, though I’m not very good at it.

When do you feel most connected to other students (or teachers/staff members) in our community?

Probably Hancock. There's nothing quite like living with the entire school for a few days. It really helps you get to know people. During school days, of course, you have classes and free periods where you can talk, but being with people for three days and doing activities with them really solidifies your connections and bonds with your classmates.

How has your Commonwealth experience colored the way you look at the world? How you plan for your future?

Commonwealth has made me realize that there's always room for improvement and growth. You can always do a little bit better. You can always put in a little bit more work and effort. You also need to know when to stop, and that is also something I have learned from many nights of homework, but I think it's made me more thoughtful about the work I do, more thoughtful about how I go through life.

What is it like going to school in Boston?

I really like it. It makes it easy to bike. It feels like everything is just two blocks away. It's a beautiful neighborhood, too.

What would you tell your ninth-grade self?

Go see teachers when you're struggling. I did, but not enough! Also, use your free periods. It's always nice to have a free period to just sit around and talk with your friends, but if you use those forty-five minutes for homework, you'll be done forty-five minutes earlier at home.

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