First Violin
Betty Chen
Betty Chen joined the Kansas City Symphony’s first violin section in 2016 after several seasons with the New Haven Symphony Orchestra and countless freelancing gigs while a student at Juilliard and Yale. When not scrubbing away at the violin, she is likely at home in Overland Park, Kansas, playing butler to her two tiny but mighty girls.
Everyone is in the same place, experiencing something together that can only happen in that moment.
Franny and Zooey by JD Salinger
My husband is my favorite pianist! He plays all around the country and also teaches at UMKC.
The city, the hall, and the people.
Learning how to read music by jumping on five lines of tape my teacher had pasted on the floor to represent the staff (I was the note).
Rye, or Café Gratitude for a meal you’ll feel still good about afterwards.
It’s different every day. I think seeing anyone putting their best effort into something inspires me to do the same, so it could be anyone on any day – my colleagues, friends, family, or strangers. Same answer for musical inspiration.
I would love to be an animator for Pixar or Ghibli or something like that, but realistically I’d probably be unemployed.
Probably my first one, because I was the most nervous!