MANSFIELD — Colin Henley had his first “Masters Recital” at the Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM) this past weekend, where he played the pieces of: Johann Sebastian Bach – Violin Partita No. 3 (transcribed for Viola), William Walton- Viola Concerto and Frank Bridge – Two Pieces for Viola and Piano.
Henley, a graduate of Mansfield Senior, began his journey to CIM in Mansfield, where he first fell in love with classical music.
“The teacher of orchestra in fourth grade, she came in and played a trio with her daughter, and her daughter’s friend. And I realized what the collaboration of music can do. It really motivated me to just kind of dive in,” Henley said.
Viola was the first instrument he began to study on his own and soon fell in love with it. He was inspired by his brother Jordan, who he heard practicing viola after coming home from school.
Henley earned the honor of playing with the Mansfield Youth Orchestra, The Ohio All State Orchestra, and was First Chair Viola at the Cleveland Youth Orchestra, all while still in high school.
After his high school graduation 2016, Henley decided to take his talents to Baldwin Wallace University. He studied Music Performance and earned his degree in 2020. Currently, he is finishing his master’s degree at CIM, also in Music Performance, and is set on what he wishes to accomplish with his accolades.
“I want to start taking auditions to get into orchestras. My main goal is to play in an orchestra,” he said.
The Cleveland Orchestra and San Francisco Symphony were both high on his list for a dream job.
“The Cleveland orchestra is the one I always look at and admire the most, for many reasons,” Henley said. “The San Francisco Symphony, they progress in a very quick way as far as bringing inclusion into the orchestra scene, and that draws my attention.”
Watch a sample of Henley’s talents in his Instagram video below.
