SANGER, Texas — For the past few years, Sanger High school senior Jarrett Rasure has had a crazy vision. Jarrett has dreamed of playing his tuba at Carnegie Hall.
Each year, as part of the high school honors series, a few hundred students are invited to perform at New York City's iconic venue.
Thousands of the best student musicians from around the world apply and when he started playing tuba, Jarrett wasn't one of them.
"Not at all," he said. "I couldn't perform the simple things. I was limited on my instrument to just the bare minimum."
Although he tried, Jarrett couldn't get a handle on the tuba, literally. When he first started playing, Jarrett got his hand stuck in his tuba and had to go to the E.R. to have it taken off.
Needless to say, his dreams of performing at Carnegie Hall were falling flat.
Until, a couple years ago Jarrett was selected for the all-state band. As part of that, he performed in front of a huge crowd in San Antonio. Not only did it open his eyes, but it also lit a fire.
Over the past two years, Jarrett has dedicated himself to practicing and perfecting his music.
Band director Sonny Martinez even chose Jarrett to mentor the younger tubas. "Because of him, it's elevated our program to a new level," Martinez said.
So, last summer, Jarrett finally submitted an audition tape for the high school honors series. He found out in October that his first trip to New York City will be as a performer at Carnegie Hall. The concert is next week.
"I think I'm really excited to be on that stage in front of those people, and I'm definitely excited to try the meat on a stick from New York," Jarrett said.
Now we know, to get to Carnegie Hall just follow the sweet smell of success.
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