Young harpist featured at holiday concert Saturday

By jennifer dome
Staff Writer

By jennifer dome
Staff Writer


Lillian Young, 14, of East Brunswick during a performance at Lincoln Center.Lillian Young, 14, of East Brunswick during a performance at Lincoln Center.

EAST BRUNSWICK — Though she has always been tall for her age, the height and weight of the semi-grand harp that stands in the corner of her Schindler Court home appear daunting next to the 14-year-old.

Yet Lillian Young, a ninth-grader at Churchill Junior High School, has no problem handling the monstrous instrument during her many performances.

"There are not too many harpists around here," her mother, An-Li Young, said in the family’s living room, which has partially metamorphosed into a music room for the Youngs.

Not only has Lillian played the harp since she was almost 9, but she learned the piano at age 3 and began playing the oboe in fifth grade. Her brother, Richard, now a law student, also played the piano and the cello, as did Lillian’s sister, Grace, a junior in high school.

"I just wanted to be different," Lillian said about taking up the harp.

Most children cannot play the harp until they are older "because you need bigger hands," An-Li Young said. Fortunately, the Youngs found a teacher, Marjorie Mollenauer of Colts Neck, who believed Lillian could play at a young age because of her long fingers.

This Saturday, Lillian will be a featured soloist at the Manalapan Battleground Symphony’s Holiday Concert, held at the Manalapan Englishtown Middle School on Millhurst Road at 7:30 p.m.

The orchestra, directed and conducted by Chiu-Tze Lin, is mainly comprised of adults, and Lillian is one of the youngest musicians to join the group. She has been playing with the symphony since she was 10, her mother said.

Lillian also continues to play the oboe for her school band, but she says she’s best at playing the harp and the piano. Lillian and her siblings learned piano from their mother, a piano teacher.

"She just picked it up," her mother said, adding that after hearing her brother and sister play, it was easier for Lillian to learn the piano.

She became one of the youngest children to ever play at Carnegie Hall in New York City, where she played at age 3. Lillian has performed several concerts at Carnegie Hall, Merkin Concert Hall and Lincoln Center, also in New York, winning numerous trophies that adorn tables in the family’s living room. She has also performed on television with the East Brunswick Young Musicians Concert.

"East Brunswick is a very musical township," An-Li Young said.

Playing music has taught Lillian many important values, such as time management, discipline and the confidence to face a crowd, her mother said.

"I can only do that if I’m playing an instrument. I still can’t speak in front of a crowd," Lillian said, smiling.

Lillian already plays with the township’s high school orchestra, though she is still in junior high. She plans to continue playing music in high school and in college, but she hopes to have a career in the medical field one day.

As she gets older, many of the competitions she performs in will help her gain scholarship money for college, her mother said.

For now, though, Lillian is also using her musical talents to get some spending money, and she said she still has free time at least one night during the weekend. Playing for communions, Easter and Christmas services, at nursing homes and for other occasions has resulted in a fairly lucrative business, she said.

Admission to the Manalapan Battle-ground Symphony’s performance on Dec. 7 is free of charge. For more information, call (732) 446-8355 or (732) 687-8527.