By Rajan Saha, Staff Reporter
On a busy Saturday afternoon in Philadelphia, the sounds of a guitar and singing cut through the noise of the streets. Passersby catch glimpses of Conestoga seniors Celine Luo and Penelope Valenti playing songs at Rittenhouse Square.
Luo and Valenti went to Rittenhouse Square, a public park in Center City on Oct. 3rd to sing and play various songs on guitar. The two started playing together because they wanted to try something new for their senior years. In July, they created a band called the Rollie Pollies, and in August, they practiced different songs to play at Rittenhouse Square.
“Both of us are interested in playing music post-high school with other people, publicly or privately. We (decided) we should try and start getting used to that and not be scared of public spaces,” Luo said.
The two chose Rittenhouse Square because they wanted to perform in a place with people they did not know to reduce performance pressure. Valenti explains the benefits of being in a new, crowded place.
“There’s a lot of people around” Valenti said. “You just meet a lot of interesting people.”
Both seniors switch between playing guitar and singing for their performances. Luo has been playing guitar since her sophomore year and flute for the wind ensemble at Conestoga while Valenti has been playing guitar since seventh grade and played at School of Rock for two years.
While playing at Rittenhouse Square, three musicians, ranging from trombone to guitar players, came up to Luo and Valenti to talk to them while performing. They complimented them on their songs and made small talk with them.
“I like how random people walk up to talk to us. It’s fun interacting with people who say, ‘Hey, that’s dope,’ and I’m like, ‘Yeah, exactly,’” Luo said.
Both Luo and Valenti plan to continue performing at Rittenhouse Square monthly and look into possibly playing with college bands or casually with friends in the future.
“It (music) has been such a part of me that I think, even if I ever get to a point where I’m stuck and I’m an office job, I would still come back to that in my life,” Luo said. “I don’t think I can get out of it. It’s just always been a part of me, and I’ll pick it up again whenever I’m bored.”
Rajan Saha can be reached at [email protected]
