IS RIVERS CREAtING - The Rivers School

Student News
side of the Rivers environment doesn’t mean
their school experiences play no part. The
general emphasis on student involvement
and the substantial arts and sports requirements
at Rivers often steer kids towards
interests that they might not normally pursue.
“Rivers does a great job of not limiting
students in any way,” says Science Department
chair Kim Kopelman. “If they’re interested
in science, they could still do art,
or sports, or something else entirely.”
Ultimately, there is a prevailing sense at
Rivers that students are the sum of their
collective experiences, rather than molded
completely by one influence over another.
“I think it’s a combination of the strength
of the teachers and programs, the high
standards we set, and a school environment
that is supportive of many different
pursuits,” says Olverson. “I wouldn’t claim
that we are creating Renaissance students
out of thin air, but I definitely think we do
a good job of providing opportunities and
a culture conducive to well-roundedness.”
cussing his future plans. “Going pro is
always in the back of my mind,” he says,
unveiling a smile just ambiguous enough
to make you wonder which profession he
might be referring to . . .
Lighting Up the Stage—
Do you ever think about how a rock
concert gets put together Contrary to
what you might assume from Spinal
Tap, band members don’t just pile out of their
dressing rooms, stumble onto the stage and
start playing. Each show requires significant
amounts of time, effort and money that go into
set-up, sound and lighting, and just one snafu
from someone on the sidelines can be the difference
between perfection and disaster.
Jake Solomon is one such person who
keeps things running smoothly backstage.
Scaling the high ladders, double-checking the
bulbs, and overseeing the lighting boards, he
has done lighting work at the 5,000-seat Bank
of America Pavilion and has a regular weekend
gig at The Center for the Arts in Natick
(TCAN). He’d help out during the week, too,
but he’s got another job that occupies his 9-to-
5: full-time high school senior at Rivers.
“For me, doing the lights
is kind of like being an
extra instrument.”
Jake Solomon
Solomon has been immersed in the music scene from an early age, his father
Frank having spent more than 20 years managing rock artists that include Dreamtheater
and Deep Purple guitarist Steve Morse. “Every time we went to shows and he
had to take care of some business, I’d get dumped in the lighting area,” Solomon says
with a smile. “So I watched people working backstage for a long time.”
In 2004, the then-13-year-old Solomon decided to give it a go himself. A Natick
native, he talked to TCAN executive director Dave Lavalley, who also happened to be
his former soccer coach. Helping out with high school rock shows, Solomon proved
to be a quick study and has since been promoted as the chief lighting designer for
TCAN’s weekend concert programming.
While lighting is relatively straightforward for simple “guy with a guitar” gigs,
bigger concerts allow Solomon to flex his creative muscle as a lighting technician.
“For those shows, I try to learn the music ahead of time,” he says. “I’ll get there early
to set up different spotlights and pick out specific parts that I’ll change the light for.
A lot of it, though, I end up figuring out as it happens.”
Solomon’s experience reflects his commitment to volunteering, a quality that
Rivers highly encourages through its programs. Says Lavalley: “Jake has really demonstrated
service to the community with this nonprofit work.” Having logged more
than 1,200 volunteer hours at TCAN, Solomon can safely say that he’s “quite a bit
over the required 30 hours [of community service].”
As for his future prospects, Solomon is interested in a career as a booking agent
or manager, just like his father, and has been looking mostly at colleges with music
business programs. Even if he doesn’t continue his career as a lighting director, he
says he’ll never forget his experiences at TCAN: “For me, doing the lights is kind of
like being an extra instrument,” he says. “In a way, you really get to be part of the
band.”
Spring 2009 • Riparian • 15