The last set of the quarter-final CCS tennis match starts, the score 4-10 as senior Yinan Zhou and his teammate trail behind. Although the point gap is wide, their serves and hits eventually bring the score to 13-11. The tennis team erupts into cheers as the coach congratulates the players on their hard work.

Yinan began taking tennis seriously at 10, diving into competitive practice to challenge himself and grow. He attributes his interest in the sport to the hopes of learning and contributing to the school tennis team. 

“I started realizing that if I worked harder, I could improve faster,” Yinan said. “It was this way for me to be a part of the tennis community and be competitive with the rest of the people there. After I started playing after middle school, I became more self-motivated when it comes to tennis.”

After joining Harker in sophomore year, Yinan chose lab band as his extra period option. He experimented with the guitar but later switched to trombone after a suggestion by his instructor. Yinan appreciates the cooperative nature and synchronous musicality of band.

“What inspired me to join lab band was to have a place to express myself musically,” Yinan said. “Joining lab band was definitely a more collaborative experience. It shaped my mindset as a musician for jazz band. I wanted to be able to play with a section and have more real experience of what a big band is supposed to feel like.”

Despite initially not knowing much about trombone, Yinan spent lots of time practicing and refining his technique. Instrumental director Jaco Wong first taught Yinan in his sophomore year and notices his quick adaptations to a new instrument. 

“I suggested he learn a wind instrument and trombone happened to be one of the ones that we really needed, and he was interested, so he picked that up really quickly,” Wong said. “Within a few months, he took lessons and in one summer he was already playing amazing things and he learned so much jazz music.”

His peers also notice his commitment to improving his skills. Close friend senior Andre Lu commends Yinan’s absolute determination in mastering the trombone. Due to his successes, he has been able to participate in advanced bands like Stanford Jazz, despite only having a year of experience in the field.

“He’s very determined,” Andre said. “He’s only played for one year, but he’s one of the hardest-working individuals I know. In that one year, he already auditioned and got into really high-level programs for jazz, which is really cool.”

Although band can be seen as more of an individual activity, Yinan understands the collaborative effort needed to pull a piece together. He finds that working together to harmonize notes and practicing is essential to improving the band. Being able to meet the community of trombonists has helped Yinan find a purpose in what he does. 

“For trombone, what makes all the hard work worth it is getting to know the culture that it’s from,” Yinan said. “If you’re disconnected from the culture, then learning becomes difficult because it’s only based on self-motivated principles. Once you learn about the history and know the people who are part of it, it becomes a collective thing rather than an individual journey.” 

Close friend senior Oli Roman first met Yinan through lab band in sophomore year. Learning something in a short period of time poses many challenges, but Yinan’s hard work allowed him to master the trombone in just a year. He admires Yinan’s dedication to music and his curiosity for exploring new things. 

“He’s always thinking about music,” Oli said. “He’ll be talking about arrangements he’s made or pieces he wants to try out. If we have free time, he’ll ask us if we want to play warmups. He very much has this pure passion for music that a lot of other people simply don’t have.”

Whether it be hitting a serve in tennis or perfecting a piece in jazz band, Yinan brings all his effort into his pursuits. Rather than focusing on the achievements of his activities, he concentrates on developing his skills. Yinan’s focus on teamwork rather than accomplishments drives him to grow closer to the jazz band. 

“Apart from winning, the little things make the most impact,” Yinan said. “My love for trombone and tennis stems from this urge to be part of a community. Improving in trombone has not only helped the band, but it’s also helped my own self-esteem. On a more personal scale, playing the trombone is a way for me to relax after a really stressful day.”