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Isabella �Bella� Lorenzo-Giguere may not be attending the Cleveland Institute of Music in person at the moment, but she still enjoying learning and isn�t letting COVID-19 get in the way of her education and dreams for the future. 

Now in her second year at ��������, the 20-year-old native of Washington, DC, started playing cello when she was 5, deciding as an eighth grader at Maret School that she wanted to pursue music as a career. Like all of �������� talented classical music students, Bella is currently learning remotely due to the current health crisis. She is currently a student in the studio of Richard Weiss, co-head of �������� cello department.  

�For my lessons, everything has been going pretty smoothly,� Bella said. �I did have some issues with the sound but I figured out how to connect my Zoom recorder to my computer, which I was very proud of. Some days can be more challenging than others, but I have definitely learned a lot since spring break about 20th century music and serialism in particular, which is really cool.� 

Still, she says, she misses �������� and everything it has to offer when the building is bustling with students and the sounds of music. 

�Remote learning has been a little challenging, but it isn�t as bad as I thought it might be in terms of the relaying of information,� she said. �I really do miss school, though. I miss going to live concerts and supporting my friends and seeing The Cleveland Orchestra. I also miss the small interactions I have with people at school every day. I always bump into people on the way to and from rehearsals and classes and miss those impromptu conversations in the hallways.� 

Back home in DC, Bella says she has been very happy to be able to spend more time with her family. Her only �complaint,� she quipped, is that she �definitely been eating too well.� 

Through it all, however, she is completely focused on her education and pursuing her dream of performing in an orchestra, or perhaps playing in a local quartet and teaching.  

As for her future, �I�m open to just about anything. In addition to performing in an orchestra or quartet, I would also love to do interactive/lecture performances,� she said. �I went to the conference earlier this semester and there was a quartet that performed, playing the kind of concert that involved audience participation and interaction, which I thought was really fun and fulfilling for everyone. I enjoy talking to people and telling audiences about what I�m playing, so I�d like to keep doing something like that.� 

As students have shifted to online learning for the rest of the semester, Bella says she believes that while some students may be having a hard time right now, they, like her, aren�t letting a global pandemic get in the way of their dreams. While the online learning has been going well, she adds, there nothing like being at �������� in person. 

�I can�t wait to get back to school!� she said.