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Nelly Solares

@nell.yso

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Choir Director • Educator • Human Being • Free Palestine 🍉🇵🇸

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What my smile looks like when I feel free ‼️ is at the barricade for my favs in a cute lil outfit ‼️ by @nell.yso

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5 days ago

I knew the thrifted dress would be of use someday 😝👻 by @nell.yso

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5 days ago

by @nell.yso

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a month ago

Actually I just decided this one needs its own moment. This is my arrangement of Poison and a career highlight for me now. iPhone camera mic does not do them justice… the choir is singing in three part harmony behind the soloist. by @nell.yso

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2 months ago

It was a very fall-down-and-get-back-up/get by with a little help from my friends/“wow bro really hit record and post”/stim-alone-at-the-concert/ride-the-metro summer for me by @nell.yso

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2 months ago

Before the new school year starts tomorrow, gotta post some of my favorite performance moments from the end of last year.
Can’t Catch Me Now, my arrangement…

Bohemian Rhapsody (guess who arranged this… + @totallynottabbi ) - sometimes you add a little part to an arrangement and now you can’t imagine the song without it.

Mind you they learned this in like 2 weeks.

Smooth Criminal (I actually arranged too much for this concert)

A CROWD FAVORITE Bright Lights, Bigger City/Magic NOT by me, from pitch perfect 1 (Arr Deke Sharon)

And the divas that they are, insisted on throwing “Solares bucks” for Money, Money, Money (arr. Karen-Ivana)

Sit Still, Look Pretty from Pitch Perfect 3 (Arr Deke Sharon)

Senior song. Landslide. I arranged this one too, then they learned it in 5 days because they were the best. If I could do it again, I’d make some changes (🥁tss) but they sound so good I am still crying.

If you listen closely at the end, you can hear me start crying.

Honorable mention… this joke… not included: me screaming/dying/walking off as a ghost at the end of this number. (Show was Murder Mystery) by @nell.yso

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2 months ago

I’m not very good at guitar, but I cried listening to this on the way home from visiting him. The song resonates a little too much, though he actually died on a Thursday. There is no heavier exhaustion than that which accompanies grief. Maybe I’ll sleep through Christmas. For now, I am sunburned. #grief #parentloss #fathersday #singing by @nell.yso

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4 months ago

Key takeaways from year 3:
To be known is to be loved.
No one is alone.
There are cathedrals everywhere for those with eyes to see them.

Normally, I would say that vulnerability is worn as a badge of honor — a risk offered in an act of bravery. But I’ve learned this year that there comes a time where you have no other choice but to expose the soft and tender pulse of your vulnerable heart and hope that the world will not sink its teeth in when your defenses are down.

Upon reflecting on my experiences as a singer and on how vulnerable it is to share your voice, I thought about how love doesn’t always look how you think it will. Sometimes, love looks like singing in a trio or quartet: if your counterpart falters during performance, you listen, you change, you support their harmony or melody, quietly and without discussion. Sometimes love is a quiet acknowledgement before it’s a loud proclamation, simply doing the thing that helps without a request, showing up when you don’t have to, or extra patience even when it’s hard. Love can even look like holding the door open for a stranger or flashing your brights to let someone know their headlights aren’t on, and it can sound like a compliment on someone’s outfit, like laughter between friends, or like a softening of tone in a moment of need.

I’m doing my best to see love around me more, and to be grateful for its inherent presence in everyday moments. This year, I resolved to extend love as often as I can, in as many ways as possible. As a result, it was reflected back to me in the most precious ways when I needed it most. “In the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make.”

Through the grief, the sorrow, the stress, the exhaustion, the tears wept from sadness, pride, and joy, I have loved year 3. Thankful for the friends and community I have around me, who have continuously supported and uplifted me. I am proud of what we’ve accomplished this year and excited for what’s next. by @nell.yso

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4 months ago

A couple months ago, I threw an idea out to my senior parents. Would you be interested in putting together a surprise for your students? And putting a request out like that can feel a little scary. What if no one wants to? But to my delight, I had a great response. So for about a month, we met once a week in secret, working on Calling My Children Home (arr. Jennings), preparing to perform it at the awards banquet.

The kids were SO surprised. They hadn’t caught on at all. Some cried. Some never thought their parent would do something like this. I think the parents were surprised too - that they had fun and learned a lot. They felt a little more connected to their kids, sharing something they love.

Afterwards, a few parents thanked me and suggested that I try this again, with even more parents, because they really enjoyed it. It made me realize that this was another dreams coming true moment. I created a little more connection and joy in my community through music. That’s a beautiful and very magical thing, and it’s what I care about far more than any recognition, accolade, score, or award. I am so grateful to do this.
#teacher #choirteacher #choir by @nell.yso

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4 months ago

This was one of my dad’s favorite songs, dedicated to and performed for him at my senior recital in 2022. Rest in peace Papi. by @nell.yso

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6 months ago

My dad passed away this morning.

11 years ago, my dad suddenly became blind. In the years that followed, various other systems and organs began failing. For 11 years, I’ve mostly kept this struggle close to the vest. It was hard to watch the man you’re supposed to view as the Strongest Person Alive slowly wither and weaken - I wrote this poem about the experience in high school. But unfalteringly so, the man kept going; “Strongest Person Alive” had taken a new form. Through the constant trauma of his body fighting against itself, my papi still gave us the best pep talks, encouraging me and expressing his pride in me at every opportunity. He became my biggest fan and strongest supporter. In all the things he lost, he could still listen to music. See, he was actually the one who taught me such a deep and genuine love and appreciation for music, and after he became blind, my connection to music and my drive to create became so much deeper. There were a lot of times where music got me through my sadness surrounding my dad, but also a lot of times when just knowing that he would be able to come to a performance or even see the video afterward pushed me to keep going.

Papi, thank you for passing your impeccable music taste down the generations. Thank you for making us laugh (my mom cropped the 4th slide, so you can’t see we were both giving the camera the finger). Thank you for insisting upon taking care of us, even through all the pain. Thank you for believing in me so hard that I started believing in myself. I love you. I will miss you forever. by @nell.yso

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6 months ago

Me and my beautiful friends!!!! Thank you for always supporting me🫶 by @nell.yso

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6 months ago