“Do not mess up,” is what Wayland High School sophomore Radha Biswas says to herself as she makes her way on stage: “Do not mess up.” It’s normal for high schoolers to have stage fright, but for Bidwas, it’s not the Wayland High School auditorium that’s the source of fear. Instead, it’s the world famous concert venue Carnegie Hall, located in New York City.
Starting at a young age, Biswas gravitated towards music. She started playing the piano when she was four years old because her parents found a teacher nearby. Later, at the age of 11, she picked up both the oboe and percussion in order to attend the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra (BYSO) program, which required her to learn to play those instruments. More recently, Biswas started to play the organ.
“[I like the oboe] because I can create many variations of tone, and some of the oboe excerpts in solos and orchestra repertoires are really pretty,” Biswas said. “I like the piano because I have an entire range of keys in my disposal and I can basically play an entire orchestral piece on the piano with my hand.”
Right now, Biswas is part of a variety of programs that support young musicians. Her primary one, BYSO, is one of the largest and most comprehensive youth orchestras in the United States and provides nationally recognized training. Biswas is currently part of the second best orchestra within BYSO, the Repertory Orchestra. The orchestra practices five hours every week, and performs at concerts at Symphony Hall, Boston University’s Tsai Performance center and the Kresge Auditorium at MIT.
“[I like playing for BYSO because] the repertoire is really good, and the conductors are really experienced as well,” Biswas said. “It is really tiring because it’s five hours of rehearsal every week, but it’s worth it.”
Using her skills, Biswas participates in different competitions, mainly competing for the piano and occasionally the oboe. Some of these competitions include the Sempre Musick Competition, Elite International Competition, Manchester Music Competition and a few other smaller competitions.
During competition season, Biswas practices much more than she generally would. She typically practices 45 minutes to an hour a day, but when she is preparing for a competition, her time is bumped up to one to two hours a day. She practices her competition pieces slowly in the beginning, and then eventually speeds it up so her technique is spot on for the competition.
“My best achievement is probably first place in the Elite International Competition that led me to play at Carnegie Hall,” Biswas said.
For some youth musicians, playing at Carnegie Hall once in their lifetime is out of reach. However, Biswas has played there twice, once in 2024 and again in 2025. Carnegie Hall is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious and world-famous concert venues. A few notable musicians who have played there are Yo-Yo Ma, Igor Stravinsky, Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, The Beatles and more. Biswas remembers Carnegie Hall as an honorable experience to perform for everyone and listen to her peers playing their instruments.
“The experience was quite magical,” Biswas said. “It was stressful obviously, because it’s Carnegie Hall, but at the same time, it was exciting and also something I could be proud of.”
In addition to being a part of BYSO, Biswas is also involved with WHS’s music program. Biswas plays in the wind ensemble and the full orchestra. In the wind ensemble, Biswas plays percussion, which she considers her side instrument. She likes playing for this ensemble because it is less competitive and demanding compared to BYSO.
“She follows conductors really well, [and] she understands all the nuances of music,” wind ensemble conductor Joseph Oneshuck said. “But the thing I enjoy most about her is that she seems to just really enjoy playing.”
In the full orchestra, Biswas plays the oboe. This ensemble focuses more on classical repertoires and is composed of both band and orchestra students. The full orchestra only admits musicians based on teacher recommendation. For Biswas, it was Wayland Middle School’s former band teacher Gregory Harris who recommended that full orchestra conductor Susan Memoli admit Biswas to the program. Memoli acknowledges Biswas’s work ethic as a significant contribution to how Biswas has got to where she is today in her music career.
“She’s a really, really dedicated, hardworking person, which is how anybody becomes a great musician,” Memoli said. “She’s on the instrument so much, and she’s playing so much around really good musicians.”
In the future, Biswas hopes to continue playing her instruments and learn how to play different, longer concertos. In addition, she would like to join her future college’s orchestra and play in other orchestras around the world.
“My hope for her is that she continues on her path, finds ways to express herself musically and really enjoys the process,” Memoli said.