Preparing to speak in front of a TEDx conference with his sleek recognizable cello in hand, eleventh-grader Matrick Thorpe, begins his speech: “Lessons Learned in the Pursuit of Music.”
Thorpe decided to focus his speech on the numerous things he has learned throughout his time playing music. He has played music in orchestras, at weddings, and generally anywhere music may be found. His musical endeavors have brought him to 23 countries, where he has performed widely varying pieces for listeners of varying musical tastes.
The way Thorpe was invited to participate in the TEDx Talk was different from most. Usually, a nomination form must be filled out for a speaker and their lesson idea. Thorpe, however, was approached by a TEDx coordinator who offered him the opportunity to give a Talk.
“One of the coordinators at TEDx came up to me and said, ‘I think you have a great idea. Would you like to do this?’ … of course I said yes,” Thorpe said.
Thorpe was subsequently invited as a speaker for the TEDxEustis Class of 2024. TED is a nonprofit with a mission of giving speakers a platform to share ideas with the slogan “Ideas worth spreading.” TEDx is for specific local groups with licenses from TED to share ideas for their local community. Thorpe spoke at the sold-out event in Eustis, Florida on February 3, 2024, and was the youngest speaker.
To create his speech, he began preparing roughly half a year prior to the event.
“It was intense to say the least, but I’m really happy with how the product turned out,” he said.
Thorpe repeatedly edited, added, removed, and changed his speech in order to make it the best it could be.
Due to the TEDx Talk being a live presentation with nearly 100 spectators, any disturbance (such as technical malfunctions or loud audience sounds) could require speakers to re-record part of their talk.
In preparation of needing to re-do a part of his talk, Thorpe memorized his speech to the point where he could recite it seamlessly and recite any segment from memory, if prompted.
“We had pieces of paper with times [written times for when Thorpe needed to speak] written, pasted all over the house,” he said.
Matrick’s Father, and Pine View Physical Education teacher, Mark Thorpe spoke on Matrick’s preparation leading up to the talk: “There were times he’s in the car reading… He’s standing there as we’re making dinner and it’s up on the cabinets and he’s reading… It was a lot of preparation.”
In his talk, along with speaking about the lessons he has learned, he also played music. From the entire audience singing along to him playing “Happy Birthday” to his concluding performance of Johann Bach’s Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major, Thorpe incorporated his music as a way of communicating his ideas.
“Music is a universal language… I can sit down with [someone], start playing, and we’re communicating in a way that goes beyond words,” he said. “The main goal of music whenever I play and whoever I play it for is about connecting the audience to the music.”
Watch Matrick Thorpe’s “Lessons Learned in the Pursuit of Music” here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUFtJGaeFzI