Annisija Wallin comes from a musical family. The second of seven children, Wallin sings, plays the piano and the viola. She teaches piano lessons to children in the neighborhood and will attend Brigham Young University in the fall on a music scholarship.In addition to music, she is passionate about learning and said she can hardly wait to get to college and begin exploring a wide range of subjects.What activities do you participate in?I participated in knowledge bowl. I started my freshman year with my sister. I stayed in because it’s lots of fun.I was Mrs. Pots in “Beauty and the Beast” my sophomore year and Golda in “Fiddler on the Roof “my senior year.I’m in choir; I played in the orchestra; I’m in jazz choir; I did jazz band this year. It’s way fun, really up beat and hard.I would have loved to play sports, but I decided to be a musician who played sports and not a jock who happens to play the viola and the piano.I actively participate in my church. I’m a leader in my youth group. I’m on a committee where a bunch of kids from the city get together and plan dances and activities, where kids can come and have a fun, safe time and grow closer to Christ.I go to seminary every morning. It starts at 5:40 in the morning. We study the scriptures. It gets your day going smoothly where you can feel the spirit and work hard. Why did you choose Brigham Young University?It’s a school that’s mostly populated by Latter-day Saints. That’s an atmosphere I know is respectful and they have the same morals I do. It will be easy to fit in and be who I want to be in that kind of atmosphere. They also have a fantastic music program. It’s one of the largest in the nation. I’m so excited to be in an orchestra like that.What is your major?I will be majoring in viola performance. I have a music scholarship, and I just found out I was given full tuition for eight semestersWhat are you looking forward to about going to college?I’m just ready to move on. I think college will help me specialize in the areas I want to – hone me down into the person I have in my mind that I want to be.I have a huge rock collection – I have a passion for geology. I’ve been collecting rocks since I was 5. They are catalogued to a certain extent. I have a pretty big collection under my bed. I’d love to have a huge display case and have it all out. What is one of your favorite high school memories?I loved AP U.S. history class and AP chemistry.I loved AP history. I could just go to class and listen to my teacher talk. I could absorb it all and feel like I learned so much. How did you handle the stress of taking a heavy load of advanced classes?You really have to learn to manage your time and use every little bit of time you have. You have to learn your own limits. Know how long you can do something before you can’t produce anything useful. You have to learn how your own body works and how well you can work. Managing play time. You have to be able to play sometime. Have one Saturday a month where you do nothing but stare at the ceiling and blast your stereo.What advice would you share with new high school students?It really matters. What you do in high school really matters. Your grades matter, but more than the grades you need to pay attention to what you are being taught. It’s applicable. I would tell them to ask questions. Absorb as much as you can while it is free.
