Jarrell Holliman says what he loves most about Carolina is the opportunity to do both.
(story courtesy of Brad Muller and SC Gamecocks)
Many basketball players dream of making sweet string music with the perfect shot to
win the game. South Carolina redshirt sophomore Jarrell Holliman is looking forward
to making noise in a different arena as part of a symphony orchestra. The 6 feet,
7 inch, music major is in his first season on the Gamecock's basketball team after
arriving on campus a year ago following one year at Elmhurst College in Illinois.
"Basketball and percussion are pretty much my life," Holliman said. "It's a very difficult schedule, but they're working with me to make it work. It's been amazing."
The Alpharetta, Georgia, native began his music career at the age of seven.
"I play anything orchestral," Holliman said. "That's snare drum, timpani, bass drum, cymbals, and all kinds of instruments. My mother, Renee, is a piano teacher so she got me all wrapped up in that sort of stuff. I just had to make sure I was quiet whenever she was teaching."
Overall, Holliman can play more than 15 instruments.
"I just really liked hitting stuff," Holliman laughed. "You know, as a kid you get the pots and pans out and hit them with a spoon. I actually took it seriously. I saw a marching band play and it really interested me. My sister hated it, but it's OK. She's a singer, so I had to deal with that all of the time, just like she had to deal with me.
"What I like about percussion is that there are so many instruments. You can make so many different sounds and so many beautiful sounds. Whenever I'm having a stressful day, I can go in and play a snare drum as hard as I want, or if I had a great day, I can go play a marimba beautifully."