Creating a utopia of sound Teen artists get thrill from classical music

Sound unusual?

To four young musicians, it's nothing short of Utopia.

``We're trying to create a utopia of sound,'' said 15-year-old Brian Mazzeo, the youngest member of the chamber music quartet with the idyllic name.

Apparently, they're doing something right. Utopia members Helena Randel, 20, Sarah Fertig, 17, Brian and his brother Aaron Mazzeo, 17, have qualified to compete in the semifinal round of the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition.

The four are on their way to South Bend, Ind., where they will compete this weekend for a grand prize of $4,500 and the opportunity to go on a Midwest tour. With an average age of 17, the group will compete in the senior division, where the maximum average age permitted is 30.

``The level of talent of the groups that qualify is very high,'' said Ann Divine, executive director of the South Bend-based Fischoff Chamber Music Association.

It will be the first competition for the 6-month-old group, which already has had gigs at parties, weddings and places such as the Art and Culture Center of Hollywood.

But despite the group's growing commercial success, Utopia is meant to enrich the musicians' lives -- not line their pockets. ``Making money isn't their primary objective,'' said Marie Randel, 47, Helena's mother and Utopia's coach.

With Aaron and Helena alternating between viola and violin, Brian playing second violin and Sarah on cello, Utopia came to life six months ago.

The name is fitting for the four musicians, whose love of music goes back to early childhood. Aaron and Brian began violin lessons at age 3. Helena began at 5, and Sarah was 11 when she started.

The ensemble hones its skills by practicing twice a week for at least two hours at a time. That isn't always easy, they contend, because Sarah lives in Fort Lauderdale, Helena in Sunrise, and Aaron and Brian in Davie.

The musicians also do exercises, such as playing back to back -- literally. To achieve simultaneous breathing, which is essential for a successful ensemble, the group sits back to back and plays, so the musicians can feel when their partners inhale and exhale, Marie Randel said.

``It's tough, trying to make four people sound like they're playing one instrument with 16 strings,'' Brian said.

Nonetheless, Utopia makes harmony look easy when playing the two pieces they've prepared for the Fischoff competition, Dvorak's American Quartet and Haydn's Opus 20 No. 4.
``I think music will always be a part of their lives,'' said Marie Randel, who's been playing violin for 38 years. ``The minute we lose our quest for perfection, that's the beginning of the end.''

That quest is inexplicable to most other teens. ``They think we're nuts,'' Aaron said. ``But they don't understand.''