Conversation with Mando Surita
Originally published on the JOLT News on September 4th, 2025
Communications manager and flutist for the Olympia Symphony Orchestra (OSO), communication manager for the Auburn Symphony and social media manager for Northwest Sinfonietta, Mando Surita is somebody who just makes the world of classical music more fun for everybody each day.
I follow OSO on social media and love all the different posts Surita creates to get people excited about upcoming concerts. I get a kick out of the memes and feel inspired by the other posts shared when I am having a rough day (follow them and see what I mean).
Where it all began
Chatting with Surita, I got to learn more about their history with music. “I don’t know where it began for me, I just always wanted to play music and to be an artist from the time I was tiny," Surita said.
Some of this came with trial and error, as it does for some of us. Surita tried the violin when they were in fourth grade,and played that for two years until their mom gave them permission to quit.
“She said I always looked like I wanted to cry on stage, and I was never very good at it," said Surita, who uses they, them and their pronous.
Surita still felt they wanted to be a musician, and it was just a matter of finding the right instrument for them. I like to think of this process as something similar to in the Harry Potter books when you go to Olivanders and get your wand (because finding our instrument is not as easy as putting on a sorting hat).
“I played oboe for two weeks and mom said, ‘Nope, that is not happening,’ and I played a horrible sound on the clarinet for a while until I taught myself how to play the flute," Surita said.
Ah, the magic was found at last!
Surita played the flute in high school and met his teacher, Beth Jensen, who knew they were low income and sponsored them to get private lessons and paid for them to be part of the youth orchestra.
“Beth and her daughter, Mary became my teachers and ‘my flute moms’ and really encouraged me to pursue flute, even taking me to and preparing me for my college audition," Surita said.
People like the Jensens are so fundamental in shaping the lives of young people. Without mentors in the arts, young artists do not always get the support they receive to continue growing in their skillsets or even remain into the arts in their adult years.
If you are somebody who can become a “flute mom” or mentor an artist, I invite you to take that opportunity. If you have that heart, but do not know which organization(s) to connect with, email me and I will help you find that connection. Email me at rachel@thejoltnews.com
Surita’s insight
“Art expresses what words can’t, and connects us in an emotional, human way nothing else can," Surita said. I appreciate Surita’s insight. Because when I have felt something so strongly, but could not find the exact words to describe it, music has helped release and express the intensity of emotions or thoughts in the way that felt somehow most accurate to what I was experiencing.
Surita described how “music sometimes even carries a subliminal message where it looks like one thing, but speaks something else. I love that about music and art because there can be stories (and depth) but also inside jokes.”
Hearing this, my mind immediately connected to fandoms and all the little nuggets of gold we find when researching something we are interested in. In other words, there is something very fun and human about taking time to digest and fully experience music.
When we search for those things that we know are coming in the music, say an instrument representing a character in a story, we immerse ourselves in the composer’s world and are at peak engagement with the piece.
Classical music is lovely on its own and can be very relaxing, but moments like these where you know the story and can find the hidden treasure make classical music incredible.
Are you looking for this kind of musical experience? I encourage you to start with Prokofiev’s “Peter and the Wolf,” Grieg’s “In the Hall of the Mountain King” or Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons.” These are pieces that create exciting images and stories.
Once you are done listening to those pieces, get a ticket to see Surita at OSO’s first concert of the season, “Ignite,” on Oct. 19.
Tickets can be purchased here.
https://www.thejoltnews.com/stories/intheaudience-a-conversation-with-mando-surita,26313?fbclid=IwZnRzaAMnBdlleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHoU1ajofEOUG6R8cxslopF2nDTptZLRktC23lz-heJ1dxEndJE-DaGMvyl5W_aem_WaF4UHVzvRJLwD2aPjew5Q