Overture Magazine - 2018-19 Season FINAL_BSO_Overture_May_June | Page 46

IMPROMPTU
René Shapiro
TRUMPET
There’s a good chance you’ve heard of, or at least
heard, René Hernandez, BSO trumpet player of
17 years with a boisterous personality and a
booming voice. Recently, though, the orchestra
roster changed slightly— René Hernandez became
René Shapiro. Raised by a single mother, René
was originally given the same surname as his
half-siblings.
After his doctor suggested learning about his
paternal medical history, René decided to
send in a DNA test. “Three weeks later, I got the
results,” said René. “And the first thing I see is
that I’m 47% Ashkenazi Jewish. Crazy!” Through
exploring the DNA database, he was able to
contact his biological father’s sister. She told
him that his father was suffering from cancer and
provided René with his number.
“Boom. The first day, I found out that I’m Jewish.
The second day, we emailed. Then the next
morning, I get a name—Dennis Shapiro. I called him
up and he's like, ‘Hey, son!’ He was really excited.”
René knew that he had to go to his father in
El Paso immediately if he was going to have
time to meet him. He had planned to make the
28-hour journey by car, but his aunt insisted on
paying for his and his family’s flights. “When I got
to El Paso, he was standing up and he was able
to hug us. But after two days, he couldn’t walk
anymore. So, if I had driven, I would have missed
that.” René and his father were able to spend
13 days together before his father passed away.
“I wanted to change my name because he
was the last Shapiro in his family, and he didn’t
have any children. I also discovered that his
grandfather was a cantor, so that’s where my
musical side comes from.”
Today, René continues to develop relationships
with his new extended family and recently
attended a family reunion in Los Angeles. René
was surprised when he was, “dwarfed in volume”
at the reunion: “I finally see where I get it!”
He has also begun to embrace aspects of Jewish
culture and was gifted with a Mezuzah for his family
home. “I am so elated about what happened to
me,” said René, “and I almost missed it. As people
say, everything happens for a reason.”
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