Beginning an hour before the concert, music filled the orchestra classroom and the backstage of the auditorium. Students nervously practiced solos; quartets and other groups alike were whittling out any rough parts of their pieces. The overall area was filled with an excited and enthusiastic mood that everyone, performers and audience members alike, seemed to share.
This orchestra concert consisted of large-group and small-group performances along with solos performed by specific students.
The concert began with a group piece by the concert orchestra, which is mostly made of the new members of the program. The song sounded well-rehearsed and seemed very organized. Audience members could see the determination and skill in some students as they consistently attempted vibrato and tapped their feet to keep up with the pace of the song.
The first solo was performed by senior Carolina Codato. She, along with most other students, had been practicing her performance since the beginning of the year. “The audience seems to melt away [when I’m performing], and I can really focus,” said Codato of performing.
Codato’s performance was spectacular and left the audience speechless. Her flow was perfect and the tune rung out through the whole auditorium.
Accompanying her was junior Joseph Min. He is a skillful piano player as well as a committed orchestra student, and has earend the title of the Orchestra Director Lorelei Weimar’s “favorite”.
Min spectacularly played his cello piece completely off memory and sported an amazing amount of professionalism with every note he played. Almost every audience member was on their feet applauding him at the end.
Min’s freshman sister Crystal Min also played a piece that wowed the audience.
Other solos were performed by orchestra students from all classes, all with considerable skill.
During the performance, Ms. Weimar mentioned a booster club where parents can give money to the orchestra and in return are guaranteed seats at the next concert free of charge; she also mentioned that the orchestra is having a car wash soon.
The final performance involved the whole orchestra program. They came together and played a powerful piece that, with no words, created wonderful imagery in my mind. Everyone seemed in cadence and excited to play the piece.
“They learn well from the pressure” said Ms. Weimar. Indeed: these weren’t just high school musicians, they took it a step further, displaying respectability and professionalism.
Alex Troutt / Staff Writer
