Students in the music department spend the entire year mastering classical opuses and contemporary tunes. Their hard work and talent culminated in the annual Spring Concert on Friday, May 18.
The night began with the Symphonic Band, directed by Assistant Principal Music and Fine Arts Dr. Raymond Wheeler, performing to a packed theater of restless parents. Dr. Wheeler said of the repertoire, “[They were] good pieces for the band to play. The band had a lot of fun working with them.” The Symphonic Band concluded with Leonard Bernstein’s “Overture to Candide.” The arrangement, portraying the chaos of the spring season, was upbeat and dynamic. The tune elicited an enthusiastic reaction from the audience and left a lasting impression.
Sophomore and alto clarinetist Stanley Weng said, “I was nervous, but overall it was a lot of fun. The reception from the audience was a great payoff for all of the work that we did.”
The Concert Choir, conducted by music teacher Liliya Shamazov (who has also stepped in as choir director during chorus teacher Holly Hall’s two-month-long absence), performed as well. Though the songs were well-received by the audience, the selection of songs was poor. The opening song, Bart Howard’s “Fly Me to the Moon,” seemed unoriginal and lacked the vocal range that choir performances normally have. Although the choristers had beautiful voices, their talents would have been better utilized in livelier pieces.
The vocal selection also included several religious songs, which suited the choir’s range of voices well. Several students performed solos compellingly and skillfully. The haunting voices, accompanied by the very talented senior and flutist Kathleen Kim, provided one of the most memorable performances of the night. Also, the inclusion of Ivan Larionov’s “Kalinka” (“Snowball Tree”) was daring, and its Russian folk-song quality brought diversity to the show.
As usual, the Symphony Orchestra, directed by music teacher Joseph Tamosaitis, was saved for last. While the orchestra is known to play drawn-out pieces that eventually lose the audience’s attention, this year, the performance of Camille Saint-Saëns’s “Concerto II in G minor for Piano and Orchestra, Opus 22” kept everyone on the edge of their seats. The piano and the strings complemented each other exquisitely, each adding a personalized depth to the piece. Senior and pianist Christina Lee played with astounding talent, and overall, the powerhouse performance was incredibly professional and captivating.
Kerry O’Connell, mother of junior bass vocalist and chorus soloist Billy Ferrer, said, “[It] amazes me to see the musical talent of Stuyvesant. There is so much teamwork and the kids are very committed to what they’re doing.”
