Margaret Brown, Senior
On Thursday evening, December 4th, Palisades High School’s string orchestra, jazz band, concert band, concert choir, freshman chorus, and Madrigals performed in the auditorium for their winter concert. It was an excellent concert with a large turnout. Parents enjoyed getting to see their children perform and hearing all of the different groups perform a wide variety of music.
The freshman chorus, directed by Mr. Holben, sang “Sleep Little Jesus,” a Polish carol arranged by Robert Preston. The song featured Lillian Speicher on flute. They also sang “Didn’t My Lord Deliver Daniel,” a traditional spiritual song adapted and arranged by Roger Emerson, and “Al Shlosha D'varim” by Allan E Naplan, during which Lauren Plunkett and Lucia Brunton-Dardaris did a duet.
The string orchestra, directed by Ms. Kumpf, performed “Pictures of Puget Sound” by Alan Lee Silva. Lily Proulx-Scandone on violin and Grace Eisenhart on piano had a duet in this song. They also performed “Angels in the Bleak MidWinter” by Larry Clark. In this song, Liam MacDowell had a violin solo. The string orchestra also performed “Inverno,” written by Antonio Vivaldi and arranged by Todd Parrish. Finally, they performed “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” arranged by Jerry Brubaker, with the band as a full orchestra piece.
The Madrigals, directed by Mr. Holben, sang “Coventry Carol,” a traditional 16th-century carol by Darmon Meader, and “Veni, Veni Emmanuel” by Michael John Trotta. They also sang “Mary, Did You Know?,” written by Mark Lowry & Buddy Greene and arranged by Roger Emerson.
The concert band, directed by Mr. Maldanado, performed “A Carol Triptych” by Pierre La Plante and “Celebration Tribalesque” by Randall Standridge. They also performed “Aventura” by James Swearingen. “Aventura” featured Emma Flinchbaugh and Lillian Speicher on flute, Sierra Kunigus on clarinet, and Jake Lucera on trombone. The concert band also performed “Coldplay on Stage,” written by Guy Berryman, Jon Buckland, Will Champion, and Chris Martin and arranged by Michael Brown.
The concert choir sang “How Lovely are the Messengers” by Felix Mendelssohn with the freshman chorus. The concert choir also sang “Bogoroditse Devo” by Sergei Rachmaninov and “The Sleigh (A la Russe),” written by Richard Kountz and arranged by Wallingford Riegger.
The jazz band, directed by Mr. Maldanado, performed “Diggin’ The New Digs,” written by Michael Giacchino and arranged by Paul Murtha. This song is from the movie Incredibles 2, and, in it, Emma Flinchbaugh on alto saxophone, Sierra Kunigus on clarinet, Joseph Zaleski on piano, and William Shulz on drums were featured. The jazz band also performed “Night and Day,” written by Cole Porter and arranged by Dave Wolpe. This song featured Jamie Patterson singing and Sierra Kunigus playing on clarinet. Many of the singers cheered loudly for Jamie before and after she sang with the jazz band. Jamie did a fantastic job singing in “Night and Day.” The jazz band also performed “Moondance,” written by Van Morrison and arranged by Roy Phillippe. “Moondance” featured Emma Flinchbaugh on alto saxophone. The final song the jazz band played was “Meglovania,” written by Toby Fox and arranged by Paul Murtha. “Megalovania” is from the video game Undertale. “Meglovania” also featured Emma Flinchbaugh on alto saxophone. Mr. Holben filled in as a guitar player due to the absence of one of the main guitar players in the jazz band.
“Moondance,” “Mary Did You know,” and “Night and Day” were favorites for both the audience and the performers. Some performers were a little disappointed with their performance, but, overall, it was a fantastic performance that the audience enjoyed. All of the practice in class, after school, and at home for almost an entire semester paid off.
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