A Flutiful Performance At Carnegie Hall
March 22, 2018
Scarsdale’s very own wind ensemble has once again made it to Carnegie Hall. Performing Patrick Burn’s Oasis, Oscar Navarro’s Downey Overture, and John Mackey’s Frozen Cathedral, the Scarsdale band smashed out yet another phenomenal performance.
In preparation for their big day, they had multiple long band rehearsals outside of their regular band classes and on weekends. This intense practice schedule included being pulled out of a full day of classes to rehearse and having world renowned conductors like Patrick Burns, and other instrumental teachers come work with them. They also participated in a clinic with Dr. Sedatole, the director of bands at Michigan State University. Members of the band invested plenty of time on their own as well in order to ensure the quality of this special performance. “I marshalled all my techniques for playing a hard passage, and practiced for one extra hour a day for a month and a half. Go me,” replied Richard Xu ‘18.
This is not the first year that the Scarsdale band has performed at Carnegie Hall however. They have gotten the opportunity to play at the prestigious music hall every other year. Many of the musicians argued that this was one of their best and most memorable performances yet. “This [performance] was particularly big because of the depth of difficulty in the pieces, as well as being placed in a more prestigious performance time which raised the bar for all of us,” — Nico Cavalluzzi ‘19
This performance was arguably one of the most demanding productions this band has faced so far, and it put the skill of all the musicians to the test. Some students even had to learn new instruments for this performance. “I had to learn a new instrument, the bass flute. The embouchure for bass flute was different and a lot more relaxed than flute. I’m glad I had the chance to play it though, it’s a lot of fun,” — Kelsey Chin ‘18
Many of the musicians were amazed at how beautiful the Carnegie Hall venue was and commented on the amazing sound quality which showed off every aspect of the performance. “I liked Frozen Cathedral the most, even though all the pieces were terrific. The piece was wonderful, somber, yet uplifting at the same time with so many different instruments highlighted in solo segments. It really allowed different performers to showcase their unique talents,” remarked Viola Fong, a mother of one of the performers.
This performance was deemed extremely successful as a result of all the hard work from both the performers and by band conductor, Mr. Noble. “There is nothing I can think of that the band could have done better to prepare for the concert. Mr. Noble did an excellent job in making sure we were super well prepared for a performance we are all proud of and an amazing experience that will be remembered,” reflected Annemarie Horn ‘18.
