I attended the vocal fall concert on October 6th, 2022.

This concert was conducted by

Ken Taylor and the pianist was Besty McHugh. This concert included all choirs and ensembles in
the Dreyfoos vocal department. To start off the recital, the Belle Chanson group sang Overture
composed by Mozart. In this piece, it was very light and almost sounded like birds chirping.
There were a lot of staccatos in this piece, most of them were played nicely, but some could have
been a little clearer, they were blending together. Along with this, there were very nice dynamics
in this piece, there were multiple nice crescendos and decrescendos in this piece. Mozart
composed this in 1791 and the full name is Overture to Die Zauberflote which means the magic
flute.
Another piece that stood out to me was the Blue Eye of God composed by Nancy Telfer. The
beginning of this piece was very nice, it had good harmonization, and then whispers right after.
This set the mood of the song right away. The alto’s could have been a little more articulate
because the words they were singing were blending together. Also, there was no piano in this
piece which allowed you to just hear the voices of the singers. There were many different voices
in this which really added to the complexity of this piece, the bass was the melody for most of it,
then it switched to the sopranos being the melody. This contemporary piece confronts mankind
on his destruction of ocean life, creating a vivid scene of ocean life while also reminding the
audience that there is pain and suffering by adding dissonance. While listening to this piece, the
audience experiences the sound of the wings of a large bird flying overhead, followed by the
lapping waves created by the layered voices supporting an arching melody. The lyrics that the
vocalists are singing describes the death and destruction of multiple marine animals. All of this
really adds to the sad and eerie mood of the piece.
Another piece which I enjoyed was Tumbalalaika which was sung by the premiere ensemble.
This piece had a joyful, dancing, mood. The piano starts the piece with a nice dance rhythm. This
song is around mezzo/mezzo forte during the whole piece with some nice small crescendos
which really adds to the danceable rhythm. Around the middle of the piece, the mood changed
and it almost sounded like there was a key change and it switched to minor. Overall, I really
enjoyed listening to this piece, but the vocalists could’ve added more dynamics which would
have made it more interesting to listen to. The folk song comes from Ashkenazi tradition and
tells the story of a young man who is trying to choose a girl to marry. He devises riddles to see if
she is clever enough to answer life’s questions. Each verse is followed by the refrain
“Tumbalalaika,” which translates to “play Balalaika” - a triangle shaped stringed instrument. At
the end of the song, the girl responds and answers each question with ease.
The final piece that stood out to me was Ave Maria composed by Teun van de Steeg. In this
piece there was a solo sung by Jackie Alvarado, two violinists(Hanalei Ritter and Raveena
Cherry), a violist(Aine Mullen), and a cellist(Ryan Rose). This piece was my favorite out of all
of them in the program. I loved the violins, viola, and cello that accompanied this piece, and the
soloist had a beautiful opera voice. The mood was calm and peaceful, there were plenty of
dynamics in this piece but not many voices. The mood changes in the middle of the piece to
more sad and dramatic, there were multiple crescendos which added to this mood change. One
thing that could’ve been a little better was the sound of the accompaniment, it sounded that the
vocalists were over powering them throughout the piece. At the end of the piece, it starts to
speed up, and more emotions get tied in.What I love about this piece is all of the emotion that
has. The song ends very dramatically with a crescendo and then just silence.
On September 22, 2022, I attended the Orchestra concert conducted by Jeffery Adkins in Meyer
Hall. This concert had two orchestras, string and philharmonic orchestra. The first piece that
really stood out to me was Symphony No. 8 in B minor composed by Franz Schubert. This piece
has two movements, the first movement is named Allegro moderato. This movement has a very
dark and wintry beginning, the harmony almost sounds sneaky which adds to the mood. As the
piece progresses, there is a dramatic change in harmony with sustained notes that add to the
harmony change. The bass is clear throughout the piece and there are very nice crescendos that
are built in. Everyone is in sync and the staccatos are clean and sharp. This orchestra is excellent
at building dynamics and creating dramatic parts. The first movement has a very unexpected
ending, but it could’ve been a little cleaner. The second movement is called Andante con moto,
the beginning of this movement is light and calm which is a contrast to the last movement. There
is a steady tempo though and the sustained notes are good. Some of the sections sound like they
are going back and forth with each other. As the piece progresses, the flute gets a little behind the
rest of the orchestra and the legato parts could’ve been a little cleaner. The phrasing at the end of
this piece is nice but the orchestra sounds a little hesitant. While Schubert finished his 9th
symphony, his 8th in B minor remains unfinished. There is a piano score for the third movement
of this piece, but only the first two movements have been found orchestrated. This piece was
never performed in Schubert's lifetime, it premiered in 1865 after a friend of Schubert found the
score.
Another piece that stood out to me was Noveletten No. 1 Op. 54 composed by Samuel
Coleridge-Taylor. This piece has a percussionist, Annika Patel. The beginning of this piece has a
soft and quiet tone which then builds anticipation. Parts of the orchestra sounded a little behind
to me, but the bass undertones were very nice, you could still hear them behind all of the other
instruments. The bass lines are very nice which was one of my favorite things about this piece.
The melodies are very vibrant and clear along with the phrasing. Dynamics in this piece are very
nice and the technical parts like note accuracy, trills, and vibratos are very clear. The triangle and
percussion add a lot to this piece as it compliments the rest of the orchestra. At around the end of
the piece, there are a few scales that aren’t synchronized. This piece ended together and it was
okay, it would have been a lot better if there was a little more of a dynamic build before the
finale. Noveletten is a collection of four short lyric pieces for string orchestra. The composer was
an Afro-European born to an English mother and a Sierra Leonean father. He was granted a
scholarship to the Royal College of Music for violin where he learned compositions from
Charles Stanford Villiers. He was known as an excellent composer and an advocate for
Pan-Africanism.
One last piece that I loved was Finlandia composed by Jean Sibelius. This piece has a very nice
and pretty beginning even though the notes could have been not as messy. There is a nice
dramatic part as the piece progresses which is performed very well, but the triangle could have
also been a little clearer. The drums add a nice dramatic effect which really adds to the mood of
the piece. The staccatos are very sharp and articulate and the transitions throughout the piece are
very smooth. The dynamic build up was also excellent and the ending was very nice. Finlandia is
a tone poem representing the people and landscape of Finland. Sibelius composed the work as a
political protest against censorship by the Russian Tsar. The piece begins forebodingly with
brass, timpani, and contrabass. As woodwinds and strings join, the music darkly and grandly
moves in F minor with dark and serious moods. It then shifts to a faster tempo and a major key.
The theme shifts once again towards the famous hymn-like melody. The piece then returns to a
march-like section for its thrilling conclusion.
 I attended the 2023 Pops Concert on April 4th which was conducted by Evan Rogovin
and Ken Taylor. This concert had a variety of pieces including symphonic bands, singer,
saxophone, bassoon, percussion, and wind ensembles, vocal trio, combos, and more. One piece
that really stood out to me was “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah” which was a part of the singers ensemble
which was arranged by Ray. The harmonies in this piece were very stable and well done,
everyone was breathing together and playing together. The changing harmonies and chords in
soprano were also very well sung, and the highest soprano is very stable throughout the piece.
Overall, I thought that this piece was very well performed and was a great start of the recital.

Another piece that I enjoyed was “The Wizard of Oz'' which was arranged by Barnes.
This piece was a wind ensemble and during the piece, the flutes were singing very nicely and
following the theme of bouncing from the base. They performed this very nicely and the soprano
instruments sounded very good. The light theme with the contrabassoon was good and had a
walking/pacing feel to it. But, some of the transitions and phrases that were leading to the
climatic main theme were very uneven and did not sound very clean. Along with this, the tuba
and trombone covered the flutes theme too much for a majority of the piece. The dynamics in the
piece were good along with the crescendos and decrescendos. James Barnes' arrangement of
Harlod Arlen’s famous tunes from the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz is so good that it almost
sounds like the originally written piece. James Barnes has also written other famous pieces like
“Over the Rainbow.” This was very enjoyable to listen to and it was nice to hear such a popular
song in the recital.

Another piece that stood out to me was the vocal trio “Super Trouper'' created by ABBA.
Gaby Hernandez, Sophie Michaelis, and Madi Silver sung this trio along with a piano
accompaniment by Mark Lerner. Soprano was standing in the middle and the alto was standing
on the left. The alto was not singing very strongly and I think that she should have sung a little
louder. Along with this, the breath control was not very together and the pianist was
overpowering throughout the piece. The girl that was standing on the right had a very good tone
and projected her voice well. The harmonies in the piece sounded very nice as well as the
articulation. The alto singer had a “pa-pa-pa” part which was well articulated with a nice
crescendo. These girls represented ABBA very well and their outfits were cute.

One last piece that I thought was very nice was “Remember Me from Cocoa '' which was
arranged by Emerson. This was one of the last pieces played and a chorus sang it. This was my
favorite piece in the whole recital and the singers performed this very well. The tone was
beautiful throughout the piece and I loved how everyone was separated on stage not like a
traditional concert. Along with this, the dynamics were very nice as it started at pianissimo and
gradually got to about mezzo-mezzo forte. Also, I really enjoyed how there were different chord
progressions in the harmonies, I feel like it really brought the whole piece together. It also added
difficulty to the piece since the singers had to change chords but still harmonize with each other.
It was also very clean throughout and all of the breaths were matched. Even throughout the more
difficult sections, everyone remained together and it never sounded messy. One thing that could
be improved on was the beginning, the altos were a little too soft and I feel like it would have
sounded better if they were a little louder. They were soft to a point where their tone went away,
but as the piece progressed and there were more crescendos, their town improved and evened out
with the other parts.
 On May 6, 2023, I attended the Dreyfoos Symphonic Band and Wind Ensemble Spring
concert. Mr. Evan Rogovin was the director of this concert. This concert had two parts to it, first
the Symphonic Band played five selections, then the Wind Ensemble played four selections. The
first piece that really stood out to me was “Night Chase” composed by Chandler Wilson. I really
enjoyed the beginning of this piece because it started out very soft and gradually crescendoed
until the climax. It went from piano to fortissimo in a matter of seconds, and as well as the
dynamics, it sounded like there was a slight accelerando. After the intro it calmed down and
everyone was together. It sounded very nice and there wasn’t much dynamic change. After a
couple of seconds, some percussion instruments started playing and at first it sounded very good
like with the rest of the band. After a while it started to overpower the band and you could only
mostly hear the cymbals. I really liked how the theme kept playing in different instruments
throughout the piece and overall it was very well played. This piece depicts an exciting chase
through the dark night with aggressive harmonies and many surprises throughout the piece which
I definitely heard when listening to it.

Another piece that I really enjoyed was “Esprit de Corps'' which was composed by
Robert Jager and played by the wind ensemble. The flutes started this piece off with a nice
rhythm that played throughout the piece. After a couple of measures, the tubas and trumpets
came in with the melody which sounded very nice. The flu tests weren’t playing too loud and
even though they were playing a very repetitive part, it didn’t sound overpowering. Everyone
was playing together and no part was too loud or too soft. I liked the crescendo in the middle of
the piece and how there were multiple different instruments playing the melody. Towards the end
of the piece, all of the instruments were playing together and the dynamic was fortissimo. I also
really liked the abrupt ending, I feel like it really added to the piece and made it more dramatic.
Robert Jager composed this piece in 1984 on a commission from the United States Marine band
and its conductor, Colonel John Bourgeois. This piece is a fantasy of The Marine’s Hymn, taking
the familiar theme in new, exciting directions. This piece is filled with energy and drama and the
initial tempo “Tempo di Bourgeois' ' is named after the Colonel. This piece was very well played
and enjoyable to listen to.

One last piece that I really enjoyed listening to was “The Stars and Stripes Forever”
which was composed by John Philip Sousa. This was the last piece of the concert and it was a
great finale. This piece sounded like a celebration for freedom. The beginning was very quiet and
the oboes had the melody. It sounded a little uneven and rushed in the beginning of the piece. As
the piece went on, more instruments joined in and there were changes in dynamics. After about
two minutes, the theme changes and the tempo slows down as well as the dynamics. The
saxophones and tubas start to take the melody and this part is very calm and quiet. There aren't a
lot of dynamic changes in this part of the piece. As it progresses, there is a crescendo, I feel like
if it was bigger, it would have been better. The piece didn’t crescendo too much which sounded
disappointing. I really enjoyed the ending of this piece, it sounded all together and very nice.
This piece is a patriotic anthem with the stars and stripes referring to the American Flag. John
Philip Sousa wrote this piece on a boat while returning from vacation in Europe where he found
out that his band manager David Blakely had died. It was composed in 1896 and performed at
events like the Fourth of July and played in marching bands.
 On November 14th, I attended the Dreyfoos “A Tribute to Our Veterans” symphonic
band and wind ensemble concert which was conducted by Mr. Rogovin. This concert had two
parts to it, the first part was the Symphonic Band which played three pieces. The second part was
the Wind Ensemble which played five pieces. The first piece that I really enjoyed was called
America, the beautiful, which was arranged by Carmen Dragon. I really enjoyed the beginning of
the piece as it was quiet and then had a very pretty crescendo. Along with this, it had a minor feel
to it which really incorporated to the mood of the piece. It is minor for the beginning, then it
turns major which was a very pretty transition. The oboes had the melody for a part and all of the
other instruments played quietly in the background. Then, all of the instruments joined in and it
sounded very nice and clean. There was a slow tempo and all instruments were playing together
at this point. During this time, the dynamics were very nice and contrasting as there were
multiple crescendos and decrescendos. Along with this, drums were playing in the background
that added more dimension to the piece. It turns minor again for the finale which had an elegant
feel to it. Overall, the dynamics were outstanding throughout the piece as well as the tone and
harmonies which made this one of my favorite pieces of the concert. This piece was composed in
1960, and it was one of Dragon’s most accomplished pieces. There are many moods that he
captures throughout the piece which makes it such a wonderful and rich arrangement that was
enjoyable to listen to.
Another piece that I enjoyed is titled “A Celebration of Taps'', and it was arranged by
Jerry Brubaker. This piece starts off slow and in a piano-mezzo piano dynamic. The mood is
melancholy, and there are very pretty and nice harmonies in the beginning. There is also some
dissonance which adds to the mood of the piece. The drums were a little too overpowering which
didn’t really fit with the mood. They also took away from the beautiful harmonies that the rest of
the band was playing. As the piece progresses, the trumpets take the melody which sounded very
nice, after this everyone started playing together again. More drums start to come in and the
tempo starts to gradually ascend. There are multiple crescendos which sound very pretty and
harmonies start to appear again. Drums come in again and add polyrhythms which makes the
piece more interesting and sound more complex. The band does sound a little mushy, meaning
that it could be played cleaner. Other than that, it was a very well played piece. The end had a
nice decrescendo and ritardando so it sounded very nice and soft which was a nice ending. This
concert work was inspired by a 150th anniversary performance of Taps in which 150 buglers
were positioned throughout the grounds of Arlington National Cemetery. This piece is emotional
and mysterious and has intertwining harmonic components which adds to the depth of the piece.
It is a very patriotic piece that had a meaningful background and was very pleasant to listen to.
One last piece that I really enjoyed was the finale which is named “Armed Forces
Salute.” This piece starts off very strong and in fortissimo, the drums have a nice rhythm which
adds to the piece. What's so cool about this piece is that there is a slideshow playing in the
background showing the different branches of the military, and as each branch is shown, the
salute is being played by the band. The next salute following the introduction was slower and
more dramatic with nice dynamics, the oboes have a solo which sounded very pretty. After that,
it gets very upbeat and everyone starts clapping. Different mood changes are happening
throughout the piece as the different salutes are being plates. I really like the melody and salute
changes since it adds dimension to the piece. Everyone looks like they are enjoying playing the
piece and Mr. Rogovin even said that it was his favorite piece of the whole concert. Overall, I
really enjoyed listening to this piece.
 I attended the Orchestra Concert on November 10th which was conducted by Mr. Adkins.
There were two different orchestras that played, the string orchestra and the philharmonic
orchestra. The first piece of the show was played by the string orchestra and it was called
“Intermezzo Cavalleria Rusticana” which was composed by Pietro Mascagni and arranged by
Katie O’Hara Laurie. The beginning of the piece is very pretty and soft, it almost sounds
homophonic at times which adds simplicity to the piece. As the piece progresses, more
harmonies appear and the violins take the melody which is pretty. The bass then comes in and
plays a couple of notes in the background which is a nice contrast compared to the viola and
violin sounds. There isn’t much dynamic contrast, I wish there were more crescendos and
decrescendos as well as just dynamics in general, I feel like it would make the piece prettier and
add more feeling to it. There is a simple rhythm throughout that is very pretty, and there is a nice
ritardando at the end that concludes the piece. This was composed by mascagni and he is known
for his operatic works, this one is one of his most popular and often played pieces. The tune of
this piece is based on a hymn that can be heard from a “village church” which is set in the
distance, illustrating the peaceful ways of country life. Also, the title “Cavalleria Rusticana”
means Rustic Chivalry in english.
The next piece that was played is called Divertimento in D Major K136, and it was
composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart . This piece was also played by the string orchestra and
it has three movements, Allegro, Andante, and Presto. The first movement is very upbeat and has
a fast tempo, it sounds like young Mozart music and it is very entertaining to listen to. There are
a lot of sotcattos which contribute to the happy and upbeat mood of the piece. The second
movement which is Andante is slower but still upbeat. The violins have the melody and it sounds
very simple and nice. There isn’t much dynamic contrast, and the orchestra doesn’t completely
sound together. It did almost put me to sleep because of the slower tempo, but it was pretty. The
final movement, Presto, is very upbeat again. This whole piece stays at mezzo-mezzo piano for
most of it regarding a few crescendos and decrescendos. There are some nice scales played by
the violinists which were together and clean. There are also stocattos in this movement which
were played nicely. Overall, I really enjoyed the contrast between the three movements and I
thought it was a very pretty piece. During the winter of 1772, Mozart composed a series of
Divertimentos, often performing them himself either at the keyboard or violin with other
musicians when he was just sixteen years old. He wrote a series of movements in the
Divertimento that echo the established Italian style of “fast-slow-fast” order throughout the
movements.
The final piece of the concert was played by the philharmonic orchestra, and it was
symphony number 3 in C minor conducted by Florence Price. There are four movements in this
piece, Andante-Allegro, Andante ma non troppo, Juba-Allegro, and Scherzo. The beginning is
very dramatic and has a very pretty crescendo. It has a minor feel to it which creates a
mysterious mood to the piece. The tempo picks up, but the mood and dynamics remain the same.
It gets to fortissimo, and there are some descending scales which sound very clean and pretty.
The second movement is very peaceful and pretty. There isn’t much dynamic change, but it still
sounds very nice. As the piece progresses, the dynamics change and get louder, there are also
chromatic scales played by the violinists. As the piece progresses, the moods and dynamics
change which create a lot of diversity in the piece. This symphony was first commissioned as a
part of the Works Progress Administration’s Federal Music Project at the height of the Great
Depression. Florence Price was the first female black composer to have her work played by
major American orchestras.
 On April 11th, I attended the Pops Concert which was conducted by Mr. Rogovin and Mr.
Taylor. This concert had a variety of pieces including symphonic band, vocal quartet, wind,
vocal, saxophone, and percussion ensembles, and more. One piece that really stood out to me
was “That Old Black Magic'' performed by the Singers Ensemble. This was the second
performance in the recital and there were about 20 vocalists in the ensemble. Throughout the
piece, there was a lot of soprano melody which was very pretty. There were also a lot of
harmonies that sounded very nice and really added to the performance. There was a very happy
mood throughout the piece and it looked like everyone on stage was having fun. There were even
small dances in between the lyrics which added to the overall happy mood. I thought that the
piano was a little too loud, as it was hard to hear the singers sometimes. Along with this, I
definitely thought that the alto and basses could have been louder. This piece was arranged by
Zegree, and overall I definitely thought it was a great piece to start the concert.
Another piece that I really enjoyed was called “March from 1941” and it was played by
the wind ensemble. This piece started off with a nice soft beginning played by the flutes, after a
couple of measures, the basses and drums came in. I really liked how it started off with just one
instrument, then other instruments gradually started to join. There was a big crescendo in which
all instruments joined which was very pretty. There is a very jolly and happy beat throughout the
piece which I really enjoyed. Along with this, there was some ostinato in the base as it kept
playing the same rhythm and notes throughout the piece. This really added to the march feel
which is the name of the title. There are also other instruments that are contributing to the
marching beat which I thought was really cool. In about the middle of the piece, there was a big
crescendo with a lot of the instruments, then the flutes came in with the melody that they started
with in the beginning. This was a very pretty part of the piece, but the flutes did sound a little
delayed during this part. After this there was another climax developing with the tubas playing
an ascending sequence with aa crescendo, then finally all instruments joined together for the
final climax of the piece. This piece had a very strong feel to it with some nice countermelodies
that sounded very pretty together. The piece had a nice strong ending in fortissimo. This was one
of my favorite pieces in the concert, I really loved how the band played this piece. This piece
was composed by John Williams and it was inspired by a comedic war film titled 1941 that was
directed by Steven Spielberg. This film was set just after the events of the Pearl Harbor attack,
and this piece was one of John Williams most popular pieces.
Another piece that I enjoyed in this concert was titled “The Muses Medley '' sung by
Sage Duke, Grace Little, Emily McLaughlin, Christina Thompson, and Arielle Ward. All of
these girls were in very pretty goddess dresses, and this piece actually started with a dialogue
section which made it sound like a musical theater piece. Their acting was very good and all of
the girls really played their character which made it very entertaining to watch. Two of the girls
specifically have really pretty and strong voices which I loved. Along with this, everyone looked
confident on stage even though they were singing in front of hundreds of people which is really
impressive. There are a lot of pretty harmonies throughout the song and choreography which
really added to the song. There was even a slight mood change where the tempo slows down, and
each girl has their own solo. I really enjoyed this part because every girl was able to showcase
their talent individually. When each person was singing their solo, the other girls were singing
soft harmonies in the background which sounded very pretty. I really loved the choreography as
it went with the song very well throughout the whole piece. I love how this song ends because it
ends very softly, and it sounds very angelic. Overall, I really enjoyed this piece because of all of
the harmonies and how the singers really played their characters.
 On April 24, I attended the Chamber Concert at the Norton Museum of Art. This concert
had a variety of pieces involving instruments like the piano, violin, flute, double bass, cello,
euphonium, tuba, and viola. One piece that I really enjoyed was the Deux Papillons composed by
Kronke. This was played by two flutists and a pianist. The beginning of this piece is really pretty,
the two flutes are exchanging the melody while the piano is the accompaniment. Then the flutes
start to play together which sound very pretty. One thing is that the flutes aren’t fully together
throughout this part. Also it would be nice to hear some more dynamics. There is a slight mood
which is really pretty, it’s a little softer and has more of a nice and elegant melody to it. There is
a ritardando, and then the original melody returns which sounds very pretty. Overall, I thought
the first part of the piece was played very nicely. The second part is a lot faster, and the flute still
has the melody while the piano is the accompaniment. There was a really pretty crescendo, and
the flutes were playing the melody together in the piece. One flute is a little behind the other so
they aren’t completely together. Overall, this was a very pretty piece and I really enjoyed it.
Another piece I really enjoyed was “Romance” composed by Beach. This piece was
played by the violin and piano. The piano started this piece, then the violin came in. There are
some countermelodies throughout the piece, but the violin has most of the melody. The dynamics
are very pretty in this piece, and they are playing together which is really nice. There is this one
dramatic party where the violin plays fortissimo and plays a high note. I think this really adds to
the mood of the piece, and the violinist played this part very well. As the piece progresses there
is a crescendo and accelerando, then the violin has a small solo while playing the melody. This
was my favorite part of the piece because it was played so nicely, and it created a drastic effect to
the piece. After this, the original melody returns, then the piano plays the melody which is a nice
change from the violin usually playing the melody. The end of the piece has a soft and elegant
feel to it which sounds very pretty. Overall, I loved this piece and I think the musicians played it
very well. The composer of this piece, Amy Beach, was an American women composer. She was
the first successful women composer of large-scale art music. Beach wrote this piece for another
pioneering female musician, violinist Maud Powell. This piece is very emotional and has
multiple beautiful melodies throughout the piece.
Another piece that I really enjoyed was “Concerto in B flat Major Op. 36” composed by
Vieuxtemps. This is played by the viola and piano. It starts off slower, and the viola has the
melody. There are a lot of crescendos and decrescendos which add to the dramatic mood of the
piece. The piano has some arpeggios which sound very pretty. The piano is then playing chords
while the viola plays the melody. The tempo of this piece is slow, then it starts to speed up and
both the viola and piano play fast scales. It then goes to fortissimo which is very pretty, and the
viola continues to play fast scales, followed by the piano. The viola does sound like it is rushing
a little bit during the scales part of the piece. It sounds like the piano is playing some
countermelodies, but it may just be the accompaniment. Along with this, some call and response
is happening between the two instruments. The viola plays something, then the piano plays the
same exact thing, or something very similar. I really like this because it allows for both
instruments to play off of each other throughout the piece. There is a ritardando which is very
pretty. Overall I really enjoyed this piece and I thought it was a great final piece to the concert.
Henri Vieuxtemps composed this piece in 1860 and published it in 1862. At this concert they
played the second movement which is Barcarolle:Andante con moto. The other two movements
of this piece are called Maestoso-Allegro and Finale Scherzando:Allegretto. Overall I thought
that this was a very nice concert and I really enjoyed all of the pieces that were performed.
 I attended the November Jazz Night concert on November 19th, in Meyer Hall. This
concert featured Jazz Ensembles 1,2, and 3, and was directed by Mr. De Leon. The concert
started of with Jazz Ensemble 3, then 2, and then ended with Jazz Ensemble 1. One piece I really
enjoyed was titled Run and composed by Craig Skeffington. This was played by Jazz Ensemble
3, and it was very enjoyable to listen to. It had a nice catchy beat throughout the whole piece
with multiple different soloists. The saxophone soloist was very pretty, but it was a little quiet
and hard to hear over the other instruments playing. The drums throughout this piece were
played very well, not too loud or too soft. The drums added a nice beat and background rhythms
without interfering with the soloists or the melodies. Along with this, the piano was very quet, I
feel like the piano played some great off beats and rhythms that would’ve added to the
complexity of the piece if you could hear it better. At the end, everyone played the same rhythm
together and it was a very nice and clean ending. Overall, this piece was very enjoyable to listen
too, it was a bit long, around 7-8 minutes, but it I loved listening to this piece and hearing all of
the different rhythms and harmonies that the jazz band made.

The Jazz ensemble 3 also played a piece called My Little Suede Shoes, composed by
Charlie Parker and arranged by Siegle. This was the ensemble 3’s last piece of the night, and it
definitely was my favorite piece that this ensemble had. This piece has more of a calmer mood
with some nights beats compared to the other louder pieces that they played. There are nice little
chromatic grace notes every now and then which are very satisfying to listen to since everyone
plays them together. There were also different soloists in this piece, one solo that stood out to e
was the saxophone solo. It had a nice clean sound and wasn’t too soft or loud. In the first couple
of phrases, he sounded a little nervous, but after that he got comfortable and played great. It
added a great touch to the piece and made this piece better. After the solo, there was a part with
just the woodwind instruments, so without the drums, piano, and bass. This part of the piece was
unexpected, but very enjoyable. I felt as though the drums were a little too loud at some parts
which took away from the rest of the band throughout the piece. Other than that, this was a very
enjoyable piece and I had fun listening to it. I love all of the details and unique rhythmic choices
that the band played, it made the piece very interesting and enjoyable to listen to.

Moving on the Jazz ensemble 2, I really enjoyed Fly me to the Moon composed by Frank
Sonatra and arranged by Quincy Jones. Quincy Jones is known for playing with well known
singers like Michael Jackson. Unfortunately he recently just passed away, but this was my
favorite piece of the night. I love the song Fly me to the Moon, and the band played it so well it
almost sounded like Frank Sonatra and his band playing it. The singer sounded very similar to
Frank Sonatra which added to the similarity with the original, and he had an amazing strong
voice. The band wasn’t too loud and it gave the singer a chance to really stand out and sing
which I really loved. After that, there was a part with just the band and no singer. This part was
very pretty and again it sounded just like the original. This was a very well executed piece and
when it was so enjoyable that it felt too short. This was definitely my favorite piece of the night,
and I feel like the audience would agree because the band got a standing ovation. Overall, this
concert was very fun and very enjoyable to listen to.
 I attended the Orchestra concert on November 20th conducted by Mr. Adkins. This
concert had two different orchestras performing, the string orchestra, and the philharmonic
orchestra. The string orchestra played first, and they played Symphony No 25 in g minor
composed by Mozart. This symphony as four movements, Allegro, Andante, Menuetto, and
Allegro. The piece started with many offbeats which really added to the eerie, minor mood of
the piece. There is a very upbeat and fast tempo which was played nicely by the orchestra.
Everyone was playing together and it sounded very nice. The violin takes the melody which
sounds very pretty, I feel like it could’ve been a little louder though, the other instruments were a
little overpowering at this part. The main theme which was played in the beginning comes back
and little different. The dynamics are softer and the tempo is a little slower, then the tempo
speeds up again and the dynamic goes to forte. There is a nice part after these where it feels nice
and sweet, almost like it’s major compared to the minor feel in the beginning of the piece. At the
end of the first movement, there is a really pretty crescendo and everyone is playing together
which sounded very celan and nice. This symphony was write when Mozart was 17 years old.
Mozart always closely observed Haydn and looked up to him as a menor. He took Haydns ideas
to his own creative pieces and created symphonies that a more dark and intense theatrical theme
like this symphony. I really enjoyed listening to this piece and I thought the orchestra really
understood this piece and played it very well.

After a short intermission, the Philharmonic orchestra played the Enigma Variations
composed by Sir Edward Elgar. There are 14 variations in this piece, and the piece was about 32
minutes long. The first part of the piece is titled Thema, which is the main theme of the piece
playing all of the 14 variations. This piece has a very emotional feel to to. I feel like the orchestra
could play this with a little more dynamic contrast. After this, the first variation was played
which was very pretty. I love how it incorporated parts of a theme but in a different way. This
variation had a very sweet feel to it, yet still emotional. There was this very pretty crescendo
which was played nicely by all of the instruments. After this, variation 2 played which was a
fatertemp. The violins are playing the fast notes in the background to almost hold the beat, and
the clarinets had the melody. This variation was very short but enjoyable to listen to. The next
variation had different rhythms which I realy enjoyed, I feel like the orchestra may have been a
bit off because it sounded a little messy at this one part so maybe the instruments weren’t all
playing together on exactly the same beat. This variation has many dynamics which makes it
very interesting to listen to. After this, the next variation was very loud and strong compared to
the others. It started with fortissimo and nevery really got quiter than mezzoforte. This variation
was very short, maybe only like 30 seconds, but it was very strong and nicely played which
added to the piece as a whole. The next variation was quet and had a more emotional and sad feel
to it. I sense a pattern of a loud intense variation then followed by a more quiet and emotional
variation. This pattern makes all of the variations very interesting to listen to since each is unique
in its own way. As the variations went on, they were all very different and enjoyable to listen to.
This was definitely my favorite piece of the night since every variation was different and each
had its own unique properties. Overall this concert as a whole was very enjoyable and I am so
happy to be able to attend this concert.