CHOIRvid-19 BANDemic
Virtual Concert 2: Fall/Winter/Holiday Concert
Festival Chorus is a non-auditioned group of approximately 50 singers in grades 9-12.Festival Chorus members prepare and perform music in four to eight part harmony in varying styles. This group meets every other day during school, and is welcome to all student with no audition required. Festival Chorus can be heard in the traditional song "Auld Lang Syne" as well as "Bidi Bom" by David Eddleman and "The Work of Christmas" by Dan Forrest.
The Chamber Singers are an ensemble of 16-20 highly qualified singers in grades 10-12. Singers must go through a rigorous audition in the spring prior to membership. This group performs music of high difficulty to a high degree of excellence. Because of the lack of rehearsal time allotted for this group, membership in this ensemble involves intense out of school time in rehearsal, individual practice and numerous performances throughout the entire year. All singers in this ensemble also sing in the West Side Singers as well as the Festival Chorus. The Chamber Singers present "Ecce Ancilla" by Michael John Trotta and "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" by Parker, arranged by Shaw.
The West Side Singers have been an essential part of the music department at Susquenita since 1977. At around 30 singers in grades 9-12, this group is by audition and members are hand-selected by the director. West Side Singers rehearse every other day during the school day (opposite of Festival Chorus) and once a week in the evening. This group performs music of high difficulty to a high degree of excellence. The West Side Singers perform the traditional hymns "O Come O Come Emmanuel," "Nearer My God To Thee," and "We Three Kings" as well as "I Wonder As I Wander" by Thomas Cocker and "Sing My Child" by Sarah Quartel.
The Concert Band is back for this virtual concert with Fall River Overture, a concert overture in three sections by Robert Sheldon.
Our Program closes with our traditional "Silent Night" featuring the entire high school music program, vocal and instrumental alike.
We hope this concert can bring all of our listeners some cheer and peace this time of year, and we wish you all a Happy Holiday Season!
Virtual Concert 1: Bands in the Fall
Our Marching Band show this year was called "Hindsight." The show took a looks back a music from the past and the present. Selections include "Beethoven's Fifth," "Sing, Sing, Sing" by Benny Goodman, "Blackbird/Yesterday" by The Beatles, and "Hallelujah (Good To Be Alive)" By Andy Grammer. This recording was taken at halftime of one of our home football games. Enjoy. Because Hindsight is 2020.
"Military Escort" is a march written by Henry Fillmore under his pseudonym, Harold Bennett. A straight-forward march, Fillmore used familiar rhythmic patterns and a straight-forward form. The march was hailed at the time as one of the best marches Fillmore's band ever played, and even John Phillip Sousa told Fillmore that he wished it had his name on it. This fall we recorded "Military Escort" on Veteran's Day to honor our American military members.
"Danse Macabre" was written originally for orchestra by French composer Camille Saint-Saens. The piece follows the poem of the same name in which, at the stroke of midnight on All Hallow's Eve, death tiptoes through a graveyard. He climbs atop a tomb stone and starts playing his eerie melody on his fiddle, waking the dead. One by one, the skeletons join the dance. And while in life, they were separated by social classes and prejudices, even the lowest of working men can dance this night with the duchess. For death makes equals of us all. The piece is a staple in orchestral repertoire during the Halloween season, and is arranged here for band by Eric Osterling.