Campolindo’s instrumental music department kicked off their school year with convivial flourish by hosting their annual Jukebox Hero potluck and concert on Thursday September 11. The concert took place at 7:30 p.m. in the CPAC and featured the Campolindo string orchestra and a combined band of members of the Wind Ensemble and Concert Band.
Attendees voted beforehand for popular songs to be played at the concert. Percussionists from the department’s two bands performed interactive interludes between pieces, a feat which required practicing separately from the wind-blowing units of their respective ensembles. The concert was preceded by a short potluck in the MUR in which all members of instrumental music brought food to share with the community.
On August 22, a form was sent out to musician families to vote on which pieces they wished to be performed. About half a dozen pieces, including an arranged medley of tunes from “Wicked”, Psy’s “Gangnam Style,” and Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” topped the polls and were played at the concert.
Before the concert started, musicians and their families convened in the MUR for an evening of food and talk. The first ensemble to perform was Campolindo’s orchestra. After that, a combined ensemble of wind players from both Campolindo bands– mostly upperclassman-comprised Wind Ensemble and Concert Band for newer musicians – performed their pieces.
In between pieces, percussionists from both bands, stationed on risers at the back of the stage, performed cadences, or short percussive riffs, intended to stir up school spirit. Percussionists practiced outside at various locations around campus, eventually settling outside of M1. “It’s nice being able to practice solos on our own and then just figuring it out at the concerts,” said junior Teemu Miller, a percussionist in the Wind Ensemble.
Most of the percussionists play in the Campo Pep Band, an extracurricular ensemble that meets up after school to rehearse with the cheerleading squad so they can perform at home games. These cadences were a preview to what Pep Band percussionists intend to play at games and were intended to engage with the audience to create an atmosphere of energy and enthusiasm. The percussionists enjoyed one cadence in particular. “…we have this one song called ‘Huh’, where we play, and then the audience… [has] to shout ‘huh’ at the end of it,” said Miller.
Freshman students shared their thoughts about how band has been different in high school so far compared to middle school. “The music has been a lot harder so far in high school,” said freshman Alexander Nguyen. “However, the Jukebox concert was not [as] nerve wracking [as] it was in middle school because the only people watching were supportive parents,” added Nguyen. Freshman Mila Nishimori said, “I can tell that as the year goes on, band is going to get much harder than it was in middle school, but right now we’re just going over the basics of music so it hasn’t gotten too hard yet.”
The potluck preceding the concert made for a night of much community-building. Many musicians at the concert expressed enthusiasm about being a part of the Campolindo musical community. “I feel like [this community is] a great environment for learning,” said junior and upright bassist Siegfried Needham. “…there’s a lot of great people here.” The event’s organizers were also proud of their efforts to build community. “It was wonderful to see musicians and their families come together for a spirited evening of music and camaraderie,” said musical director Tana Barnett in an email sent out to musicians and their families the afternoon following the concert. Barnett added, “I can’t wait to hear my first ‘huh!’ at the next football game.”
