Concert Sends off Senior Musicians
May 22, 2019
The last instrumental concert of the year honored the program’s graduating seniors on May 10 in the Campolindo Performing Arts Center (CPAC).
According to band director Johnny Johnson, the end of year concert is “most memorable” because it is the last time all of the music groups will perform together, with the exception of the jazz band. “It’s like this entity that has been formed by the different ensembles over the course of the year performs together for the last time, so it’s bittersweet,” said Johnson.
The concert also included a senior send-off with gifts.
“Most of [the seniors] have been with us for 4 years, and it’s a long relationship from when they enter the program as a freshman all the way until they become the leaders in their sections. It’s happy and sad to see them go,” said Johnson
Seniors Aman Malhotra and Andrew Torres were chosen for the “Concerto Award,” according to Johnson, and performed Max Bruch’s concerto for clarinet and viola accompanied by the orchestra.
“We’ve come a long way from entering high school as musicians, and to showcase our abilities and perform in front of a ton of people and together was really special for both of us,” said Torres.
“It was fun. It was a unique experience that we were fortunate to have as soloists and you don’t get that very often, so it was cool,” added Malhotra.
2 seniors plan on continuing their study of music, Joon Kim and Michael Gilmore, at Berklee College of Music in Boston and Oregon State University, respectively. “I would have done something in music anyway, but [my time in band] gave me a lot of nice experience related to music,” said Kim.
Junior Katie Yee, who is anticipated to lead the orchestra class next year as president, said, “I do feel a little bit sad because the top portion of our orchestra is made of seniors, and a really solid portion of our orchestra is leaving. But I feel hopeful for the new part of the orchestra that will develop as the seniors year and I feel that our orchestra is in good hands for next year.”
