Virtual Concert Series Showcases Band's Creativity
Zoe Alatsas, Allison Lin, and Angie Liu of the Percussion and Chamber Ensemble combine virtually via the “Upbeat” app for a performance of “Silent Night.”
By TAYLOR SCANTLEBURY
“Due to Covid” has been the tune for over a year now, but Mr. Jung and his students decided to scratch that broken record.
With a “safe and socially distanced” combination of flutes, guitars, drums, mics, and pianos in the now-virtual Fall Semester Concert Series, Mr. Jung and the participants were able to keep the spirit of the Winter Concert alive. Putting a masterpiece together may sound difficult in these unprecedented times, but fortunately Midwood’s band students were up to the task.
“Luckily, it wasn’t my first time putting this type of performance together,” said Mr. Jung said after the third entry in the series, the “Quarter 2 Review.” In the previous collection, “Just Some Holiday Music,” students incorporated classic jingles like “Ode To Joy,” “Deck the Halls,” “Silent Night,” and “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas'' and pulled it off while being completely virtual.
The students involved in this at-home project managed to practice by showing Jung their work using a number of digital audio workspaces like Soundtrap, Upbeat, and basic video recording. Students also met up over Google Meets to review what they had worked on. Since the concert was not in-person, you can imagine the difficulties the contributors faced.
“Practicing in person is definitely a lot easier,” senior Angie Liu said. Some students had difficulty practicing by themselves and “not getting to see crew members in person.”
Virtual practice could be “frustrating” and “weird,” others said.
Progress during practice “was slow and required triple the amount of work and effort,” Mr. Jung said.
Allison Lin ’21 had a hard time being able to consult with her peers for feedback as usual, she said. Nevertheless, the final product eventually came out smoothly. Lin, Liu, and senior Zoe Alatsas seamlessly combined forces for a rendition of “Silent Night.”
Using an app called “Upbeat,” the ensemble was able to combine each remote group on one screen, while showcasing their bedroom wallpapers in the background, to perform each song. When one group’s performance ended, a smooth transition to a new slide introduced the next group and the song they would perform in bold white letters.
View the Fall Semester Concert Series here:
Quarter 2 Review
Just Some Holiday Music
Quarter 1 Review
Despite the usual issues with remote learning, there were some positives to the process. Alatsas said her favorite part was “meeting with my friends almost every week to rehearse together.”
The Percussion Ensemble and other band members celebrate after last year’s pre-Covid 2020 Winter Concert.
Liu said that “remote was more convenient because I could always retake the recording if I messed up, or if I was unsatisfied with the results.” She also described it as having “less pressure,” since there was no direct contact with the audience and instead she looked into a screen at herself.
Mr. Jung said that even though putting together the concert was “incredibly time consuming,” he was happy to be able to “show off everybody’s hard work” to students, parents, and administration.
“Just Some Holiday Music” ended with seniors Aarin Arora, Jasper Day, Daniela Mejia, and Anna Snisarenko together in one rehearsal space, instead of divided into four quadrants like previous performances. To ensure safety, the musicians were socially distanced and wearing face coverings. They closed the night with a two minute long rendition of the warm, melodic classic “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.”
Jung then closed out the concert with a wholesome note that reminded the audience to “Have a wonderful break” and to “be safe and relax a little.”
“The students deserve all the credit,” Mr. Jung said, “because it is their work, their recordings, and their effort on the screen. I am very proud of all their work, from the smallest to the largest contributions.”