Winter Concert Strikes a Chord of Awe
The Symphonic Band performs “The World’s Greatest Show!” Photo: Barnabas Jiang
By TIFFANY DONG, BARNABAS JIANG, and JONATHAN HART
There were many fun surprises in this year’s Winter Concert on December 6.
One was the new addition of the Pianists without Borders, who opened the show with an experienced pianist, Andrey Bilogur, a junior who has played for over ten years. Bilogur played two complex pieces, “Nocturne Op. 9 No. 2” and “Waltz Op. Posthumous,” both by Frederic Chopin. Bilogur played each piece with emotion, gently lifting his hands and swaying back and forth as the notes crescendoed. Bilogur said, “I chose these pieces because I was confident I could play them properly without any mistakes.”
He was followed by one of this article’s authors, Barnabas Jiang ‘25, who played Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata,” and by sophomore Daniel Kim, who played “I Wish You Love” by Charles Trenet and Leo Chauliac and “Nocturne (Interlude),” as arranged by Laufey, an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Kim said, “I chose these pieces because of their unique styles and because I like Laufey; her music is soft.”
Meanwhile, the audience’s applause grew louder after each performance.
Following the pianists was the NYSSMA chorus, who first performed a French piece, “Je Ne Fus Jamais Si Aise” by Pierre Certon. Then junior Phebe Sun, one of the sopranos of NYSSMA, introduced the “Carol of the Bells,” the famous Ukrainian holiday song.
Reflecting on their performances, Ms. Robin Casalta, the teacher for the chorus group, said “For NYSSMA, I think they did a great job considering how early they went. We usually don’t go up in December; we usually go up at the end of January. So I was very proud of them.”
Sun said, “During the concert I was super nervous about the speech because that was my first time introducing the group. And I was nervous about how we would sound because it’s a new NYSSMA group and we hadn’t had much time to practice singing together. But overall, I was happy to perform.”
Ms. Casalta added, “I like that the kids were all-in. They can tell you what went right and what went wrong. And that’s a great achievement for me and for them both.”
Next, the symphonic band took the stage, playing “Blackbeard” by Randall Standridge, “Chippewa Lullaby” arranged by Anne McGinty, “The World’s Greatest Show!” by William Owens, and a spooky Christmas-themed song, “Santa the Barbarian” by Randall Standridge.
Finally, it was the wind ensemble’s turn. They played “Come Together” by the Beatles, “Abracadabra” by Frank Ticheli, and ended the concery with a bang by playing “Ruckus” by Randall Standridge.
“The Winter Concert was a fun way to express my love for music,” said junior Jonathan Shapiro, who played the trumpet in the wind ensemble. “Performing in front of an audience is a bit nerve-racking, but after a good performance, everyone was proud.”
Alyssa Yan ‘27, a clarinetist, said, “The most rewarding part of the process was getting the opportunity to perform on stage and show your dedication to the audience.”
Samuel Jacobowitz ‘25, a trombonist in the wind ensemble, said, “In the aftermath of the performance, I was able to reflect on the concert and the emotions me and my peers felt while playing. I am able to feel accomplished and recognize that my hard work paid off.”
Mr. Daniel Jordan, who led the wind ensemble, said, “It went very well. I’m happy with it, everyone seems very happy with it, especially since it was such a short turn around between the homecoming performance and this.”
The concert also left a lasting impression on the audience. Rain Wu ‘25 said, “This year’s performance was even better than last year’s. The symphonic band and wind ensemble improved a lot. The concert was very well put together.”