This spring break, both Huron High School and Pioneer High School went to New York City to play at Carnegie Hall. The trip lasted four nights and five days. Both schools only took two concert bands (Symphony Band and Concert Band Purple/Green) and a jazz band to New York. Both schools brought around 130 kids.
Although both high schools went with the same goal, to go play at Carnegie Hall, the bands had varied experiences. While Pioneer High School played at Carnegie to receive critiques on how to get better, Huron High School opened for a concert which featured two honors choirs and a small orchestra ensemble.
Huron High School Symphony Band played Slava! by Leonard Bernstein, along with two combined pieces with Concert Green Band. Together they played Donzon no. 2 by Arturo Marqez and movements nine-ten of Pictures of an Exhibition by Modest Mussorgsky. The whole set lasted about 20 minutes.
Pioneer High School Symphony Band played Groovin & Blue Shades. Groovin is a piece composed by Joey Hwang, a trumpet player in the Pioneer Symphony Band. It features a Latin groove with the piece highlighting different sections of the band. Blue Shades is composed by Frank Tichelli, and is one of the more famous band pieces. It features a jazz feel and is known for its giant bass clarinet and screeching clarinet solo. Their concert lasted around 20 minutes.
Concert Purple Band played Second Suite in F by Holst, a famous composition with a beautiful euphonium solo, and Cajons Reverb by Dennis Llinás, which features a cajon or boxed percussion instrument. Concert Purple Band was also on the stage for around 20 minutes.
However, both bands did a lot more than just performing.
For Pioneer: the day started at 8 o’clock on Thursday evening when they left on an all-night bus ride to New York City. Pioneer spent their first day in New York visiting the 9/11 Memorial, traveling to Chinatown and finally Little Italy before returning to their hotel at night. On Saturday, they visited the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island before returning to see a performance by the New York Philharmonic.
Students spent Sunday exploring Times Square — going shopping, exploring museums, or exploring Central Park — before returning to work at a professional clinic, then going off to see Little Shop of Horrors on Broadway. And finally, after a memorable performance at Carnegie Hall, they ended the trip with a visit to “Top of the Rock” and enjoyed a 360˚ view of the New York City Skyline. Tuesday night, they arrived back home at Pioneer to enjoy the rest of their spring break.
“The trip was a lot of fun, and my favorite part was watching the NY Philharmonic Concert. Little Shop of Horrors [the Broadway show we saw] was also pretty good,” Daniel Park, a Pioneer High School Symphony Band player said. “Carnegie Hall was a little underwhelming if I’m being honest, but it was still a really cool experience.”
For Huron, the day started at four a.m., when they arrived at Huron to load buses. After a 14 hour bus ride they finally made it to New York. Throughout those 5 days in Manhattan, students got to experience/explore the Brooklyn Bridge, the MOMA Art Museum, One World Observatory, Central Park, Liberty Island and The Statue Of Liberty. Along with those sightseeing activities, students got to go shopping at Chinatown, Little Italy, Times Square and SoHo.
Both of the high schools had packed schedules, so students from both schools did not get to see each other even when staying at the same hotel, Sheraton Time Square Hotel. The two schools did go to see the New York Philharmonic together, where they played Violin Concerto No. 1 by Bruch, Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks by R. Strass and Enigma Variations by Elgar.
The New York trip will be remembered for a long time by students by both Pioneer and Huron High School. From the memories they gained to the lessons they learned about being in a big city like New York, this trip will not soon be forgotten.
