On Friday, October 14, Maggie Walker’s orchestra classes came together to put on a spectacular performance for the Maggie Walker community. The performance consisted of a variety of pieces played by the beginning, advanced, and artist orchestra classes. The pieces played held a wide range of styles, including baroque music, bluegrass fiddling, contemporary music, as well as the always popular Mario Brothers music. Mrs. Allison Barnes, the orchestra director at Maggie Walker, shared, “The students have been preparing for the concert since September.” She continued that the students’ hard work and dedication has led to “one of the strongest concerts the orchestra department has put on since [she] has been here.”

Tanvi Palavalas, a sophomore in the Advanced Orchestra ensemble, noted, “We spent a lot of time practicing in class, as well as outside of school, and I believe it paid off!” Palavalas continued her praise, sharing that “while there is always room for improvement, [she] believes that everyone involved performed to the very best of their abilities.” Palavalas discussed the pieces the Advanced Orchestra played, which included one of Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos as well as the song ‘A Thousand Years’ by Christina Perri. Palavalas explained, “The Brandenburg Concerto was written during the Baroque period, and it creatively displays elements relevant to the period through its dramatic use of dynamics and trills.” Palavalas continued, praising junior Keira Kim, who accompanied the group by playing the keyboard in a harpsichord setting. “She added an additional, and special touch of authenticity to the piece,” Palavalas said. For the advanced orchestra’s second piece, ‘A Thousand Years,’ Palavalas touched on the excitement that came from playing this piece, stating, “It was exciting to play a popular piece like this one because the audience would be able to connect to it.” She elaborated that “this song was featured in the Twilight [movie] franchise, creating a wide sense of familiarity between the students,” and this familiarity allowed the melody to be much more easily understood for the instrumentalists when first learning the piece.

Senior Will Taylor, a cellist in the artist orchestra ensemble, discussed the preparation that occurred ahead of the performance. “We toiled for hours, practicing the pieces on end, but it was worth it.” The pieces played include the very well known and popular Mario Brothers theme. Taylor explained the history behind this significant piece, saying, “The Mario theme is based off of the adventures of an Italian plumber. According to lore, he fought turtles, mushrooms, and piranha plants. The contentious nature of his quests is reflected in the fiery nature of this piece.” When asked about his overall experience while performing, Taylor said, “The concert probably would have been more fun if I had learned the notes beforehand,” but when observing the audiences’ reaction to the piece, Taylor felt that he and his fellow ensemble members impressed them with their skill and performance.

The Fall Orchestra Concert was a fantastic performance, with pieces ranging from the Baroque period to pop culture. The seamless combination of the renditions from the different periods received wonderful applause from the audience and created a concert that will be remembered by many who attended!