Alessandra Bassani

Band
Mr. King
2 April 2016
Spring Concert Review
The performances of the Wind Ensemble and Chamber Choir took place on Wednesday,
March 30, 2016. It was their Spring Concert, and it started at 7:00 pm, in the High School
Auditorium.
The concert started off with the Chamber Choir. They played three songs, Fides Anima
Vita, a traditional round, There Will Be Rest, by Frank Ticheli, and The Wind is Blowing West,
by Andrew G. Gadwah. Fides Anima Vita was a soft song, and everyone started together. It was a
round, so one group started and then another followed. It created and overlapping effect. It was
also sung in Latin. There Will Be Rest also started soft. The singers sang different parts, but at
some points they were together. It was a high song, and the sopranos sang and then the altos. It
got loud and then soft again. The song ended with everyone singing together. The last song they
sang, was The Wind is Blowing West. It was composed by the New Fairfield Choir Director
himself. It was split into four different sections, and at some parts it was soft and high. It was fast
paced at the second section. From the Chamber Choirs performance, I learned that you can sing
at different times, and still have a nice sound. This is because all the singers are not
overpowering one another. This was a regular performance, and the Chamber did an excellent
job.
The Wind Ensemble performed second at the Spring Concert. The songs they played
were In the Hall of the Mountain King, by Edvard Grieg, arr. by Lloyd Conley, The Red Covered

Bridge, by Robert Sheldon, Alkali Ike Rag by Albert Perfect, arr. by David Seiberling, A
Childhood Remembered by Rossano Galante, and Chroma by Carl Strommen. In the Hall of the
Mountain King was played first. It starts very low and then there was a bassoon and bass clarinet
solo. The other instruments joined in, and it gradually got louder and faster. It was a repetitive
song, and everyone ended together. The Red Covered Bridge started with the clarinets. There
was a clarinet solo and the song was dark. It was the right pitch, not too loud nor too soft, and it
ended with everyone playing together on a whole note. Alkali Ike Rag was a funky song. It was
fast paced, and it had a trombone feature. It was loud most of the time with drum rolls. It ended
with instruments playing at different times. A Childhood Remembered had a fast start. There was
a piccolo solo, and the trumpets had good pitch during their part. The flutes and clarinets played
well together. It ends with bells, and the sound faded off into the air. It had a good effect, because
it made the audience wait for it to totally end. Chroma was the last song. It had a clarinet, flute,
bassoon, and bass clarinet solo. It was a high song, and the solos were very smooth. It was loud
and everyone played together. It ended high and the last notes were done by the low brass. I
learned from the Wind Ensemble, that you can have a balance of instruments without some being
too loud and others too soft. The Wind Ensemble performance was excellent, and it was also a
regular performance.