Four student music ensembles will perform concerts at the end of this semester.
The Small Jazz Combo will perform on May 9; the Large Jazz Combo will perform on May 6; the Symphony Orchestra will perform on May 7; and the Concert Band will perform on May 5.
“We … have quite an eclectic mix of music,” music professor Ian Wardenski, director of the Small Jazz Combo, said.
Music professor Anna Binneweg, director of the Symphony Orchestra, said the performance this semester “really reflects the strengths of the orchestra.”
The orchestra has “winds, brass percussion and strings,” Binneweg said. “We do a variety of repertoire—standard traditional repertoire, … and then of course, modern music as well.”
Music professor Paul Dembowski, director of the Concert Band, said this performance’s theme is “War and Peace,” and added it will be emotional.
“It’s not an easy piece of music,” Dembowski said. “It’s not an easy piece of music to perform in terms of what it asks of you. It’s not an easy piece of music to listen to. There will be people that will cry, I think.”
Allison Stringfield, a second-year music and studio art student who plays the clarinet in the Concert Band and Symphony Orchestra, said the programs have “a really nice sense of community.”
“Something just really clicked,” Stringfield said. “I think my favorite part about the concert band and orchestra is simply just being able to play in an ensemble.”
The Symphony Orchestra and the Concert Band will team up with Opera AACC to perform the comedy Pirates of Penzance from May 19-21.