On Wednesday, November 21, all of LHS bands performed alongside band students from feeder middle schools such as Highland, Oak Grove and Rondout.
The performance started with the combined middle school bands playing “As Winds Dance” by Samuel. R. Hazo, and “Night Chase” by Chandler Wilson. This was followed by the LHS Percussion Ensemble which played “Creepy Little Wiggly Things” by Gary Gilroy. Then the Symphonic Band played “Sonic Pathaways” by Nathan Hervey. Afterward, the Symphonic Winds played “Heart of the City” by Gary Gilroy. Next was the Wind Ensemble, which played “Silverado” by Bruce Broughton and “Festive Overture” by Dmitri Shostakovich. Finally, in the end, all the band groups combined to play “Celebration” by Randall Standridge and “Country Club Stomp” by Jarod Hall together. Additionally, band director Adam Gohr proudly announced that 13 LHS band students were selected for the District 7 IMEA Honors Band, Orchestra, Chorus, or Jazz Ensembles.
“This is probably my favorite concert of the year, because you get to hear what the middle schoolers do, what all four of our bands at the high school do, and then combine everybody together for a big closer. So, that’s a lot of fun. [It] gives the kids a great experience,” said band director Adam Gohr. Many band students also agree with this statement and look forward to the yearly Band Festival.
“I love seeing the middle schoolers. It’s a lot of fun seeing who I’m going to be playing with in a few years. And I really want to try to inspire them to make sure they keep doing Band.” says junior Mateo Garcia, a french horn player for Wind Ensemble. The Band Festival isn’t just enjoyable for LHS students but also for middle schoolers as mentioned by Garcia.
“I think it’s a good experience for middle schoolers to play with some high schoolers and get some more [incoming middle schoolers]interested in participating in band, when they get to high school and hopefully continue pursuing it later in their life.” said junior Viviann Wang, clarinet player for Wind Ensemble.
Furthermore, for many band students, the Band Festival is a special and personal experience for them.
“For the high schoolers, it’s always fun to see their middle school directors and play alongside some of those students. They get to be the role model that they remembered seeing when they were a middle schooler. Some of them still talk about that festival day. And for the middle schoolers, it’s a great chance to see what’s the next step.” Mr Gohr comments.
Shagun Poonia, a junior who plays the clarinet for Wind Ensemble, speaks about her own personal experience of, “My sister got to play for the first time. Having a sibling also play with you, it feels so fun. I went home Friday and I immediately said to my sister, hey, let’s practice together for once.”
The Band Festival takes a lot of practice and preparation, but it’s worth the time and work, because of how impactful it is for both the middle schoolers and LHS students.
“We worked really hard on it, and I think it came to shine tonight,” said freshman David Drouhard, who plays for the Percussion Ensemble.
“You know, we have the whole day preparing for it, so it was super cool to see it all come together,” says senior Li Drouhard, trumpet player for Wind Ensemble.
With the Band Festival being a success, band students can look forward to playing for it next year with a new batch of freshmen.
