Secondary concerts kick off the Christmas spirit

Once again, our Secondary bands and choirs have astounded us with their hard work and talents. For months, our Secondary music divisions have been preparing for their annual Christmas Concerts, and our community has been in great anticipation of their performances, which kick off the many holiday celebrations.

Our Secondary Band Christmas Concert, on December 4, began with ‘Freddie Freeloader’ and ‘Pfrancing’ put on by our Jazz Combo and directed by Mr. Isaac McTaggart. The pieces showcased our students’ improvisation skills in each of their solos. Keeping in step, our Jazz Club, led by YiQian W. and JiaQing G., joined the stage and performed several songs, including a unique version of ‘Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town.’

Next up, our 6th Grade Beginning Band, followed by our 7th and 8th Grade Advanced Band, played multiple well-known compositions, including ‘Frosty the Snowman,’ ‘All I want for Christmas is You,’ and ‘What Makes You Beautiful.’ We had outstanding solos by AiQiuYang T. and MyeongGi S. Our High School Concert Band concluded the concert with four pieces, featuring talented soloists, and a Christmas sing-along, which invited audience members to join in.

Our celebration through music continued the following night, on December 5, with our Secondary Choir Christmas Concert. With the theme ‘Carols of Different Times and Places,’ our choirs took us through the ages of this wonderful season and showed how it’s celebrated through music around the world.

Opening the evening, our 6th Grade Choir sang four challenging pieces, including ‘Exsultate Cantamos Festivo,’ and ‘Solfège Santa,’ and featured our students, Eloise C. and Seong Bin L., who sang the descant for ‘Christmas Peace Canon.’ Along with the well-known song, ‘God Rest You Merry Gentlemen,’ our 7th and 8th Grade Choir performed the traditional Spanish carol, ‘A La Nanita Nana,’ and ‘Calypso Lullaby.’ Following, our High School Choir presented several carols, including ‘Joy to the World!’ ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas,’ and the Nigerian Christmas song, ‘Betelehemu,’ which had audience members clapping along. The last piece of the night combined all our choirs for a moving performance of ‘Silent Night for All the World.’

Well done to each of our student musicians! Over the years, with each performance, we have seen you grow, and we love celebrating your accomplishments. Thank you to our Band Director, Mrs. Emmy Chen, and our Choir Director, Mrs. Erin Jin, for leading our students. Thank you, also, to all staff members who supported our students and the concerts.