On Thursday, May 16th, during Community Block, a culmination of all the hard work of the various performing arts groups this year. The Performing Arts chapel was by all accounts, a resounding success. The orchestra performed first, followed by the B-Flats, Upper School Rock, and Upper School Jazz. Everyone had a pleasurable time during the performance and the pieces and songs showed how much the music program has grown and how deep it has become.
The orchestra played a few pieces: “Tortoises & March of the Lion,” from Saint Saens’ Carnival of the Animals, featuring Wesley Zhu ’25 and TJ Cannistraro ’24, and “Cinema Paradiso” by Ennio Morricone, featuring Ms. Allen. Although they didn’t have the most time to practice, they still delivered fantastic results, with positive feedback all around. “I was really into the emotion and themes that came through the performance”- Anonymous Form V student
The B Flats sang “Nkosi Sikelel’i” by Enoch Sontonga, which is the national anthem of South Africa. This performance shows the flexibility and talent of the B Flats, as they have already sung many English songs but are now branching out and showing that they can also sing songs from other countries and still sound great. “
The Upper School Rock Band played “Times Like These” by the Foo Fighters. The three members of the band (TJ Cannistraro ’24, Riley Goodman ’24, and Henry Amenhauser ’26) really embody the spirit of the song.
Upper School Jazz played “Just the Two of Us” by Grover Washington Jr., with the B Flats singing. This combination was something we didn’t know we needed.
Overall, this performing arts chapel really highlighted how far the music program has come with Ms. Allen. There have been many more musical events and performances, with this one capping off a year of huge growth in terms of music.
