By Leigh Cesanek
Correspondent
It wasn’t the rap music you would typically hear coming from the room of the boy living in the dorm above you, or the pop music being played too loudly from the girl sitting next to you in the library, but rather the refreshing sounds of classical instruments were performed by the College’s very own Department of Music students in the Mildred and Ernest E. Mayo Concert Hall on Wednesday Oct. 17 at the music students’ afternoon recital. The talent and dedication of the music students were certainly evident after the recital series which embraced student achievement.
The first instrument played was the marimba by junior music education major Corey Nickerson which started off the show by grabbing the audience’s interest with an entirely different sound. The audience was completely entranced by the instrument’s sound and the player’s precision, for their silence was astounding. The next performance was sophomore music education major Rebecca Hoffler playing the clarinet while her teacher played the piano. The combination of the two instruments portrayed the student’s hard work and achievement with the clarinet. Next, a trumpet player Gerardo Aquino accompanied the piano for another song once again. The pace of this song ranged from fast to slow and changed very often, displaying this student’s intense concentration and devotion to accuracy in his song.
The next student, senior music education major Dylan Lloyd played the guitar, but before he started playing he paused to position his instrument and to set his focus steadily on his performance. His focus shone through the mellow, sweet sound that he depicted with the guitar. His eyes seemed to be closed and his head followed the rhythm of the music as he played. This created a peaceful mood to transcend to the audience as well. The following student, junior music education major Jarett Farkas played the oboe and was also accompanied by the piano. The combination of instruments softened the sharp sound of the oboe, creating a delicacy of musical performance.
For the last student performance, flute player Alexandra Block was accompanied by the piano player once more. This combination worked very well, especially for the last piece of the show. The flute’s sound was even more differentiated when heard alone after a part on the piano; it portrayed its distinct and high-pitched sound even more clearly. The song’s music would build up, creating a crux of sounds to be brought down smoothly by the flute alone. This dramatization displayed an incredible intricacy of sounds and tunes that ardently depicted the student’s talent.
At the end of the last song, a soft “wow” was whispered from Jackie Briggs, junior vocal performance major. She said, “It was a really beautiful performance,” and that the last song performed by the flute player really impressed her.
Joe Mendoza, also a junior vocal performance major, said, “The emotions and meaning behind the music was what made the performance so good.”
The College’s Department of Music impressed audience members with its recital of talent, dedication and devotion to music.
