By Jayleen Rolon
Correspondent
The College’s Concert Band and Wind Ensemble held a concert titled “Transformations” on March 9 in Kendall Hall.
Led by music professors Adam Warshafsky and Dr. Eric Laprade, about 130 musicians of the two bands performed for a fully packed auditorium.
The songs contained themes of hope and strength throughout the two-hour event.
Among the songs performed was “An American Elegy,” which was composed by Frank Ticheli in memory of the 13 lives lost during the 1999 shooting at Columbine High School.
“I am sad to say that more pieces will be commemorated for tragedies like this in the future” said Warshafsky during the song’s introduction.
Over the course of 11 meetings, the performers spent a total of 13 hours preparing for the concert.
“I spend 80 percent of my free time practicing,” said Violeta Perez-Espinosa, a freshman music education major and tenor saxophone player.
A pre-concert discussion was originally planned to take place at 7 p.m., but had to be canceled due to issues with the ticketing system used by the College’s Center for the Arts. Ticketing fees were also void for the same reason.
Student conductors Jayden Fusco and Marlaina Burg each took the stage conducting the Concert Band and Wind Ensemble, respectively. Both students are currently in their senior year studying music education at the College.
“I really liked the first song,” said Melanie Martinez, a freshman psychology major and former member of the Concert Band. “I also really liked the song Jayden conducted and how enthusiastic he was.”
Performers were enthusiastic with huge smiles on their faces, and the audience clapped each time a musician made an entrance on stage.
“It was lively,” said Emily Elas, a junior math and secondary education major. “I really enjoyed it.”
Soloists and junior music education majors Mikayla Delano and Gianna Marrano performed “Andante and Rondo” for two flutes, accompanied by the chamber winds.
“I was confident in our preparation but nervous for the performance because of just the amount of attention that’s solely on the concerto performers,” Marrano said. “It was really awesome to work with Mikayla and the chamber winds to make a really awesome performance.”
The concert was complemented by strong gusts of wind against the windows of Kendall Hall echoing throughout the theater.
“It was breathtaking,” said Lawrence Hawkins, a resident of Elizabeth, New Jersey. “I’ve never experienced anything like that before.”
