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COURIER photo/Gabriel Fenoy
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| The El Roble Concert Band performs Wednesday evening for faculty, family and friends in the school gym. |
Students demonstrate the sounds of music
The El Roble Intermediate School gymnasium was a packed place on Wednesday night as people jammed the north end of the bleachers in preparation for a musical event that featured both Claremont Unified School District elementary and junior high students.
For 55 minutes, the young musicians kept the audience clapping and cheering with a variety of musical performances that demonstrated the results of months of practice through CUSD’s after-school music program.
The Elementary After School Instrumental Music Concert featured the music of Recorders, Percussion, Band I and II and also the El Roble Concert Band. The strings and orchestras had performed the night before.
“It’s a way to get kids started in music early,” said Judy Daley, CUSD executive director of educational services. “If you don’t have a program like this, then you won’t have much of a program on the secondary level.”
After Ms. Daley welcomed the audience to the event, the crowd was treated to nearly 20 tunes by the 5 different music groups, featuring songs such as “Au Clair de la Lune,” “Old MacDonald” and “Yankee Doodle Dandy.” The El Roble Concert Band was the final group to perform, playing renditions of “Bristol Bay Legend,” “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” and “Hosts of Freedom” to the delight of those in attendance.
The after-school groups began practicing one day a week back in October and will continue throughout the school year with Dennis Perez, Pat Kuenning, Suzanne Edwards and Ralph Torres serving as the program’s instructors. The February concerts serve as a midway point during the school year and also allows the students to demonstrate their progress before a large audience.
“I’ve had both my kids go through the program,” said Diane duPlessis, the mother of both a Claremont High School and El Roble student. “I’ve seen lifelong friendships being formed and my son now plays in the high school band with many of the same friends he met in this program.”
Theresa Caravalho, who is another CUSD parent, enjoys that the district offers musical education to its students during their elementary school years.
“I think it’s great and I love that the kids are exposed to music,” she said. “It’s just a wonderful thing to have available for them and kids that are busy are less likely to be in trouble. Plus there’s a lot of comradery involved, too, as you’ll see the kids helping each other and encouraging each other.” (story continues below)
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COURIER photo/Gabriel Fenoy
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| The El Roble Concert Band, along with music instructor Dennis Perez, takes a bow after Thursday night’s performance inside the school gym. |
For some of the elementary students, the concert represents the first time that they have performed before an audience of hundreds of people making the actual performing part of the event a learning experience.
“It was scary but fun,” said Isabel Page, a 6th-grade clarinet player. “When we were about to perform, I had butterflies in my stomach.”
Isabel’s initial feelings were also shared by 4th-grade flute player Kea Chien-Dela Cruz.
“I felt nervous at first but it turned out to be fun after I got through it,” she said. “When I practice, I usually picture that I’m on the stage and everybody is seeing me perform. And it makes me nervous. But tonight was very fun.”
One of the themes of the after school concert is that of progression. The event began with the youngest musicians and ended with the El Roble Concert Band. Yet the concert is purposely organized in that order so that the younger students have a glimpse of what is ahead for them if they continue on in music after elementary school.
“They have a chance to see how we’ve improved and at the same time, we also reflect on how good we’ve gotten,” said Gabriel Ortega-Gingrich, an 8th-grade trumpet player for the El Roble Concert Band. “I also really like how it also gives the younger people a chance to perform before a big audience.”
The Elementary After School Instrumental Concert season will not end at El Roble. On Tuesday, May 27, another concert will be held at the Garrison Theater on the Scripps College campus. The concert will be the culmination of a year’s worth of practice and learning for the students.
“It’s always interesting to see how they do in the second concert,” Mr. Perez said. “As for this one, they did really good and we are pleased with their progress.”
For more information regarding the next concert in May, contact Pam Kling at 398-0651.
—Landus Rigsby
