From late November to the first weeks of December, the ANS Concert Band delivered a series of concerts to various groups of ANS students.
This is the first time the Concert Band has ever given performances in this way—with concerts delivered day after day, to different audiences, over the span of several weeks. The multitude of performances is following a significant period of time over which the band was not able to perform at all due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Now that the band has the opportunity to play for audiences safely again, they are making up for lost opportunities by showing everything they have been working on since the last concert, which was well over a year ago—the Valentine’s Day Concert, at the beginning of 2020.
The concerts have been taking place in the ANS band room, and have been delivered to groups of students of all ages, from kindergarten to high school.
The repertoire is the same for each concert, and consists of a diverse selection of songs, some of which are performed by the entire ensemble, and others that are solo pieces. The concerts open with a medley of songs from the movie The Beauty and the Beast. What follows are the band members’ solo pieces, accompanied by Mr. Spiro on either guitar or piano: “Nicaragua, Nicaraguita,” played by Carlos Hondoy on the flute; “Bésame mucho,” played by Orlando Argüello on the trumpet; “Once Upon a Dream,” sang by guest Nydia del Carmen, and accompanied by Fátima Martínez and Carlos Hondoy on flute; “How Deep is Your Love,” played by Caroline Ketelhohn on the clarinet; “Romantic Flight,” played by Fátima Martínez on the flute; “Bella’s Lullaby,” played by Valeria Alfaro on the clarinet; and “Take Five,” played by Andrew López on the tenor saxophone. The concerts close with two rock songs, played by the entire band: “Seven Nation Army,” and finally, the theme from the movie “Ghostbusters.”
The performances have all been delivered to enthusiastic audiences, and met with raucous applause and cheers. The band feel pride in what they’ve done, and great joy in finally sharing their music with the school community again.
“Going back to concerts at first made me feel anxious,” says Valeria Alfaro, clarinetist and drummer. “But when the moment finally came, it was the best feeling ever!”
Overall, the ANS Concert Band has been successful in bringing the 2021 year to an explosive and joyous end.
