In the evening of Oct. 22, West Orchestras hosted a combined program with the Northwest Junior High orchestras in the Arganbright auditorium. Unlike previous years where all the orchestras would perform in one program, this year two concerts took place.
The seventh-grade orchestra kicked off the concert at 6:30 p.m. Conducted by Northwest orchestra teacher Kathryn Swinbank, 7th Grade Strings performed “Aeolian Rock” by Jeffrey Frizzi, “Aspen Glow” by Susan Day, “The Beast” by Michael Story and “Treasure Island” by Kathryn Griesinger. West’s Philharmonic Strings then took the stage, conducted by West orchestra director Jon Welch. Their program consisted of two pieces: movements I, II, III and IV of “Serenade for String Orchestra” by Norman Leyden and “Incantations” by Richard Meyer.
Meanwhile, members of 8th Grade Strings, Concert Strings and Symphony Strings were just arriving at 7 p.m. for their concert at 7:30 p.m. The second concert started with 8th Grade Strings performing “Colliding Fates” by Tyler Grant, “Dark Adventure” by Ralph Ford, “Apparitions” by Doug Spata and “The Evil Eye and the Hideous Heart” by Alan Lee Silva. Followed by Concert Strings, performing “Brigid’s Fire” by Jeffery Bishop, “Fire in the Forge” by Ted Allen and movements I and II of “Two Scenes from the Hollow” by Kirt Mosier. After that, Symphony Strings performed movements I, II and IV of “Sinfonia No. 8 in D Major” by Felix Mendelssohn and “October” by Eric Whitacre.
To wrap up the night, 8th Grade Strings, percussionist Oliver “Coffin Banger” Miller and singer Luke “Mr. Pumpkin” Reimer joined Symphony Strings on stage to perform “Monster Mash” by Bobby Picket. After the eventful night, students and their families went to pick up their donuts in the auditorium lobby.
Bass player Mac Wilson ’25 shares his thoughts on his final year performing in the fall concert.
“The concert felt a lot different knowing that I won’t be able to do this anymore. This is a big thing for the seventh and eighth graders — to see what orchestra is like at West High — and it’s also the only time I’ve ever actually dressed up for this concert,” Wilson said.
Sabrina Du ’25 shares a similar sentiment.
“Monster Mash is my favorite because we do it every year, and it’s just really nostalgic. Mr. Welch always makes sure that it’s very fun and casual,” Du said.
Conversely, violinist Abby Lee ’27 shares the experience of her first time playing in the Symphony Orchestra.
“It was a really fun experience because it’s my first concert as a part of Symphony, the varsity orchestra at West. I feel like that’s a big accomplishment,” Lee said.
