A Night of Music

Hingham+High+School+Chamber+Orchestra+led+by+Mrs.+Sassano

Catherine Wilk

Hingham High School Chamber Orchestra led by Mrs. Sassano

Catherine Wilk, Contributing Writer

At 7:00 p.m. on May 17th in the Hingham High School auditorium, the Annual Spring Concert and Awards ceremony took place. Showcased at the concert was the Chamber Orchestra and Symphony Orchestra, both conducted by teacher Phaedre Sassano, and the Concert Band and Wind Ensemble, both directed by teacher Brian Cincotta.

The auditorium was packed practically to full capacity with students and adults awaiting an exciting yet emotional night­, emotional because this was the last concert of the year as well as the last performance for many seniors.

The Chamber Orchestra started off with a piece by J.S. Bach called Concerto in D Minor for Two Violins. As suggested by the song’s name, the concert displayed two soloists in senior violinist John Gillig and junior violinist Sarah Calame. While the tunes of the soloists’ violins conversed with one another in a happy, upbeat melody, the rest of the orchestra kept a mellow yet crucial beat in the background which was truly impressive.

Following the Chamber’s piece, Hingham High School’s Symphony Orchestra came to the stage. The Symphony is made up of students in orchestra as well as selected band students who take time to practice outside of school. They first performed Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6 in G Major, Op. 68 “Pastoral”, a song described in the pamphlet to be a portrayal of, “cheerful Feelings upon entering the country”. The song was filled with crescendo’s and conversation between the stringed, wind, and percussion instruments seemingly answering one another.

They continued their set with Isaac’s arrangement of Bacchanale (originally composed by Camille Saint­Saëns), a happy, suspenseful song.

Next onto stage was the Concert band. They first performed a variation of Elements by Brian Balmages; this song also contained smaller segments called Air, Water, Earth, and Fire. Conductor Brian Cincotta explained that the piece was originally conducted for a symphony with stringed instruments rather than a band; while this adds to the difficulty of the song, it also enhances the sound and provides a different sound. The sounds of the movement differed from segment to segment, varying from refreshing and triumphant to suspenseful and bold.

Their next piece, explained Cincotta, was voted for by the players themselves. The most popular vote among them was an arrangement by Michael Brown called Michael Jackson: Through the Years, a compilation of the King of Pop’s most popular song over the years. Featured samples were Thriller and Man in the Mirror.

Next to perform was the wind ensemble. Their first piece was an arrangement of Molly on the Shore by Rogers, another cheerful song that varied in sound level as the piece went on. Next, they played October by Eric Whitacre, a slow, rejuvenating song that Cincotta said is meant to remind the audience or the transition between summer and fall as well as “looking back and moving on”.

Finally, for the final piece of the night, the Hingham High School Wind Ensemble played Arabesque, a respectively Arabian sounding tune with a flute solo starring senior Kristine McLellan. Cincotta brought up that this song was significant because four years before, the current seniors (who at the time were in 8th grade) watched the High School Band play the same piece at the All Town Concert.

The final act was a small ensemble performance by seniors John Gillig (violin/guitar), Cam Baker (violin/guitar), Jackson Humphrey (violin) , and Evan Collins (drums), as well as sophomore Richard Miller (bass guitar). The quintet performed a next to perfect Led Zeppelin compilation.

As this was the final concert of the 2015­-16 academic year, there was an award ceremony at the end to celebrate the greatness achieved by the musicians over the past nine months or so. The orchestra celebrated their eleven graduating seniors and the band graduates 25 seniors this spring, all of whom were showered with gifts. Musicians participating in the Junior and Senior District and Semsba competitions, All­State Festival, most improved students in each grade, what they call the “Symphony MVP,” awards for outstanding achievement, and others all received awards as well. Also recognized was junior Justin Moczynski for his excellence in coming in first place in the District Composition Contest.

At the conclusion of the awards, many of the seniors took time to reflect on their participation in the Hingham Music program over the past seven years. Students called their teachers “role models” and “motivators” and described that they wish they could continue playing in the Hingham Music program.

Overall, the concert was an great success. Junior cellist Francesca Corrado says, “I think [the concert] went well. The orchestra and the band did a great job with their performances”.

The music was spectacular and the awards ceremony was simply touching to say the least. The Harborlight congratulates

all of the musicians who performed in Tuesday’s concert and to wish the seniors luck next year.