Orchestras across the southeastern quadrant of the Edmonds School District came together yet again for their 29th annual SE Orchestra Quad Concert. On Wednesday, March 8, the orchestras all gathered in the MTHS gym to showcase the progression through in music from 6th grade to the high school level. The M.C. for the night was the one and only Brier Terrace Middle School Vice Principal and Athletic Director Allyn Turner, who opened the night by playing his harmonica.
The MTHS Chamber orchestra opened the night off with “Playful Pizzicato” by Benjamin Britten followed by a few performances by the sixth grade combined orchestras. The sixth grade combined orchestras included elementary schools such as Brier, Cedar Way, Hazelwood, Mountlake Terrace and Terrace Park.
After the sixth grade orchestras performed, the middle school orchestras played their set of music. The seventh grade orchestra played “Dance of the Tumblers by Rimsky-Korsakov,” arranged by D.B. Monday. They also performed “The James Bond Theme,” arranged by V. Lopez, which kept the audience in suspense throughout the entire piece and ended with a loud shriek that surprised the audience.
Afterwards, it was time for the eighth grade orchestra to shine. The eighth grade orchestra performed “Fit as a Fiddle” by Richard Meyer and “Procession of the Nobles,” written by Rimsky-Korsakov and arranged by D.B. Monday.
The MTHS orchestras then took the stage. The Concert Orchestra played two pieces, which consisted of “Irish Tune from County Derry” written by Percy Grainger and arranged by D. Wagner, and “Amadeus!” written by Wolfgang A. Mozart and arranged by J. Hoffmann which was very upbeat and fast filled with surprises for the audience.
Following the MTHS Concert Orchestra came the MTHS Chamber Orchestra’s performance. They performed one piece for the audience which was “Ghosts of Brandenburg” by Richard Meyer.
For the finale, all of the southeastern orchestras came together to play “Fiddles On Fire” by Mark Williams to close off the night with a bang. M.C. Allyn Turner ended the night by thanking all the parents and teachers for always supporting the children.
“Everybody is a learner, just some choose not to be one,” Turner said about how music opens up learning.
