The MTHS Symphonic Band and Chamber Winds Ensemble gathered together once again for their spring concert held Thursday, Mar. 2 in the MTHS theater.
Audience seats quickly filled with friends and family of the band members, eager to see how they’ve progressed in their playing these past few months.
Symphonic Band started the night off, playing three new songs recently added to their repertoire.
“Legend of Knife River” presented a strong start to the night. The song opened with somber brass and flute entrance, providing a tribal feel. It then transitioned into a stately march that drew in the crowd.
The band followed up with another piece that MTHS band director Darin Faul described as “spontaneous” because it pushed Symphonic Band to “interpret music in a way [they] haven’t before.”
Chamber Winds proceeded to enter the stage once Symphonic Band had finished their set and also played three songs. Among these selections, “Abram’s Pursuit” was a piece they had played at their last winter concert, but showed their improvement and still managed to rouse the crowd.
“Abram’s Pursuit” follows the biblical story of Abram, setting an adventurous feel. It consisted of strong melodies from both brass and woodwinds and the intense tone carried through to the end of the song, ending the concert with a bang.
Faul gave an honorable mention to the bands, but also joked about them, for playing the same songs that were played at their last concert.
“Beyoncé doesn’t play different music every concert. We’re not different than Beyoncé,” Faul said.
Chamber Winds freshman Owen Moreland mentioned his satisfaction with his musical development within these past few months, making this one of his best performances.
“I’ve been really challenged by some of the literature handed out this year, but because of the recurrence of certain songs, I’ve really been able to see my development as a player both technically and tonally,” Moreland said.
Senior Nathan Reeber felt the concert went “much better than expected,” because the rehearsing process was subpar, he said. After Faul expressed his discontent with the band’s playing during rehearsals, the band powered through by practicing all of their concert songs persistently.
“People are practicing a lot more on their own than they ever have,” Reeber said. “In anything where the band succeeds, it’s always Mr. Faul who is the catalyst.”
The MTHS Music Boosters will be joining the MTHS Sports Boosters for a fundraiser, which will take place on Saturday, Mar. 11 at the Lynnwood Convention Center as an adults-only event.
The next band performance will be on Thursday, Mar. 9 in the MTHS Gym for the Southeast Quad Concert, where they will be joined by the feeder elementary and middle schools.
