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Middle School band explores new sounds
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Seventh-grade students Katie DeGenaro (left) and Jacob Kennedy introduced the song "Northwest Suite," a melody which was meant to evoke the state of Washington and the city of Seattle.
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Neighbors | Submitted .At Poland's Pack 44 recruitment day in 2010, the Western Reserve Fire Department made the scouts, and the siblings of scouts, honorary fire fighters for a day.
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Even while holding an unwieldy tuba, Matt Zaksek was right on cue.
By SARAH FOOR
Poland Middle School’s band brought sounds evoking the state of Washington, a morning in Africa, and old-fashioned jazz to the auditorium of Poland High School for its spring concert on April 20.
Before the show began, middle school band director Jeff Hvizdos explained the process behind bringing the unique mix of music to the stage.
“We always strive to pick a program that advances musicianship that is still fun to play. Tonight, there is a nice mix of serious pieces mixed with ‘fun’ ones, but we’ve focused on advanced rhythm, meter, and key and time signatures,” he explained.
High school band director Nick Olesko helped the seventh-grade band warm up and welcomed families and friends to the spring show. Olesko also pulled a raffle ticket whose monies are being used for a new drum set for the middle school band.
Under Hvizdos’ direction, the seventh-grade band played arrangements of “Northwest Suite,” “Serengeti,” and the song “All that Jazz” from the musical Chicago, a recognizable standard that had feet tapping.
The eighth-grade band conquered “Men of Ohio,” “Zoot Suit Riot,” and “Granite Bay Overture,” a song that captured the spirit of American explorers.
After the concert, Hvizdos said there wasn’t a clear favorite for the bands to play.
“I think even the ‘serious’ songs, which the kids might prickle against in the beginning, become the favorites in the end. When a song is hard, and they really sink their teeth into it and clear that initial hurdle, it is immensely satisfying for the students to accomplish.”