A room full of spectators, the walls vibrating from the wonderful music, the band prepared to show off all of their hard work throughout the year as the concert began. On May 1, the Jesuit Ursuline Ranger Band, Men’s Chorus, the percussion ensemble, and the jazz band performed in the Terry Center for their Spring Concert. This was the last concert the seniors performed in with the band, and each of them were recognized in the rose ceremony towards the end of the concert.
Everyone in the band enjoyed their last concert of the year. Kevin Utz ‘21 stated that “the band performed very well,” and David Schmidt ‘21 agreed, saying that “the concert was excellent.”
Ricky Ponte ‘20 described the concert as “pristine.”
Trevlan MacGregor ‘20 stated that “it was great to see the long process culminate into such a great and memorable evening.”
The first song the band played, “Radetzky March” written by Johann Strauss and arranged by Andrew Balent, was conducted by Joseph Harwerth ‘13, one of our ASC members. Next, the band performed a song written about the tornado that destroyed much of Joplin, MO in 2011, “We Are Hope” by Donald Rowland. The band then played “Alan Silvestri: A Night at the Movies,” a compilation of famous movie scores written by Alan Silvestri.
After the band performed these three pieces, the percussion ensemble performed a song titled “Whispers in the Forest,” a moving piece written by John Sample ‘20, a sophomore in the band.
The Men’s Chorus then performed three songs: “Pirate Song,” written by Tim Y. Jones, “Hallelujah, My Father,” written by Timothy Cullen, and, with accompaniment by three members of the Jazz Combo, the theme from Spider-Man, written by Bob Harris and Paul Francis Webster, arranged by Kirby Shaw.
After the Men’s Chorus’ performance, the band played “Melodious Thunk,” a mysterious piece written by David Biedenbender.
The jazz band then performed “Blues News,” a song written by Earl “Buddy” Mattei that featured every member of the jazz band in a short solo, and “The Girl from Ipanema,” a piece written by Antonio Carlos Jobim and arranged by John Berry.
Then the Jazz Combo, comprised of Evan Hargrave ‘18 on piano, Sam Eppich ‘18 on drums, Jaibin Mathew ‘19 on the vibraphone, and Adam McCutcheon ‘21 on bass, performed an interesting song titled “Unsquare Dance,” written by Dave Brubeck.
The jazz band then finished their segment of the concert with “Route 66,” written by Bobby Troup and arranged by Michael Sweeney.
The band performed “English Folk Suite” as the finale of the concert. The piece, written by Ralph Vaughan Williams, was composed of three parts: a march, titled “Seventeen Come Sunday,” the intermezzo, “My Bonny Boy,” and another march, “Folk Songs from Somerset.”
This final concert was a great way to end the year, and everyone enjoyed the performance. The band is now practicing stand tunes for next year’s football season, so be prepared for a great performance at every game! Stay tuned to The Roundup for more information about band!
