By Jennifer Ersalesi
This year the Rutherford High School and Union Middle School Bands and Choirs will have combined concerts in order to draw in larger audiences that will have the opportunity to hear students from seventh through twelfth grade. Each school ensemble will perform independently and then will come together for a full seventh through twelfth-grade performance.
Supervisor of English and Language Arts and Fine and Performing Arts, Brian Ersalesi, told TIR, "We are excited for our middle school students and parents to see the growth their students can make if they remain in the choir or band throughout the high school."
"Thank you so much for doing this! I'm very excited about this year's concert. I feel that it's a great way to build community in our music programs. The middle school students get a chance to work with the high school students and the parents get to see where the program is going. It provides a smooth transition from the middle school to the high school and will inspire the students to continue with the program, " explained Trish Blanchard, RHS Choir Director.
Ms. Tricia Lalla told TIR, "I am very excited that the Union Middle School Concert Choir will perform in the same concert as the Rutherford High School Concert Choir this year! Combining both choral programs into one concert will provide middle school students with the opportunity to hear what a more mature choir sounds like - with voices that are more developed by age and experience and repertoire that demands a higher skill set in both vocal technique and artistry. By observing the high school choir’s performance, I hope that my students realize that the human body goes through many changes as it transitions from middle school to high school, so it is important to enjoy the vocal discovery and experimentation aspects of the rehearsal process, accept that the human voice is trainable and can improve over time, and acknowledge that by being in the concert choir program they are on the path to achieving the technical and artistic vocal goals of their high school counterpart in the near future. In addition to the above, middle school students will have the opportunity to work with Mrs. Blanchard and get to know high school students before starting high school, thus transitioning into high school with more ease."
The UMS and RHS Winter Choir Concert will take place on Thursday, December 8th at UNION MIDDLE SCHOOL.
UMS Band Director, John Brigante explained, "I think it will be a great experience for the UMS and RHS students to perform together. Strength in numbers."
"This is a great opportunity for our students to be a part of something very special. I enjoy the idea of our students and their families being able to see the progression of musicianship and a finale of UMS and RHS performing together as one Band," Joseph Cavezza, RHS Band Director, told TIR.
The UMS and RHS Winter Band Concert will take place on Wednesday, December 14th at RUTHERFORD HIGH SCHOOL.
"We think this will bring a larger audience together which will allow a broader number of people to see the wonderful things that are happening in our music program in Rutherford," explained Brian Ersalesi.
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