On Fri., Dec. 8th at 7 p.m., the Winter Music Festival took place in Benjamin Hall. This is always an ex-
citing event as it signifies the end of the first semester.
Like last year, there were performers from all three levels of Benjamin. The Third Grade Strings “Mozart Ensemble,” the Middle School Performance and String Ensembles, and the Upper School Concert Band, Chamber Ensemble, and Chorus were all showcased.
The conductors of the show included Mrs. Kirkland Austin, Mrs. Belen Clifford, Mr. Ransom Miller, and Mr. Andrew Winters. Some of the songs that were played were “Hanukkah,” “A Festive Christmas Celebration,” “Into the Storm,” and “Jesu, Joy of the Man’s Desiring.”
Senior Shane Giaimo, who plays the trumpet, gave his thoughts on the group’s performance.
“I believe the show went extremely well. Everything went smoothly and I think we sounded really good, even though we don’t practice that often as a group,” said Giaimo.
Giaimo’s favorite song was the final piece because it was a combination of all the high school and middle school music students.
“It was really cool to be a part of that, just because of the age difference and how they’re going to be in our spots one day,” explained Giaimo.
Senior Tristan Mack, who also plays the trumpet, says that his favorite song was “Into the Storm.”
“It’s a very fun song for the trumpets because of all the different notes you have to hit and I think everyone enjoyed it,” explained Mack.
When asked how he thinks the group can improve as a whole, Mack cites tempo as their only issue.
“We had trouble at times staying together in tempo, so if we could work on that and try to improve our cohesiveness as a group, we’ll sound even better,” noted Mack.
Senior Matias Saiz, whose favorite song was “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” attended the Winter Music
Festival. He thinks it is important for students to support their classmates at events like this.
“It brings us closer as a community and from a musical standpoint, it also expands our horizons to new songs and new ways to express our emotion,” explained Saiz.
Overall, the 2023 Winter Music Festival was a success as usual. Great job to everyone involved, including all the performers, conductors, and attendees of the show. The next performance for the band will be the Spring Music Festival towards the
end of the school year.
