UC High’s band, orchestra, choir, and wind ensembles performed in multiple concerts and productions during April and May in order to entertain, fundraise and compete.
On April 12, the UC High Band and Orchestra competed in the second annual Band and Orchestra Festival, which happened at UC High. Sophomore Yooka Kim said, “Schools from around southern California area came and played in front of judges and got a score. There were instrument booths, food booths, and pictures.” According to Music Director Brandon Corenman, 13 different schools performed at the festival.
“Our band did very well. They got us our first superior rating [from the judges],” said Kim. Sophomore Micayla George said, “There are several things that the judges look at, such as intonation, overall togetherness of the ensemble, dynamics (fluctuation of volume throughout the piece), musicianship, and style. It was pretty fun.” Sophomore Emma Voit said, “The judges get super nit-picky, but it’s all constructive criticism. It’s a fun experience, but we put in a lot of work for it.”
On April 26, the UC High Jazz Band performed in the Oceanside Jazz Festival at Mira Costa College, according to Corenman. “It went really it well. It’s really just about jazz education,” said Senior Jeremy Kern. “Half of the festival was a clinic, and what that means is we play our set list, and then the judicators (who are skilled jazz musicians) come on stage and talk us through some points that they heard in the music, and they teach us how we could’ve done better. They critique us and teach us knowledge on how to improve, so it’s pretty cool. Some of the other bands from colleges and high schools were really cool! There were five or six other bands. They had some people give lectures about jazz. It was a really cool festival.”
On May 1, the UC High Choir performed in the Westview Choir Festival at Westview High School.
Coming up on May 10, the UC High Music Department will be hosting a Mother’s Day Tea. “We want to invite people to our Mother’s Day Tea because that’s a really important date. You buy a ticket, you bring your mom, and then we have special, real intimate performances, and there’s tea and food. It was really great last year,” said Corenman.