Schools
Columbia High Musical Soloists Shine in Recital
CHS senior performers gave farewell performances at Senior Recital Night on June 7.
The South Orange Maplewood School District has a long tradition of producing high quality musicians and vocalists. This fact was self-evident on Monday, June 7, when Columbia High School seniors presented their Senior Recital performance. Prospect Presbyterian Church in Maplewood was the venue and it was a majestic one indeed.
This year's event was coordinated by Columbia High School seniors Paul Conrad and Jeremy Rubenstein and was a considerable undertaking. According to Rubenstein, "The senior recital was definitely challenging and time consuming to organize."
Producing this event required a multitude of tasks including "finding a good date, reserving the space, spreading the word about the event among the music department, trying to get musicians interested and excited about performing; regularly updating the participants on the status of the event, and advertising the event to the CHS students, faculty and local community. This was especially difficult to do," stated Rubenstein, "during a time when students are extremely busy."
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Senior Paul Conrad who accompanied quite a few of the performers on piano, stated that the idea for this year's Senior Recital came to him at the end of the 2009 school year, a year in which there was no Senior Recital presented. According to Conrad, "As far as I know, a concert to feature seniors was begun many years ago by the (former) choir director, Jack Imhoff, and was called 'Senior Concerto Night.' Its purpose was to give the seniors a venue to play solos, and some were even accompanied by the chamber orchestra. Since the first concert, it was a yearly tradition, and started to die away during our freshman year ('06-'07). Up until that point it was run by the music teachers, primarily the orchestra and choir teachers, but since then, it has been the kids' responsibility."
Conrad felt that "having the concert this year was not only necessary based on tradition (that skipped year), but necessary because of our class's talent. We have a very well-rounded class of musicians," commented Conrad. "There are very talented instrumentalists in the bands and orchestras, and very talented vocalists in the choirs, and I thought it a waste to not have a concert to feature them as soloists. I also thought this concert would be a great way to thank the CHS music department for all it has done for us over the four years." All of this work seemed to pay off as there was a healthy turnout of CHS students, parents and community members.
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The program opened with Miles Cody on piano as he presented Sonata in C major, OP. 14, No. 2 by Ludwig Van Beethoven. Cody has been playing piano for seven years, but has only had formal training for the past three years. Anyone in attendance would find this fact hard to believe as Cody played with the confidence of a seasoned musician. Cody said that he plans to continue his musical studies at Montclair State University majoring in Music Education/Performance. According to Cody, "for the future I just want to continue to do what I love and be the best musician, performer and teacher I can be."
Cellist Matt Nelson followed with Prelude from Suite 2 by J.S. Bach. Nelson played with an authoritative and self-assured demeanor. Nelson will be attending McGill University in Toronto, Canada.
Kayla Allen followed on flute. Allen, who performed Sonata 5 in F Major by Handel, has been taking flute lessons for 10 years, a level of commitment that was reflected in her performance. Allen who also played in the pit in this year's CHS musical—"Big, The Musical"—will be attending Rowan University this fall and is planning to major in Chemical Engineering. However, she still plans to pursue her musical passion "by playing in Rowan's orchestra as well as looking for outside orchestra opportunities."
A trio of clarinets took center stage when Melanie Smith, Julia Ben-Asher and Sophia Schneiderman (all three of whom were pit members in this year's musical) performed Menutto and Trio Allegro from String Quartet, k. 464 by Franz Schubert/Mozart. The three ladies worked well together, which was not surprising since they have been playing in groups since their elementary school days at Tuscan School. Smith will attend Allegheny College and Ben-Asher will be attending Lafayette College. Schneiderman, who has taken private piano lessons for six years and private clarinet lessons for four years, plans to join a musical ensemble at Binghamton University in New York.
Schneiderman credits CHS Band Director Peter Bauer with instilling a passion for music. "I know for a fact that I would not have been as eager and excited to play in band if Mr. Bauer had not been our band director. In addition to his excellent conducting and teaching methods, the repertoire Mr. Bauer had chosen for us over the past four years highlighted our band's skills, was musically beautiful, and was also fun to play. If it were not for Mr. Bauer, I would not have as deep an appreciation of music as I do now."
Violinist Jeremy Rubenstein brought the first set to a finish and the audience to their feet with a spellbinding and breathtaking presentation of Sonata No 1 in G Major, Op 78 by Johannes Brahms. This 11-minute tour de force was equal parts dynamic and poignant. Rubenstein will be attending Oberlin College this September.
After a short intermission Quinn Lashinsky took center stage as the sole vocalist on the program. Lashinsky paid homage to the classical nature of the evening's program by performing "I Attempt from Love's Sickness" by Henry Purcell. Lashinsky, who will be part of the Temple University Musical Theater program come this fall, then reached into his repertoire of Broadway musical songs and performed "Breeze Off The River" from the Full Monty. (Full disclosure: Lashinsky is the son of this article's author.)
Matt da Silva (a pit member in this year's musical) and his bassoon were next on the bill, and da Silva performed Sonata in F minor by George Telemann. Da Silva's musical training, like many of the night's participants, has been extensive in that he has studied bassoon for six years, clarinet for four years and even saxophone for one year. Matt stated that he plans to continue with his 'bassoon lessons, participate in the college orchestra at Haverford College and seek out opportunities as a reed player in musicals and ensembles."
One of the highlights of the evening was a piano duet featuring Melanie Smith and Paul Conrad on Military Polonaise in A Major by Fredric Chopin. Smith and Conrad shared the bench and the piano and were able to transmit an infectious aura of joy throughout the venue as they worked their way through their song.
Bass player Lizzie Burns, who will be attending the prestigious New England Conservatory of Music this fall, was the next-to-last act and performed Cello Suite No. 3 by J.S. Bach. Burns's talent was evident throughout her performance as she played her instrument with both a sense of authority as well as a modesty that belies her talent.
The final act of the night was the trio of Matt Fearon on cello, Jeremy Rubenstein on violin and the ubiquitous Paul Conrad on piano. They closed out the program with a tightly woven performance of Trio in D minor, Op. 49 by Felix Mendelssohn.
At the conclusion of the concert, a reception was held for the performers and guests. Rubenstein felt that the event provided students with an opportunity they don't always have. "Students often work really hard studying this type of music at home and with their private teachers, and rarely get a chance to perform it for their friends, classmates and school community. The senior recital is one of those occasional opportunities."
Conrad, who will be attending the Rutgers Mason Gross School for the Arts, was very pleased with the results: "I was more than content with how the concert turned out. By the last chord of our Mendelssohn trio, I was ecstatic. We had more music and more participants than any Senior Recital I ever attended at CHS. It took a lot of work, and a lot of worrying to organize this event, but in the end it was worth it."
