East Islip Overcomes Challenges To Present Outdoor Concert Series

Press release from East Islip School District:

June 4, 2021

By spring 2021, the East Islip School District’s music students and teachers had
completed half of a school year without an authentic performance experience and were
looking for hope. Guided by Robert Wottawa II, the district’s director of art, ENL, music and
world languages, the administrators and music teachers discussed the idea of a safe,
outdoor spring concert series, and made the necessary plans and adjustments in regard to
repertoire and instruction. To compensate for the loss of sound at these outdoor events,
SDE Productions assisted with the sound system to ensure attendees could hear every note.
The concert series began on May 11 at John F. Kennedy Elementary School, with
band and orchestra students performing in small groups on the blacktop while the
community listened on the field nearby.

On May 13, the musicians of Ruth C. Kinney Elementary School took the “stage” on
their own campus, divided into groups by instrumental section, allowing the attending
families to hear the individual nuances of each instrument.

At East Islip High School, challenges arose due to a busy schedule of athletics teams,
construction and outside practices, but a May 12 concert by the school’s band, orchestra
and chorus students was successfully presented at the old football field behind the
fieldhouse. This was followed by a final May 17 event at which the high school’s honors-
level ensembles had the chance to share their last performance with the community.
“Our families had tears in their eyes and expressed how happy they were to see
their children perform,” Wottawa said. “I could not be prouder of the dedication of our
teachers, custodians, buildings and grounds crew, security officers, and administrators –
and the patience of our parents and students – as we navigated uncharted waters with an
outdoor concert series. We can count our blessings that our music program overcame each
challenge with grace and perseverance.”

This press release was produced by the East Islip School District. The views expressed here are the author’s own.