A Veritable Feast of Instrumental Music

There is something warm and familiar about the gathering for a Wellington College Concert. Every term is always punctuated by beautiful music from a range of singers and the choir, and of course the musicians. In this first gathering of the Wellington Orchestra, we were treated to a breadth of talents from a range of musicians. From the opening String Ensemble, playing two pieces by Schubert, we were then thrown into a stream of musical excellence; Crystal (Y8) playing Beethoven, Sunny (Y5)  playing Tchaikovsky; Ally (Y11) playing Ramotte. Crispin (Y6) caused a buzz, so to speak, with the school’s first ever trumpet solo, his Mozart was confident, brassy and full of energy; contrasting delightfully with the following Movement from Kuhlau played on the piano by Vivian (Y4) and the medieval melodic trio of Bella, Chae Rin and Judy from Year 9; it was a particular delight to hear their original medieval composition by Judy. Another punch from left field came from Mabel (Y7). Her jaunty jazz offerings from Vis would swing us round, showing us how we not only have talent at the school but a range of tastes and techniques; a fact then borne out by our switch to the traditional with Shirley  (Y10) playing the General’s Mandate  on the Guzheng. Alejandro from year 11 then introduced the audience to one of his own compositions on guitar, following in the steps of percussion guitar greats such as Sam Westphalen- layering sounds and techniques into a melodic mantra. Jang Hyeok from year12 brought us back to the traditional with his clarinet and the notes of Piazolla. A Mimi (Y5) special concluded the concert with a piece from Chopin, filled with her well known confidence and flourish. In all the evening would have been a delight had it stopped there; but more was to come. The Wellington Wind Ensemble took to the stage for a slice of Puccini, the first of two Finale treats and then, with all the evenings musicians back on stage, we had our first view of the full Wellington Orchestra as they played us out with two energetic numbers-the anthemic fanfare of Badelt’s Pirates of the Caribbean and the rebellious ebullience of Coates theme from The Dam Busters. The night was a delightful cocktail of styles and sounds and from the reactions of the audience afterwards, it is self-evident that another such evening will be well received…soon. Our thanks go to all the staff and students that helped to make the evening such as success.