- Arts + Music
- Upper School
Symphonia Brumalis a Perfect Tune-Up for Carnegie Hall
With his final on-campus performance as a member of the Honors Orchestra now behind him, senior viola player Nikhil Giddaluri noted, “It was a happy but somewhat sad occasion.”
It was certainly a happy performance, showcasing a gifted group that includes the 38 musicians from McCallie and GPS who will be playing the nation’s most famous music venue on Monday, March 23 at 2 p.m.
And if there was a highlight moment, it surely came with the soaring, structurally exquisite Themes from Scheherazade, which featured a violin solo by GPS’s Victoria Schmidlin.
“We’ll be playing that one at Carnegie Hall,” said orchestra director Nichole Pitts with a wide smile.
Not that it was the only highlight of the hour-long concert. Both senior bassoon player Joe Chambers, who has also doubled as the drum major in the pep band, and senior violin player Akhil Giddaluri, Nikhil’s twin brother, singled out Symphony No. 88 Finale by Joseph Haydn as their favorite piece.
“It’s a song I get a solo on,” said Chambers. “Great piece.”
Added Giddaluri, “I really like Symphony No. 88 by Haydn. I am very excited that we are playing it in New York. It's a pretty fast piece, and I've always liked playing faster pieces as a musician, and it's pretty challenging because of the fast tempo, but it's very rewarding when you play all the notes right, and our orchestra has been playing this piece for a while, so our sound is really good.”
The orchestra began practicing in earnest for Symphonia Brumalis in January with practices lasting around 90 minutes a day.
As Pitts noted when first announcing the Carnegie concert a couple of weeks ago: "Our orchestra students balance demanding academic schedules and busy school lives while committing themselves to the daily work of refining their craft. Behind every performance are early mornings, careful practice, listening, collaboration, late evening rehearsals, and the perseverance required to grow as musicians.”
The final piece of the night was the movie theme to the Pink Panther series, written by the matchless Henry Mancini.
“It’s a playful piece and the kids seemed to love playing it,” said Pitts, who admitted becoming a bit emotional over knowing the Giddaluris, Chambers, and seven other seniors were playing their last concert in the Chapel.
“They’ve grown with me at McCallie,” she said. “Their positive attitudes. Their work ethic. They get after it and they never complain.”
Now the fruits of those labors will carry them to Carnegie Hall and New York City. And while the concert is certainly the highlight of the trip, it’s not the only thing on the agenda.
“Honestly, just seeing the views and the iconic places,” said Akhil Giddaluri. “I'm super excited that we have time built into our schedule to walk around and just look at all the iconic places that you hear about on TV or social media.”
They’ve certainly earned it.
- orchestra