The Benet Academy Orchestra played its first concert of the year on Wednesday, October 8. Mrs. Semanik, who conducts the orchestras, talked about her hopes for the concert and said, “At the end of the day it’s about coming together and making music.” The orchestra program did just that in a concert in which 20 students played a combined total of four pieces.
The school is now in its second year of having two orchestras–chamber strings and symphony strings–and is looking for new members to fill out the orchestras. Mrs. Semanik said, “Even if you come from not having experience, you have a place.” Everyone is welcome. Symphony strings is an ensemble open to students of all experience levels wishing to play in an orchestral setting. There are seven people in this year’s string orchestra. Kamryn Klein led the first violin section with Annette Marcia and Sahana Raju; Gianna Cunningham led the second violin section with Elena Fanning and Avamarie Brunzelle; and Philip Arndt was the orchestra’s sole cellist. They beautifully played all three movements of William Hofeldt’s Deerpath Triptych, which depicts three striking natural scenes: Open Lands, Lake Brave and The Hunt. The different movements displayed a great variety of emotions from the fast paced adventurousness of The Hunt to the peacefulness of Lake Brave, a stirring rendition of a woodland lake that brilliantly conveyed the feeling of the calm waters. The students played splendidly and Philip Arndt did an incredible job playing alone in his first Benet Concert, holding his own against the six violists.
The chamber strings orchestra has fourteen students in it this year. Mrs. Semanik says she selected the pieces for chamber strings this year with the goal of playing unarranged original songs, and at this concert they played two beautiful but challenging 19th century pieces. They played movements one and two of Antonín Dvorák’s Serenade for Strings in E Major, unarranged. This all-string piece first premiered in 1876, and was one of Dvorák’s early successes that launched him to fame. Movement one was challenging but entertaining and featured interesting rhythms and important parts for all the sections of the orchestra, including a recurring, calming cello melody. Movement two was a beautiful and mysterious waltz which featured both bold, soaring, and joyful sections and quiet and secretive sections. The chamber strings orchestra also played Johannes Brahms’ Academic Festival Overture arranged by Robert D. McCashin for string orchestra, a fast paced and joyful piece composed by Brahms in the year 1880. The piece, described by Brahms as “a very boisterous potpourri of student songs,” was written by Brahms in thanks for receiving an honorary degree of philosophy from the University of Breslau and is chiefly composed of several German college songs from the 1850’s that were passed around the orchestra. The piece has the feel of an exciting college fight song.
Finally, the two orchestras combined to play Nimrod by Edward Elgar, a slow and mournful piece which is a favorite at British royal ceremonies. It provided an excellent challenge as the long slow bowings demanded careful attention to dynamics and balance.
The two orchestras played a lovely concert and truly made art for the community to enjoy.
