The Alliance High School band classes performed their songs for their Christmas concert on Tuesday, December 13. A small caroling group, the jazz band, and concert band played in the concert.

The jazz band started the show off with Big Noise From the North Pole, a twist on Jingle Bells.

“Jazz gave their best performance of 2016-they get tighter as an ensemble and more technically capable with each concert.  The students’ favorite is Big Noise from the North Pole.  The Krupa beat is infectious, and the blazing fast tempo gives it so much energy it’s impossible not to be drawn into the moment while playing it,” Mr. Heide, director, stated.

The next three songs that were performed by the jazz band were Christmas Island, Auld Lang Syme, and Big Band Christmas.

The caroling group played in-between the jazz and concert band. The students involved in playing were Hannah Middleton, Emily Green, Cade Stephenson, and Sydnie Waldron. They played Carol of the Bells, Deck the Halls, Conventry Carol, and Joy to the World. 

The concert band was the last to perform starting off their section of the show with Shalom!, a difficult piece of literature for each section of the band. The piece had three movements that featured a few sections in each.

“Shalom! was probably the best to direct.  It has multiple tempo changes and a wide variety of styles, so it’s possible for me to interpret it differently each time we play based on current context.  Directors always enjoy that challenge, and although it presents students with a variable-result scenario each day they generally learn to like it as well,” Heide stated.

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas was next up, and it was a favorite of the band. The melody traveled throughout each section, and kept everyone very interested. Mr. Heide gave the students a history lesson about how “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” was important during the Christmas season during World War II. He stressed how important it was for us to perform it to the best of their abilities.

Sun Cycles arranged by Brian Balmages was a great hit for both the audience and the concert band students. The brass features were incredible, featuring the brass section that has been present for the past three years. Mr. Heide had the students interpret the story of the musical literature, and the stories varied from student to student. Each phrase was a different part of the story. Many students agreed that there was a man on a journey into the Golden City.

““Bigger, better, badder (cooler)” is the general goal for us each time we play, and this spring is no exception.  We’ll be adding an additional ensemble for the spring, a Wind Ensemble, which will perform more aggressive and longer literature.  Shalom! Was a suite of grade 3 difficulty lasting approximately 10 minutes.  We’ll be working on English Folk Song Suite by Ralph Vaughan Williams next semester, which is a grade 4 piece lasting 13-15 minutes.  As the kids grow in capability, so does the length and difficulty level of the pieces.  We’ll also be performing a February band concert rather than March, to allow us to add new literature prior to District Music Contest and the end of the school year Awards Concert.  It’s an exciting time to be in band here at AHS, and we’re looking forward to the challenges ahead!”

The AHS band groups are wishing everyone a Merry Christmas season, and hopes everyone has a great New Year!