By Dylan Fair
Staff Writer
The Mira Costa vocal ensemble, wind ensemble and symphony orchestra performed their first concert of the year, the annual Prism Concert, on Oct. 21 in the school auditorium.
The concert began with drama instructor Carol Mathews giving opening introductions and congratulations. This was followed by a rendition of the “Star Spangled Banner” led by vocal ensemble. The wind ensemble then took stage for the first performance of the night.
“It was great to have played a true dress rehearsal the day of the Prism Concert. Being able to play for the concert choir and orchestra really allowed us to get rid of some last-minute nerves and put on a great performance,” band director Joel Carlson said.
The wind ensemble performed three pieces. After first clarinet senior Christopher Bickel tuned the ensemble, the band went on to perform its first song, a piece from “Jeremiah, Symphony Number 1,” which was then followed by the elegant “Irish Tune from the County Derry” and the high-spirited “Noisy Wheels of Joy.”
“Once I heard the band play the second piece and it sounded really good, I looked to fit pieces around the track,” Carlson said. “It was a nice contradiction to end our night with a lighthearted tune, and we also wanted to serve as almost an introduction to the vocal ensembles performance.”
After the band finished, the vocal ensemble performance began. Following introductions from choir director Michael Hayden, they performed a number of Italian songs, including “La Serenata” and “Egos Flos Campi.”
Adding creativity to the first piece, juniors Delphi Borich, Aurora Foster and senior D.J. Stanfill sang behind the audience, in a technique called poly phonics. Later on, the choir was divided into three sections on the left, right and center of the stage.
“It was truly a lovely evening; there was great choice and repertoire among all three groups. Everyone did a fantastic job and the audience enjoyed a high quality of music,” Hayden said.
The orchestra gave the final performance of the evening. After having difficulty finding instrument mats, the orchestra’s show was able to begin.
They opened with the “Holberg Suite Prelude,” memorized by the orchestra. Conductor Peter Park made his performers memorize the piece so he could show the capability of his performers. The group then performed the complete “Holberg Suite,” followed by the second movement of Dmitri Shostakovich’s “Op. 110.”
“By having it memorized, we could focus more on musicality and listening to each other,” junior Andre Vasiliev said.
However, there were several technical difficulties throughout the night. At times only certain parts of the stage were illuminated and the lighting would frequently switch sides.
Hayden took extra time between songs to try to get the piano player better lighting. Organizers said this may have been because there currently is no full-time technical operator.
“Things happen; what is important is for the music to come through loud and clear, and that is exactly what happened. Technical difficulties fade away as the concert goes on,” Carlson said. “Not many high school groups can perform like that at this time of year; talent along with drive is how we have progressed so far already.”
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