Last month, the school’s musicians filled the auditorium with music and cheer. This year’s winter concert was performed well by the orchestra and choir, but an unexpected group managed to steal the show—the honors band. The honors band, under the leadership of its new teacher, Mr. Jacobetz, found itself with many positive reviews on its performance. Coming off a successful marching band season into a wonderful concert, the band under Mr. Jacobetz may be the new school group to look out for.

The honors band played an impressive repertoire of songs that engaged the audience. Their first song was “The Marriage of Figaro,” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, followed by “Loch Lomond,” by Frank Ticheli, and finishing with “Arabian Dances,” by Brian Balmages. This selection of music appealed to the audience’s taste and style. A parent, Mamiko Liao, said that, “The band was amazing. The way they played really was moving. This year’s concert was so different because the energy just felt better.” Mrs. Liao wasn’t the only one who thought this way, many other parents and other faculty members commended Mr. Jacobetz and the honors band on its skill and amazing performance.

The band members believed that they themselves also played well. Tal Strauss Kirschner (’20) said of the band: “We played an amazing performance, and everyone was really together, but there were some things that we could have done better.”

A big reason behind the honors band’s success in the winter concert is Mr. Jacobetz. Under his mentor-ship, the honors band stepped up  its performance, showing the fruit of those efforts. Mr. Jacobetz said that “the group was very on pitch, and following me better than we even normally do in rehearsal. Yeah, it was a special night for me. It was my first concert, and I thought everybody rose to the occasion. They just showed their very best musicality and everyone’s talent really shined at the right time.”

Many factors played into the band’s outstanding performance, one of them being the selection of music. The band’s concert repertoire showcased the different strengths of the members. When asked if there were any tricks to their performance, Mr. Jacobetz replied that, “You have to pick good music. That’s so important not just for the audience, but for the band members. I really make an effort to choose selections that are very different from each other, and that showcase the different sections of the band, and different elements of the musicality of the group.” But any music group can select great music. What really set the honors band from the other groups was the way Mr. Jacobetz elicited the different strengths of the overall band.

Even with a great performance, there were still many aspects that could have been improved upon. When asked about what changes could be applied to make their performance even better, Mr Jacobetz replied, “We could have used more time to prepare as a group. Being that the marching band season ended after Thanksgiving, we really didn’t have all that much time to prepare, and with the holiday break in the middle, it sort of disrupted our moment. Also the circumstances of me coming in, and being new, and the marching band getting a late start, sort of pushed concert band season back a little further than I would have liked it.” Even with the difficulties of being a new teacher, such as working with an unknown group of kids and not knowing what their talents are, Mr. Jacobetz still managed to push the band to an amazing place, and give everybody an enjoyable winter concert performance. If these changes are applied in the spring concert, then the band will continue to grow and sound better.