Orchestra concludes year with spring concert

The Cedar Shoals Orchestra concluded the 2018-2019 school year with their annual spring concert on Tuesday, April 23.  Intermediate, Advanced, and Chamber orchestras all performed a wide variety of music.

“I really did enjoy our spring concert. I don’t think we had enough time to prepare, through. We were very focused on doing well at Large Group Performance Evaluation. We didn’t have as much time to prepare as I would have wanted. We did end up performing very well though,” said Lindsey Pack, senior and member of the chamber orchestra.

For intermediate student Jawon Stokes, 9th grade, the spring concert was the final concert of his first year of orchestra.

“I think my class did very well. I was very nervous though, I really wanted to make my last concert of this year to be great,” said Stokes.

Mrs. Rebecca Floyd, fine arts department, was very proud of how the concert went as well.

“Everyone knew their music very well. I know the chamber orchestra had a bit of a time crunch. After LGPE, they have about five to six weeks to prepare a polished concert. We also have spring break during that time, so I’m glad they were able to perform well,” said Floyd.

Parent Marilena Fillingim has attended all the orchestra concerts that her two children have played in. She always enjoys watching orchestra play.

“I saw a lot of growth and improvement from the fall concert. My two older kids have been playing violin since middle school, and it’s nice to see how they’ve grown,” said Fillingim.

After four years of orchestra, seniors felt bittersweet about playing their very last concert.

“I didn’t think it was our best concert due to the amount of time we had to prepare. I watched videos of us playing and we sounded great. I’m really proud of my last concert,” said Tamera Johnson, chamber orchestra.

Many seniors in orchestra took the time to reflect on the past four years.

“I feel very relaxed when I walk into orchestra. It takes the load off from other classes,” said Damien Ward, chamber orchestra.

“When I first started orchestra, I didn’t know how to read music. After meeting Mrs. Floyd, I learned how to read and play music properly. I have learned music that I never thought I could be able to play,” said Johnson.