By Ailin Toro and Megan Downer
On Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2015 Malden High School hosted the annual Winter Concert. It was a night to celebrate the talents of musically gifted students. The acts featured the Concert Choir, Mixed Chorus, madrigal singers, and the Malden High School Concert Band.
The concert opened with Principal Dana Brown introducing the band where they started the show off with the song “All I Want For Christmas Is You” with words and music by Mariah Carey and Walter Afanaseiff and arranged by Larry Kerchner. They went on to perform holiday classics such as “Baby It’s Cold Outside” Frank Loesser and arranged by John Moss. “A Canadian Brass Christmas Suite” by Calvin Custer was the band’s last song. The band then presented their band coordinator, Erin Mazza, with a gift and flowers.
Mazza then introduced a new section in the concert called the Christmas Carol Sing Along. This idea was brought up by one of Mazza’s students that would include the audience in the concert. In this section the chorus walked down the aisles and led the audience in a holiday sing-along. The audience sang “Joy to the World” Hoyt Axton, “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” by George Whitfield, and “The First Noel” who was composed by an anonymous writer, lyricist being William B. Sandys, and Davies Gilbert , arrangement was done by G.E. Holmes.The lyrics had been written in the program given to people at the door.
After intermission the Concert Choir and Madrigals walked down the aisles with candles and began to sing “Procession” by Benjamin Britten and then transitioned into “Silent Night” by Franz Xaver Gruber.
The Mixed Chorus then took the stage and performed an array of songs. They began with “Alleluia Noel” by Roger Emerson, and after many lively performances, they finished with “Bidi Bom” by David Eddleman.
The Madrigal Singers took the stage next, starting off with the song “Sleigh Riders” by Leroy Anderson, arrangement by Beck, and after a few songs moved on to the song “Hanukkah Wish” by Audrey Snyder. Their closing song was “Carol of the Bells” composed by Mykola Leontovych with lyrics by Peter J. Wilhousky. .
The concert choir then entered the room and began with the classic “What a Wonderful World” written by Bob Thiele and George David Weiss, and recorded by Louis Armstrong. They later sang the challenging French song “Le Train D’Hiver” by Marie-Claire Saindon, which showcased their vocal skills. Before their last song, some students took the stage to gift Todd Cole, the chorus conductor, with a varsity jacket as well as flowers for Cindy Horsman McKeen, a pianist. Cole then went on to thank certain people including Mayor Gary Christenson and Principal Brown before the choir closed off with a fast paced song called “The Sleigh” by Kountz and arrangement by Baldwin.
Mhs alumni were invited up to the stage to sing with the students. The Concert Choir, Madrigals, and alumni finished the night off in the perfect way.
Cole gave closing remarks and reminded the audience of the Spring Concert where the students at Malden High will be able show off their musical talent again.
The Winter Concert is a show that Malden is able to pride themselves in because everyone that is a part of this show works tirelessly to deliver a fantastic performance. Freshman clarinet player, Sebastian Romani stated that in preparation of this concert, “most nights [for him were spent] practicing.” Cole admitted that though the show takes endless time and effort, he enjoys “watching all the hard work pay off for both [himself] and the students.” The night was a success and delight for students, faculty and community members alike.
