On October 28, the Cannon Falls Middle School/High School band and choir held their first concert of the year in the auditorium. Band and choir concerts were free and open to the public.

It was a great time to enjoy fun, swanky music. The middle schoolers sang happily while the high schoolers sang their heart out. The middle schoolers played melodic and upbeat music while the high schoolers played light, happy, and rollercoaster tunes. The auditorium was filled with music all night long.

The Choir concert was performed first. They began at 6:30. The 7th and 8th graders sang, “All Night, All Day” arranged by Patty Simms which featured soloist Drake Gappa and instrumentalists Connor Hyllengren and Henry Nygaard. Next, they sang “Any Dream Will Do” by Andrew Lloyd Weber, followed by “The Rose” by Amanda McBroom, which was sung by the 7th, 8th, and 6th grades. The 7th and 8th graders left the stage and allowed the 6th graders to sing “I Love the Mountains” arranged by Paul Jennings and “A Zing A Zah,” a Brazilian folk song. Finally, The high school choir sang “The Star Spangled Banner” by John Stafford Smith and John Higgins and “Aya Ngena,” a Zulu Folk Song by Ruth M. Gray. The soloists for these songs were Micah Katterjohn and Teagan Strecker. They also sang the song “Elijah Rock” arranged by Roger Emerson, accompanied by a drummer, Tyler Rapp. This year it is Peter Duggan’s first year in directing the choir. 

After a brief intermission to rearrange the stage, the middle school band started playing at 7:30, and the high schoolers followed after that. The 7th-grade band played, “Cadets On Parade” by Joseph Compello and “The Might of Hercules” by Mark Williams. The 7th-grade and 8th-grade bands performed “Arye And Dance” by Bruce Pearson and “Monster Rock” by Tom Molter. They were conducted by Mike Legvold.

The flute choir also performed that night. The flute players Angel Zheng, Ava Brokate, and Grey Springer, conducted by Michelle Schroeder, played a lovely piece called “Londonderry Air” (Danny Boy) arranged by Bill Holcombe. 

The high school band finished out the night by playing  “The Great Escape” written by Elmer Berstein and arranged by Robert W. Smith and “John Williams Blockbusters” by John Williams, arranged by Paul Cook. “John Williams Blockbusters” contained music from the movies ET, Harry Potter, and Star Wars. It is clear that the High School Band Concert is based on movie music; “I wanted a movie music theme for this concert. I picked them because I like the music, the styles vary, and we get a nice contrast of full assembles versus soloist playing.” the band director, Mike Legvold, said. There were a few soloists in that song as well, including  Angel Zheng and Ava Brokate on the flute, Jessica Baszuro and Lydia Pederson on the clarinet, Addie Anderson on the saxophone, Lillian Wagenknecht on the french horn, and Aaron Garrett on the trumpet. Flute player Ava Brokate commented, “I really like playing the John Williams piece because it was fun.”

Both the band and choir played well. It was the first concert of the year and it was a great start to their playing experience. It is exciting to see what else is to come in future concerts.