The Lexington High School Wind Ensemble traveled to Chicago from March 13 to March 16 to perform at the Percy Grainger Wind Band Festival at Chicago Symphony Hall.
The Percy Grainger Wind Band Festival features high school and university bands from around the country. This year, groups including the Niceville High School Wind Symphony, the Coronado High School Wind Ensemble, the Broken Arrow High School Wind Ensemble, and the Texas Woman’s University Wind Symphony performed alongside the LHS Wind Ensemble.
The Wind Ensemble began preparations for the trip at the beginning of the school year. Students voted on music pieces and rehearsed them alongside other pieces for school concerts. In Chicago, they played three pieces: a march by John Philip Sousa called “Esprit de Corps,” “Chiaroscuro” by Robert Sheldon, and an upbeat piece called “Spoon River” by Robert Sheldon, based on a tune by Percy Grainger.
Ashvitha Eyalarasan, a senior at LHS and one of the percussion section leaders, described some of the challenges the ensemble faced when preparing these pieces for the trip.
“For the percussion section, one big challenge has been that we don’t have enough people,” Eyalarasan said. “We’ve had to …split up and dig into a large part and try to reassign everything accordingly.”
Eyalarasan also noted the challenges that came with performing in a different space from what the Ensemble was used to, regarding the sound of the band as well as the emotional environment. She elaborated on the work the Wind Ensemble did inside and outside of class.
“[It’s going to be] a bit more stressful in the sense that there’s more pressure on us… There’s a lot of people watching these other bands, and judges,” she said. “We hold ourselves to a high standard, so we really drill during I Block.”
LHS senior Matthew Chen, a saxophone player and co-president of the Wind Ensemble, reflected on holding multiple leadership titles in the group while preparing for the trip.
“As a section leader, I try to make sure that my section is together and we’re all able to play our part and blend well… As a co-president, [I play a] social role. I try to get the community together,” Chen said.
Chen also shared his effort to ensure that everyone in the group felt included and motivated, which helped the overall blend of sound.
“I think if everyone feels like they’re part of this bigger group and this bigger goal, people will be more motivated to work on their parts as needed,” Chen said.
Both Chen and Eyalarasan were looking forward to the unique bonding and traveling experiences offered by an ensemble trip.
“I think trips are a really great way for people to bond, and that at the end of all these trips, the ensemble really gets closer together,” Chen said.
