The BHS orchestra has had an exciting season full of concerts, fundraisers and competitions.

“[We] believe in the power of having a strong community in an orchestra – a place where students can feel supported, valued and excited about playing music together,” said Allison Siekmann, Orchestra Director for both BHS and BMS.

The orchestra kicked off the 2023-2024 school year with the Spooktacular concert on Oct. 16, a new addition to their schedule. 

Siekmann told the Beachcomber what would be new this year. 

“This year we are adding in new concerts and musical styles,” she said. “We are progressing from mostly traditional classical music to incorporating pop music as well in our repertoire.”

This approach was clear in the Spooktacular, where the orchestra played Halloween-themed music such as Thriller, Ghostbusters, Mulholland Elegy, Fright Night, Munsters and Gargoyles. 

The Spooktacular was also set apart from previous concerts by its incorporation of special effects, videography, spoken word and dance. 

During the performance of Thriller, Sophomore Kendall Finley did the narration, and sophomores Natalia Zeiler, Angelica Tall, Madison Henderson and Micai Henderson choreographed and performed the Thriller dance alongside the music.

“We also had a video leading into it and special effects at the beginning from Michael Jackson’s recording of Thriller with the footsteps,” Siekmann said.

Additional creative elements were incorporated such as lighting by junior Noah Isaacson.

The annual fall concert in November included pieces such as The Old Boatman, Allegro Presto, Moldau and Waltz no.2 by Shostakovich this year. 

As an opening act, the Middle School Orchestra Chamber Ensemble performed. 

Another landmark show this year was the joint band and orchestra concert on Feb. 28. 

This concert was the first of its kind in which the band and orchestra programs played together with pieces such as Go West! as well as other pieces played by band and orchestra separately.

 Band director David Luddington worked with Siekmann to lead a well-rounded and exciting concert. 

In previous years, the band and orchestra have performed separate in-school concerts to provide enrichment to the K-2 music education curriculum for Bryden students. 

“This year, we decided to collaborate on this educational concert and add an evening performance,” Siekmann said.

Every three years the orchestra takes an international trip to Europe, and the BHS orchestra is looking forward to their trip to Spain in 2025. 

In addition to field trips and concerts, the orchestra competed in the regional Solo & Ensemble Contest at Madison High School and performed for the Beachwood Elder Class in February. 

Friends of the Beachwood Orchestra (FOBO) assists in supporting the Beachwood Orchestra Program in as many ways as possible. FOBO holds raffle fundraisers before each concert for the different orchestra programs. This money goes toward hiring special clinicians, buying instruments and equipment as well as the trip to Spain next year.

FOBO President Sophia Fields played the violin as a kid, and music has played an important role in her life since then. She told the Beachcomber why she feels the arts are important.

“It gives kids a sense of confidence and you learn about the world and how to work with other people,” she said. “It’s so vital for everyone these days, especially with the world we live in to come together, learn to play a piece of music, communicate that to the audience and be part of something.” 

“We would love to have anyone who is interested in helping us,” she added.

Siekmann’s goals for the orchestra program can be divided into two categories: musical and community goals. 

“We are striving to learn a greater variety of music during the school year from different genres and historical periods,” she said. 

Siekmann is working towards these goals by incorporating new concerts and developing student skills such as sight-reading, expressiveness and rhythm-reading.

The orchestra will present a spring concert on April 30 and a benefit concert on May 23 with special professional musician guests pianist Donna Lee and clarinetist Daniel Gilbert. 

Senior Eli Posa, who plays double bass, spoke about his orchestra experience.

“I joined my sophomore year because I had a pretty big musical background and I thought it would be cool to learn a new instrument,” he said, “Orchestra teaches you the discipline of learning challenging music and performing it.”

Posa has worked hard and is now double bass first chair. He plans to minor in music in the fall. 

For Posa, orchestra is a big part of his life because it allows him to meet people with similar interests.

“The ability to make music together is really special,” Posa said. 

Siekmann emphasized the benefits of a creative class such as orchestra and music programming in general. 

“Fine arts, especially in music, is an amazing way to build community that you might not have in an academic setting,” she said. “It gives you a break from your academic workload, allows you to relax mentally and emotionally and connect with your peers.” 

Siekmann credits the orchestra’s success to her colleague Noel DeViney and the dedicated hard work of the students.