A Peek into the QHSS Winter Concert

The recent QHSS Winter Concert was one to remember, featuring the Music Makers Club, Yellow Fever, the full QHSS Orchestra, and music teacher Ms.Kunnatee. Before looking into how the concert was prepared, let’s first recap the performance for those who didn’t get the chance to attend.

The  Concert itself

As the concert began, the audience was welcomed with a diverse selection of musical performances.. Music Makers opened the concert with two songs performed  by their vocalists: Debjanee, Rachel, Veda, Ariana, Eunji, Iris, Zasrah, Shaya, Dimas, Miguel, Enson, and William. They performed “Copacabana” by Barry Manilow and “Lovely” by Billie Eilish with Khalid. Following this, Yellow Fever, featuring members Enson, Fatima, and Kexin, performed “Flutter” by Julie. 

 The QHSS orchestra then performed several holiday pieces, including “Deck the Hall” by Welsh Carol, “Carol of the Bells” by Peter Wilhousky, and “Silent Night in Gotham” by Franz Gruber. Next, the QHSS orchestra played “From the Start” by Laufey and Spencer Stewart in collaboration with the vocalists of Music Makers. The orchestra continued with “A Winter’s Journey” by Randall Standridge and  “Swan Lake Act II, No.10 – Scène” by Pyotr Tchaikovsky before closing the night with Music Maker’ vocalists singing “Our Winter Wonderland” by Audrey Snyder, a melody which includes “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!,” and “Winter Wonderland.” 

The concert was met by loud applause and enthusiastic cheers, but how did such an impressive performance come together? How was this spectacle achieved? Below are interviews that show the concert preparations.

What was a key part of the preparation for the concert?

Many of the performers, including  Ms.Kunnatee, shared that  it was “great being able to prepare in the Jamaica Performing Arts Center (JPAC) with the whole orchestra” because they could finally see how everything came together and it fueled their excitement for the concert. 

How long did you prepare and practice for the concert?

One vocalist shared ,“I wasn’t able to practice much because I was scared that I won’t get the tones correct when practicing by myself.” She elaborated on how practicing as a collective whole was, for her, objectively better as everyone could listen to the tones of each person and thus be able to harmonize better. As for orchestra performers, they noted how in school they prepared for weeks.

How did you feel while waiting for your turn to perform?

Many of the performers expressed that, when waiting, the JPAC venue felt very hot and some performers were also sweating from nervousness.

Some performers were nervous due to how it being their first time in front of an audience as well as it being a new experience because of the new music teacher.

Though there were many nervous performers, some were also more comfortable. Ms.Kunnatee, being in charge of the concert, revealed that she felt relatively comfortable and just slightly nervous due to JPAC having been occupied earlier in the morning so QHSS performers had less preparation time.  

Now for an after concert review.

Was the performance up to par with what you expected?

Performers remarked that “yeah, it (the performance) was up to par with my expectations,” and how “the concert came together very nicely.” Ms.Kunnatee also assessed “for a first show it was amazing.” However the performers acknowledged that there were some minor mistakes. Despite this, they were able to recover and end the concert on a strong note.

Did the audience’s reaction towards the performance match your expectations?

“It matched exactly what I was expecting, they clapped at the right times and there was a lot of cheering.” From the stage, the cheers were seen as magical and gave the performers a boost of confidence. Nonetheless, some performers did hope that it would be slightly more rowdy, 

Final Thoughts

From an audience’s perspective , there was a clear effort to support the performers, with cheers, applause, and occasional whistles, especially during vocal performances.  The performance, with its emotions and shared musicality, helped not only the performers to feel more connected with each other but also allowed the audience to connect with them as the performance also contained a portion of audience participation. This thus made the concert a wonderful experience for those who performed in it and viewed it.

Thank you to all the performers and everyone involved in the Winter Concert for such a memorable production. The QHSS community eagerly looks forward to what the music department has planned for the spring concert.