By Rama K. Ramaswamy
The Jazz Band and Orchestra recently performed, the latter at the State House downtown. The Monday Jazz Band performed 4 pieces: “Perdido,” “Cantaloupe Island,” “Happy,” and “Caribbean Dance.” The songs are a mix of various styles from swing, rock, funk, and Afro-Cuban.
According to Dave Adams, who conducts the Wellesley Middle School Band, “Students will have a chance to improvise in ‘Cantaloupe Island’ as well, which makes this concert very exciting. Improvisation always brings a level of spontaneity to a jazz concert. I have a background in jazz, having received a degree in performance from the University of Southern Maine School of Music. I play the alto saxophone as my primary instrument.” As it turns out, Adams was a WPS alum who graduated in 1988. “I have experienced and enjoyed the entire K-12 Wellesley Performing Arts Program,” said Adams, “having first tried the alto saxophone in the 4th Grade at Hardy Elementary School. It was the teaching and performance experiences provided for me as a student in Wellesley that have inspired me to be a full time music teacher and musician. This will be my first concert as the WMS Band Director, which is truly exciting. It has come full-circle for me.”
Dr. Sergey Khanukaev conducts the Wellesley Middle School and High School orchestras. The complete list of performing students is as follows: WMS Tuesday Jazz Band: Evan Daigle and Darren Shi (alto saxophone), Jessica Klurfeld (clarinet), Genevieve Van der Wal (bass clarinet), Michael Bueker (trumpet), Jeffrey Li (trombone), Cooper Kennedy, Anjali Jain and Zachary Dupont (percussion), Eloise Zeng and Sebastian Papa (piano), Samantha Reisner (guitar).
WMS Monday Jazz Band: Kristine Peters and Zoe Zhang (flute), Zovig Kupelian, Drew Donahue and Myles Vigil(alto saxophone), Leo Carlson (tenor saxophone), Arnav Jain (baritone saxophone), Jessica Klurfeld (clarinet), Max Goldenson, Jared Goldman, Theo Braatz and Michael Laing (trumpet), Connor McDonald, Alice Cook, Ethan Chen and Rayken Zhuang (trombone), Emily Sotelo (French horn), Samantha Lee and Inesh Vytheswaran (piano), Arthur Griffin (bass), Andy Dimnaku and Erwann Towa (guitar), Alex Feinberg, Dana Lepper and Rachel White(drums).
About the State House Orchestra performance, Adams said, “Traveling to the city with our instruments and equipment is always an adventure, but the students were very poised and put on a wonderful performance. The sound of the ensembles within the State House was beautiful. Many students said it was the best field trip they’ve ever been a part of, and they will never forget it.”
