Combined Orchestra and Band Trip to Chicago/Cleveland!
The Barbara Ingram School for the Arts Band and Orchestra took their bi-annual out-of-state trip to perform in various venues across Chicago, Illinois and Cleveland, Ohio from March 19th to March 25th , 2018. There, the BISFA orchestra collaborated with Missoula, Montana high school orchestra students, with Elizabeth as the concertmaster and Stephanie playing in the first chair of the second violins. Here is a recap of some of the most memorable moments of the trip!
Day 1 - Monday, March 19th
We were originally scheduled to leave for Cleveland on the night of the 20th, however some unexpected snow storm weather caught us off guard! So literally AT THE LAST POSSIBLE SECOND an executive decision was made to depart for the Cleveland hotel on Monday night. Needless to say, we were very excited to be gaining an extra day and a half on our trip!
Day 2 - Tuesday, March 20th
This was basically just a driving day for those of us who were on the bus. After leaving the hotel in Cleveland, we went straight to Chicago, booked our hotel, and then ate dinner at the Golden Corral. That was basically it XD
Day 3 - Wednesday, March 21st
This was when all the fun really started! First stop on the itinerary was a class trip to the Water Tower Place shopping mall as we were waiting for the Missoula kids to arrive. This resulted in a couple hours dedicated to browsing the mall's many stores and enjoying the diverse options of food offered at the food court! Afterwards, we all headed to Millennium Park where we got to take pictures at one of Chicago's most famous landmarks: the Bean! After that, we headed back to the hotel where we met up with the Missoula students and headed out to dinner to taste some of Chicago's deep dish pizza at a restaurant called Giordano's. After a 2 hour rehearsal with the whole gang (and realizing that we forgot our double basses at the school! >x<), this concluded Day 3 of our amazing trip!
Day 4 - Thursday, March 22nd
This day, we had a rehearsal early in the morning before driving to Northwestern University's Bienen School of Music to perform some selected pieces for a clinic! Thank you to Professor Robert Hasty for all of his wonderful insight on our playing! Afterwards, we both headed to the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry! Unfortunately, we arrived there at around 3:15 pm because we made a surprise stop at the Wrigley Field Stadium (home of the Chicago Cubs, grrr!) and it just so happened that that day the museum was closing at 4, so we had to rush to make the best of our visit! It was very cool nonetheless! For dinner that night, we had a tasty experience of some German food at the Berghoff. Later that night, we performed 1,030 feet up in the air on the tallest floor of the Hancock Tower where we both got to ride the Tilt! The Chicago skyline was absolutely breathtaking!
Day 5 - Friday, March 23rd
We started this day with yet another surprise: an unexpected performance at North Point University! Then, we performed inside and explored the Chicago Field Museum, which this time we had more than enough time to explore it's many exhibits! Elizabeth's favorite being the Evolving Planet series! The next stop was Navy Pier, which overlooked Lake Michigan, one of the Great Lakes. There, we did some shopping after eating at Harry Caray's burger restaurant. Originally we were supposed to enjoy a boat ride on the surface of Lake Michigan, but because of the weather conditions, they weren't doing boat rides this time of year. Chicago isn't called the Windy City for nothing! So, to fill in the time, we ended up attending this comedy show called Comedy Sportz and boy did we have a grand old time!
Day 6 - Saturday, March 24th
We headed to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, leaving Chicago behind us (tear TwT) and there, both Elizabeth and Stephanie performed their small ensemble pieces with their friends! Afterwards, we had a good long time to explore and marvel at the history hanging on the walls of the Hall of Fame! We ended the day eating dinner at the Golden Corral (again, but no complaints XD) and departed to Severance Hall, right across from Case Western Reserve University, to enjoy a performance by the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra! What a way to end the day!
Day 7 - Sunday, March 25th
We arrived back home around mid afternoon and was greeted with open arms by our parents. Thus, this concludes our adventures out of state!
Solo/Ensemble 2018
On Saturday, March 3rd, we participated at our county's annual Solo/Ensemble event, which is an event where students all over the county come to play their prepared music pieces in front of a judge in order to receive a score ranging from 1 - 5 (1 being the highest) that will determine if they can qualify to play at the state level. Overall, it's a really fun experience, especially when you get to play a piece that you really enjoy and can show off how much you have grown as a musician! Elizabeth played Vocalise by Rachmaninoff with a piano accompaniment as her solo and Stephanie played Concerto in A minor, movement one by Bach for her solo, also with piano accompaniment. Besides playing their solos, both Elizabeth and Stephanie teamed up with their friends at Barbara Ingram and put together a total of 3 separate small ensembles to perform in Saturday's event! Elizabeth teamed up with a fellow violinist and cellist and performed selected dances from a collection of 12 German Dances by Haydn, while Stephanie, who started learning the viola, performed a viola duet as well as another ensemble piece together with the other freshman and sophomore orchestra members. Together, we earned a total of five 'Superior' scores, earning us an opportunity to play at the State Solo/Ensemble event!
All County Orchestra
2016 All County Middle School/High School Orchestra
This year, both Stephanie and Elizabeth were the concertmasters of the All County Middle School orchestra and the All County High School orchestra, respectively.
2017 All County High School Orchestra
2018 All County High School Orchestra
Stephanie playing a solo at her middle school concert (2016)