Tuning Up for the Fall Orchestra Concert

With the season’s orchestra concert fast approaching, the student musicians of the orchestra department and the teachers conducting it are hard at work preparing for the big performance. Preparation for the concert can begin a few months ahead of time, with weeks dedicated to practice and planning for the event—allowing the entire orchestra plenty of time to perfect it. 

10th grade cello player Joshua Mayrand describes, “We usually start working on the pieces as soon as we get them. Chamber orchestra usually has two months to work on the pieces and make sure everything sounds professional until a performance…I usually only practice by myself outside of school. When we’re in school, we always get to practice together as an orchestra and put emotion into our pieces and make music with it.” 

Joshua Mayrand (left) plays with his fellow cellists. | Photo by Treesa Soud

Practice for concerts is consistent and in-depth, honed with a mix of repetition every day and careful attention given to the music by every member of the orchestra. Brady Zupansic, 12th grade violinist, describes his dedicated process of learning new pieces for the concert: “I spend a lot of time listening to recordings of the piece. I like listening to several different recordings, with different orchestras and conductors. This gives me a very good idea of how the piece sounds, where my part fits in, and what the standard musical choices are…I try to practice for two hours every day; it ensures I am prepared for rehearsal with my colleagues.”

For some students, mental preparation is a key part of the process, especially in the last few days leading up to the performance. “Mentally preparing for concerts is a very complex skill. You can compare it to the Olympics,” explains Ellie McGahagin, 12th grade violinist. “Like an athlete, it’s important to visualize exactly how you want your performance to go. It’s also important to monitor what you eat and your caffeine intake, especially if you’re an anxious performer.”  

Some musicians may be more anxious for the performance than others. For many of the orchestra members, though, just being there with their classmates is enough to calm any nerves; some members say they even socialize as they get on stage, or that creating music with the orchestra keeps them from worrying. Mayrand advises, “You just have to make sure you are calm and collected when you get on stage. For me, it’s a very small portion of preparation because I naturally enjoy getting on stage and creating music with the orchestra.” And some musicians even enjoy the nervous feeling: “My favorite part [of the concerts] would probably be the excitement from the nerves,” says 11th grade violinist Michael Mollison. 

Of course, with all the pressure and increased practice that surrounds orchestra season, the experience does provide a challenge to performers. “My least favorite part of performing and just playing my instrument in general is the burnout that most of us face,” says McGahagin. “Practicing hours upon hours a day is taxing and it’s common to step away from a practice session feeing unaccomplished.” Despite these struggles, the orchestra agrees the experience at the finish line is ultimately worth all the effort: McGahagin continues, “We spend hours a day preparing and stretching our abilities, and it’s so thrilling to see it come to life for both the audience and ourselves. It’s a feeling that can’t be compared to anything.” 

The role of the teacher is vital to the performance, as DA’s Director of Orchestras Brian Griffin prepares the students and serves as conductor during the concert. Choosing music, and organizing the students’ approach to learning it, greatly helps shape the experience of the concert for all involved. “One of the most important factors is picking music that is on level for the experience. You want to program music that isn’t too difficult to practice. And then, as we get closer to the performance, we play through a lot more passages, we talk about musical intention…This gives the students more ownership over their music,” he says. “I’m always trying to dig a little deeper to try to get them to think more creatively, and one of the best ways to do that is to study the scores, harmonies, the rhythm, the instrumentation, and how they all interact.” 

Brian Griffin directs his orchestra. | Photo by Treesa Soud

At the end of the day, for Griffin, the ultimate goal of the endeavor is the heart behind the music. “Seeing my students rise to the challenge to accomplish a common goal is really rewarding…Whether it’s something that’s really upbeat and fast and everybody is clapping along and cheering because it was really loud and big at the end, or whether it’s something that’s super sad and soft and slow and people are crying out there. Whatever emotion we’re trying to get out of our audience, if my students can get people to feel, that is, to me, the most important thing.”