The annual Toll Gate instrumental concert was held on Thursday, December 7. Under the direction of musical director Nicholas Reed, three different groups performed for an audience of relatives and friends at the Robert J. Shapiro Cultural Arts Center. Members of the Toll Gate Administration and the Warwick School Committee were present for the hour-long performance. Junior Razzy Weedon, senior Benjamin Buccheri, and junior Caroline Polo, who serve as presidents of band, jazz, and orchestra, respectively, addressed the audience throughout the concert.
The jazz combo kicked off the concert with Blue Bossa (Kenny Dorham), followed by Stolen Moments (Oliver Nelson), and concluded with Cold Duck Time (Eddie Harris.) The combo represents a group of highly motivated students who share a common passion for jazz. During the concert, Mr. Reed pointed out that this group rehearses and makes musical decisions for each piece independently with little input from himself.
The jazz band kept the jazz flowing with Blue Monk (Thelonious Monk), St. James Infirmary (Joe Primrose), and St. Thomas (Sonny Rollins).
The concert band and orchestra, which included all 38 members of the instrumental program, performed a series of music that adhered to a specific theme. Mr. Reed annually selects a theme for each season that the concert band and orchestra follow throughout the performance, while the jazz band and jazz combo play a separate selection of music.
This winter’s theme loosely followed the style of Beethoven’s ninth symphony, with each piece representing a different movement. The first piece, Carpathian Sketches (Robert Jager), portrayed a fierce battle, mirroring the style of the ninth symphony’s first movement. The recognizable Carmine Burana (Carl Orff), popularly referred to as O Fortuna!, followed, representing the darkness that turns into elements of hope following a war. Pretty Partner (Mozart), was performed by the strings and mirrors the dreamlike third movement. The concert concludes with the fourth movement, Finale from Symphony No. 9 (Beethoven), also referred to as Ode to Joy. The joyous piece was an excellent finish that ushered in the holiday season.
