The Annual Fall Concert: A Mosaic of Nostalgia

Thursday, October 12—Over 100 students participated in the annual Fall Concert during all-school assembly. It was a true demonstration of the power of music. The audience in the David E. and Stacey L. Goel Theater was by turns contemplative and energized as they responded to the music. 
The concert began with the Lower School Orchestra performing an opus that swelled and dipped followed by the Upper School Chamber Players who nearly bounced off the stage with the punchy Carnival of the Animals. 
Lower School Descants sang a haunting piece by Frank Wildhorn from the musical Jekyll and Hyde before a heartwarming rendition of “Circle of Friends.”
Following Descants, Natalie Cooper ’24 the president of Upper School Illumina urged the audience to “Think about your own fondest memories, and reflect on them.” With so many seniors in the group, their last Fall Concert was especially nostalgic.
“Try and count the number of times we say Tibet,” suggested Sophia Lichterfeld ’24. The audience quickly understood what she meant as the spoken-word “Geographical Fugue” by Ernst Toch took shape in a rolling and rhythmic way.
The announcement of “Disney Medley 3” was met with squeals of excitement. In fall of 2021, Ilumina introduced their very first Disney medley and it quickly became a favorite. Amanie Yusef ’24 called this new version “a mosaic of nostalgia.” With music samples from Moana to Beauty and the Beast, students were transported and showed their enthusiasm with a standing ovation.  
To end the concert, Senior Small put their own twist on pop hit “Put Your Records On” and students clapped along to each refrain of the chorus.
Six different performing arts classes collaborated on the fall concert. In addition to two orchestra classes and two choral classes, Upper School Tech Theater and Class IV Stagecraft ran the show moving risers, dimming lights, managing microphones, and more. 
Thank you to Ms. Connor, Mr. Marshall, Mr. Puigbo, and Ms. Felicia Brady-Lopez for all your work to bring us a beautiful morning of music!
Watch the concert.

FALL MUSIC CONCERT ASSEMBLYOctober 12, 2023
Lower School Orchestra, directed by Julia ConnorIntroductions by Sophia Zhang ’31 and Sophie Wang ’30St. Paul’s Suite, Op. 29, No. 2 by Gustav Holst, arr. by Julia ConnorI. Jig: Vivace
Upper School Chamber Players, directed by Julia ConnorIntroductions by Hannah Minn ’26 and Demira Parekh ’26Ashokan Farewell by Jay Ungar and Molly Mason, arr. by Julia ConnorCarnival of the Animals, by Camille Saint-Saëns, arr. by Julia ConnorXII. FossilsSoloists: Talya Le ’24, xylophone; Shirley Yang ’27, oboe; Anna Yang ’26, piano; Angelina Fang ’26), violin; Zara Sword ’26, violin
Lower School Descants, directed by Andrew Marshall Introductions by Sisi Ansari ’28 and Livia Bene ’29“No One Knows Who I Am” by Frank Wildhorn“Circle of Friends” by Nancy Ford
Upper School Illumina, directed by Andrew Marshall Introductions by Natalie Cooper ’24, Sophia Lichterfeld ’24, Amanie Yusef ’24, and Amber Renthal ’25“You Are There” by Johnny Mandel, arr. by David von KampenSoloist:  Nidhi Mallavarapu ’24“I Love, I Love, And Whom Love Ye?” by Robert Fairfax“Geographical Fugue” by Ernst Toch“Disney Medley 3” by Alan Menken, et al., arr. by Andrew MarshallSoloists: Alicia Wu ’24, Lucie Rynne ’24, Ondine Goedhuis ’26, Elyse Hychong ’26, Liana Min ’26, Aria Wang ’26Percussionist: Caroline Bae ’24
Senior Small“Put Your Records On” by Corrine Bailey Rae, John Beck, and Steve Chrisanthou  Soloist: Sofia Grabiel Butler ’24 

Lower School OrchestraMaysa Atassi ’29Eunha Basu ’28Kensie Carroll ’29Alexandra Chen ’31Allison Chen ’29Emily Chen ’29Lillian Feng ’29Gisele Francois-DeVane ’29Wren Gourley ’31Ayaka Hatabu ’28Julica Hatabu ’28Emily Jiang ’28Sarah Kotler ’30Eileen Lee ’28Helena Lee ’29Alyssa Liang ’31Chloe Lien ’29Emily Peng ’30Isha Raikar ’29Anne-Sophie Ren ’30Xiaoyan (Julianna) Shi ’29Charlize Thai ’30Zola Tierney ’29Ria Vartak ’31Xintan (Sophie) Wang ’30Grace Wu ’29Sophia Zhang ’31
Upper School Chamber PlayersLara do Rosario ’26Angelina Fang ’26Rachel Krause-Grosman ’26Anne Li ’27Hannah Minn ’26Demira Parekh ’26Ella Paterniti ’26Olivia Paterniti ’26Zara Sword ’26Anna Yang ’26Shirley Yang ’27
Lower School DescantsHannah Ahn ’28Sirine Ansari ’28Layla Bedair ’29Livia) Bene ’29Emma Beswick ’29Avaleigh Burns ’29Margot Curry ’28Mia Dong ’29Siri Erlingsson ’29Sarah Finkelstein ’28Madeline Forry ’28Bailey Hall ’28Helen) Huang ’29Harriet Jackman ’29Rachel Levitzky ’28Annalisa Martinek ’29Christina Mayer ’28Eliot McCarthy ’28Isabella Nguyen ’28Lilac Nguyen ’28Theoni Pantazis ’29Claire Park ’28Amelia Rudy ’29Sophia Selassie ’28Abigail Sheu ’29Lucy Stevens-Wright ’29Aarna Sundaram ’29Isha Vachhani ’29September Villanueva ’28Caitlin Weeks ’28Claire Zhang ’28
Upper School Ilumina 2023-2024Caroline Bae ’24*Nika Bigelow ’25Hamna Chowdhry ’26Natalie Cooper ’24*Kate Drachman ’25Ann Frigerio ’26Ondine Goedhuis ’26Sofia Grabiel Butler ’24*Elyse Hychong ’26Sophia Lichterfeld ’24*Camille Maccarone ’25Nidhi Mallavarapu ’25Mira Maniar ’25Liana Min ’26Amber Renthal ’25Julia Reynolds ’25Lucie Rynne ’24*Aria Wang ’26Alicia Wu ’24*Amanie Yusef ’25*Senior Small
US Theater Tech, directed by Andres Puigbo Katherine Danik ’25Sophie Fleishman ’25Addison Barton ’28Talia Bitton ’28Olivia Blecher ’28Ayaka) Hatabu ’28Emily Jiang ’28Cara McDonald ’28Gabrielle Peskin ’28Caroline Specht ’28Isabella Vander Elst ’28Caroline  Wellington ’28Isabelle Yang ’28
Class IV Stagecraft, directed by Andres Puigbo Addison Barton ’28Tali Bitton ’28Olivia Blecher ’28Ayaka Hatabu ’28Emily Jian ’28Cara McDonald ’28Gabrielle Peskin ’28Caroline Specht ’28Isabella Vander Elst ’28Caroline Wellington ’28Isabell Yang ’28