Gilpin band takes on Broadway

Spring Concert features show tunes

Lynn Volkens

05/22/2008 - The program was titled, “The Bands from Gilpin School Present Show Tunes,” and boy, did they ever. The three bands played many of the most familiar songs from hit Broadway musicals. This year’s spring band concert at Gilpin School, under the direction of Jeanne Sonnleitner, started with the full, 23-member, ensemble of fifth through twelfth grade instrumentalists, playing “Beginner’s Debut.” As a deep male voice announced, (Sonnleitner’s husband Gene Strandberg, hidden backstage) the piece featured musicians demonstrating newly found talents for newly found notes, rhythms and scales, scales scales. The beginners led into a medley of “Mary Had A Little Lamb,” “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star,” and “Go Tell Aunt Rhodie” then one-more-timed it with the more experienced musicians backing them up. Next year, these beginning musicians will be accompanying more new beginners. “Our musicians of tomorrow,” the announcer concluded, “The future of music’s in good hands.” After the full-group opener, the Fifth Grade Band took over.

  Delainey Lepro on flute, Zachary Walters on clarinet, Skylar Pichon on alto sax, Tim Harris on trumpet, Theodore Morse on baritone with Jaccob Hockley on percussion, performed “Ol’ Man River” from the Broadway Musical “Show Boat.” Lepro and Harris were featured soloists. The band followed that with “If My Friends Could See Me Now.”

  The Sixth Grade Band has, coincidentally, six members: Andi Sales on flute, Michael Bartlett on alto sax, Morgan Foelsch on trumpet, Jesse Abshire-Hays on baritone and percussionists, Tatum Lepro and Loran Rich. They performed “Gershwin Medley,” “Someone to Watch Over Me,” and “Bidin’ My Time,” from the musical, “Oh Kay.” These were followed by George M. Cohan’s “Melodies That Were Broadway,” “Yankee Doodle Boy,” “Forty-five Minutes From Broadway,” and “Heart of My Heart.” Each musician of this band was featured with a solo during the performance. The percussionists excelled with a soft cymbal that didn’t overpower but definitely added pizzazz and a rhythmic wood block setting a great pace and tone. “These pieces are tough,” Sonnleitner told the audience, crediting the students for much hard work.

  The Concert Band is composed of both middle and high school students. Erin Conley (flute), Kira Hicks, Li Hudacky, Claudia Marsat and Victoria Pietsch (clarinets), Katie Schimanskey (bass clarinet), Ken Larson (alto sax), Jon Adams (tenor sax), Emma Berg and Will Fattor (trumpets) and percussionist, Bayley Maltas. This band seemed to find a piece or segments of pieces from all of the major musical composers. They played the Gershwin classics, “Strike up the Band,” and a mellow muted, “Summertime.” Rodgers and Hammerstein contributed “Do Re Mi,” and “My Favorite Things,” from “The Sound of Music.” “Play A Simple Melody,” Irving Berlin’s ragtime number from “Watch Your Step,” featured a trumpet duet with Emma Berg and Will Fattor. Berg soloed in another jazz piece, “And All That Jazz,” a piece most recognized from “Chicago.”  Sonnleitner said that piece was dedicated to Berg, (she graduates this year), “who has been the backbone of the band for five years and was the only trumpet player for three years.” The band took off with that piece, picking up the tempo and “dirtying” it up just a bit. It was obvious not only Berg was having fun.

   “We’re Off to See the Wizard, “and “Over the Rainbow,” were also familiar. Wind trio, Jon Adams, Erin Conley and Claudia Marsat performed Berlin’s “Easter Parade” to applause and an appreciative audience.  Woods trio, Kira Hicks, Ken Larson and Katie Schimanskey played a flawless “There’s No Business Like Show Business,” and meant it, showing off their fingering skills in the number’s fast runs. Hicks had personally requested “No Business,” a favorite, so Sonnleitner rewrote it to accommodate the trio. They are three of the band’s most accomplished musicians. The band gave a nod to the hippie culture with “Aquarius,” and “Let the Sunshine In,” from the musical of that era, “Hair.” “One” a title not known by some, but recognized, once the band began, as the theme song from “A Chorus Line,” rounded out the performance.

  As Sonnleitner said, these pieces were challenging, but Gilpin’s young musicians, some who had gotten their music only a few days before, put in their practice time. This was Sonnleitner’s last concert at Gilpin School (her position has been cut), and she meant to do it up right – or maybe that should be, “write.” It’s difficult to find music arrangements that accommodate such a small group and the unique instrumentation of each band. Sonnleitner’s solution was to rearrange the music, rewriting the individual parts for nearly every student and every piece. She estimated she spent three hours for each part rewritten. Multiply that times the featured 23 student musicians and 21 musical numbers and you’ll get some idea of just how much this “part-time” teacher puts into it. (Sonnleitner has always maintained that music and math do have a lot in common…)

  Musicians and audience mingled in the atrium after the concert. Families had brought numerous desserts to share and the Booster Club provided lemonade and hot, strong, coffee. Sonnleitner will get to showcase her students one more time, and vice versa, at tonight’s Band Awards Banquet.