Band, choir students perform final music concert of the year

Waynesburg University hosted its annual spring concert, Saturday, April 8, showcasing the concert choir and the symphonic band. The choir portion of the show came first, and it featured a worship-themed set list, including

“Psalm 23, “ He watching over Isreal” and “Give me Jesus”, as well as two pieces were featuring soloists. Those pieces were O’Sifuni Mungu, which featured freshmen Thomas Faye, Mikayla Haggerty and Heidi Dziak, as well as senior Jacob Restanio, and “Everytime I Feel the Spirit,”which featured sophomore Veronica Steen, junior Kayla Goncalves and freshman Kate Ossege. Steen, a children and youth ministry major who will take over as president of the choir next semester, said that she enjoyed watching all of the work leading into the performance finally come together.

“I really like when something finally clicks, and we get it, because then all of us just kind of get in a really good mood, and it just comes together,” said Steen.

Of all of the pieces that Steen and the choir performed, “The Prayer” was her favorite. “It was just so beautifully constructed,” Steen said. “It was fun when we got it. ” Steen, who also performs in Waynesburg’s touring choir, is excited to see what the future holds for the choir in the coming years.

“I just really like the community that we’re building,” she said. “ And I feel like we have so much potential that I can’t wait to see where we grow.”

The evening continued with the band portion of the concert, led by Dr. Ronda DePriest, director of them music program. The symphonic band performed the music of John Williams, who is best known for his work in Star Wars and Home Alone, as well as several Stephen Spielberg-directed films, like E.T. and Jaws. Sophomore sports management major, Elizabeth Nicodemus, who will be taking over as president of the symphonic band this fall, enjoyed the change of pace in the music.

“Usually we get to play like old school concert band music,” said Nicodemus. “This was the first time we got to play more modern songs that most people really know.”

Of all of the songs that the band performed, Nicodemus particularly enjoyed Star Wars, due to its broad appeal. Several students were in attendance to support their peers at the concert. One of them among the audience was sophomore electronic media major, Megan Cook. Cook said that she enjoyed the variety of the show.

“I liked the diversity, especially throughout the whole program,” said Cook. “They can do the hymns and spirituals, but they can also do John Williams, and I like that.”

Another student in attendance was freshman electronic media major Harry Oaks, who came because he thought it would be a nice way to spend his Saturday evening. Oaks said that he does not often go to concerts on campus, but went to this one because it seemed like a “special event.”

“Because it was so advertised, I wanted to check it out,” Oaks said. Oaks said he added that he enjoyed the Williams pieces, which he was somewhat familiar with beforehand.

“I’ve heard of [Williams], and I’ve known that he’s done a lot of movies with Stephean Spielberg,” said Oaks. “ To see how many different movies and productions John Williams wrote music for, that was also interesting.” 

Nicodemus is excited to see how things will be for the symphonic band moving forward.

“I think we come together really well by the time the concert comes,” said Nicodemus. “So I think just maybe getting better earlier [is something to look forward to.]”