Sky View orchestra and choir put on quite a show

Image: Tuning up — Concert Master Rebecca Young (in front) strikes the tone for the Sky View Orchestra to tune up.

Tuning up — Concert Master Rebecca Young (in front) strikes the tone for the Sky View Orchestra to tune up. (Dave South)

In the choir room, Tuesday night, John Caldwell is trying to get his 93-student choir organized so they can squeeze onto the small stand that will be set up on the stage. The process is somewhat chaotic, but they are making progress. Meanwhile the orchestra is warming up in the auditorium — the sound of musicians noodling on their instruments comes wafting down the hall. Eventually Caldwell gets everyone sorted and they move into the concert hall, not to the stage but to their seats — it’s not their turn, yet.

First up is the Sky View Orchestra. Conductor Richard Kline announces their first selection to the audience, takes his baton and the orchestra begins. Tonight they will play four pieces:

They begin with the choral sounding Serenade For String Orchestra by Elena Roussanova Lucas. They follow this with the surprisingly difficult Emperor Variations by Franz Joseph Haydn.

Heart Wounds and Last Spring by Edvard Grieg has a lush sound that works well with these young musicians. And then they end with a strong playing of Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 by Johann Sebastian Bach.

The Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 was particularly challenging and rewarding to listen to. “This is an interesting selection that Bach came up with,” Kline explains before they start. “There are three solo violin parts, three solo cello parts, and three solo viola parts — the double basses, double the cellos.”

Soon their performance is finished with great applause from the audience of neighbors, friends and family.

“That was a wonderful experience,” said Kline after the show. “This is where all the hard work pays off for the kids. If you can’t have fun at this point, we’re doing the wrong thing. They worked hard all trimester. They deserve to have some fun playing that music. It was very nice.”

Now it’s time to see if the choir can fit 93-students onto the small stand the stage hands just set up. The choir files in and with a little shuffling — they fit.

The choir begins by singing a humorous folk piece called Reuben and Rachel. They follow it with a beautiful hymn, For the Beauty of the Earth by John Rutter. For the next song — a traditional spiritual called If I Got My Ticket — Grant Fuller, J.C. Price and Avery Sims for a trio in front of the stage. And the choir ends the concert with a wonderful rendition of Danny By by Frederick Weatherly with a beautiful obligato performed on the Alto Saxophone by Alex Batty.

“[The students] are really resilient,” said Caldwell after their performance. “You know they’ve had a lot of strange things thrown at them this last week and have been able to put things together and make it work.”

Orchestra

Conductor
Richard Kline

First Violin
Rebecca Young
Tina Mathias
Melissa Johnson
Chandra Harvey
Shari Duarte
Sheldon Redmon

Second Violin
Rebecca Bytheway
Brittany Shumway
Lincoln Wyatt
Julie Bennett
Serena VonNiederhausern
Duryn Elwood

Viola
Rebecca Hansen
Paul Funk
Kristina Rose
Erik Jones
Natasha Harvey
Mariah Johnson
Breanna Corbridge

Cello
Azure Kline
Nicholas Chadwick
Annie Coyle

Bass
Sean Wright
Benjamin Wilhelm
Soren Wadsworth

Choir

Director
John Caldwell

Pianist
DeeAnn Hansen

Saxophonist
Alex Batty

Choir
Sharlee Andrew
Samuel Anhder
Carson Astle
Audree Austin
Korinne Balls
Elisa Barfuss
Douglas Barney
Kristen Barrus
Krystal Beckstead
Carlos Bedolla
Rochelle Biggs
Heather Blake
Jonathan Bowen
Joshua Bowen
Parker Bradford
Hilary Braeger
Whitney Burr
Tawnie Busenbark
Kayli Butler
Katie Campbell
Tannen Campbell
Amy Cheney
Ashley Christensen
Nicole Christensen

Tiffany Christensen
Taber Christiansen
Trekton Christiansen
Keaton Cluff
Kymbrie Cooper
Flint Courter
Kelsey Dodge
Elizabeth Done
Bryndon Dy
Kaylee Falslev
Shyla Farmer
Jasmin Figueroa
Jaron Fowers
Jessica Freeman
Grant Fuller
Destony Gilchrist
Heather Graves
Sarah Gualtier
Amber Guymon
Ashley Hall
Toree Hamblin
Kindsey Hansen
Brock Harris
Mariah Hufstetler
Lauren Jardine
Ivan Jimenez
Heidi Jones
Krista Karren
Narshae King
Alexandria Laub
Victoria Lind
Alexander Martin
Brady Martin

Hailey Maw
Jonathan Mays
William McKenna
Kylee Merrill
April Morales
Jesus Munguia
MarDee Neel
Robyn NewMyer
Aubrey Nielson
Brianna Olsen
Mandy Pack
Juan Ponce
Jedidiah Price
Aaron Priest
Chelsey Ravsten
Taylor Regen
Edwin Rodriguez
Jordan Rogers
Kayla Savage
Alexys Shauers
Sarah Sidwell
Avery Sims
Janessa Stevens
Alexis Stott
David Thanadabouth
Cammey Williams
Benton Wood
Heather Wood

Concert Excerpts