The FOBISIA music scene has been very quiet for the past two years, due to the impact of COVID-19. We were therefore very excited to get the opportunity to take part in the FOBISIA Orchestral Project 2022. As an orchestra, we have been working on more challenging repertoire, but mostly in the realm of film music. This opportunity posed an exciting challenge of performing two well-known classical works, including the William Tell Overture and the Finale from Stravinsky‘s Firebird Suite.
We were able to submit recordings for both the intermediate and advanced orchestral projects, which is a great achievement for this developing orchestra. The recording process was a great experience for the students, as they had the opportunity to dress up in full concert attire and the pressure of performing in the moment with audio and media crews filming. We look forward to seeing the final production with all of the school orchestras combined in this collaborative project, which will be shared at a later date.
Here are the two recordings of our orchestra performing in the school's Performing Arts Hall.
Scott Grassby, one of our Y12 Music Prefects, shared his reflections on the experience;
"I must start by saying it has been a pleasure playing in the EP orchestra since we have been back from the lockdown. We spent the first term learning how to play together as an orchestra, as it is a skill that takes time to develop. We also welcomed a whole host of new members into our orchestra. We played some Christmas themed music in the first term to build on the skills that we had as individual players, as well as relearning some of the skills that may have been a bit rusty due to the lack of being able to play in an ensemble, especially a large ensemble such as orchestra.
Then in term 2 we started to work on the pieces we were going to play for the FOBISIA Intermediate and Advanced categories. We started to practise the music and worked in sectionals, then bringing the orchestra together as a whole towards the end of the term when it became time to record. I play the tuba in the orchestra and had a solo in the William Tell which was fast and technical. However with slow and consistent practice I was able to play the solo.
The challenges that we have had to overcome with the Covid-19 pandemic have been especially hard for the creative arts and although we still were unable to travel and take part in this FOBISIA event in person, this shows with resilience and a small helping hand from modern technology that we are still able to keep the music alive. I would like to thank everybody in the orchestra for working so hard on the performance making the return to playing together in a group such an enjoyable one."