In the auditorium, the Griffith Choir Department and Griffith High School and Middle School bands performed their final concerts of the year on Wednesday, May 1st and Wednesday, May 15th respectively, both at 7 PM. The elementary, beginning, concert, symphonic, and jazz bands all performed at the band concert, along with an appearance from the men’s ensemble.The men’s ensemble also performed alongside the chorale, concert choir, and woman’s ensemble at the earlier choir concert. Both the choir and band department showcased a variety of songs, from pop songs to lesser known orchestral and religious pieces.

The choir concert had performances from all four choir ensembles. Except for men’s ensemble, which was directed by Aaron Alexander, the choirs all were directed by choir director Belinda Patoma. Many songs of several different genres were performed, such as men’s ensemble’s performance of the Beatles’ “I Want to Hold Your Hand”, a traditionally poppy song, contrasted with Roger Emmersons’ “O Sinner Man” performed by the middle school choir. The choir concert also contained two solo performances, sophomore Nina Rodriguez playing “Allegro in A-Major” on piano and freshman Isabella Aranda singing “La Vie En Rose”, by Édith Piaf, both of which were performed at ISSMA (Indiana State School Music Association).

“I knew the song since February because I performed it for ISSMA. During my solo performance I felt very prepared since I had done it so many times,” said Aranda. “I enjoyed the feeling of performing in front of everyone.”

The finale of the choir concert, Kate Moran Bart’s “Blessing” was performed by all four choirs, creating a harmony of voices.

On the other side of the musical spectrum, the band concert also showcased many of different musical styles. The bands brought music from films to life, the concert band performed music from the movie Black Panther, and the symphonic band performed themes from Star Wars as their final song. The elementary band, comprised of entirely 5th and 6th graders, showed some simple yet recognizable songs such as “Mary Had a Little Lamb”. The beginning band had equally recognizable songs, such as the theme from the video game franchise “Super Mario Brothers”, pieces of music created by Koji Condo and arranged by the band director Alexander himself. Alexander also arranged the symphonic band’s “Legend of Zelda Medley”, which was another medley of different hits from a video game franchise, The Legend of Zelda.

“To arrange the video game medleys, I first spoke with students in my classroom who had experience with the games to establish which melodies and songs were most relatable and notable,” said Alexander. “I created an idea of what the whole piece would sound like, and organized the music in a way that would make most sense musically.”

When it comes to Griffith’s musical departments, there’s always a surprise in store when looking at the music performed by the students aged fifth grade to twelfth grade. These were the final concerts for the choir and band department of this year, but expect a return in the winter for both of these talented groups.