The last Monster Concert was held over three years ago, but the 2016-2017 Symphony Orchestra was once again given an opportunity to play fun repertoire for the students at Canyon Vista Middle School. The students, most of whom have not played at such a concert before, were curious as to what to expect of the performance. They were handed music with several well-known theme songs and gigs, which proved to be much easier to master than their usual concert music. By playing that entertaining Halloween gig infused with many recognizable songs, the concert was bound to entertain the middle school students.

“I thought that [the music] was interesting because we focused on fun instead of perfection,” Gaeun Kim ‘19 said. “Everyone enjoyed the whole experience because it was a very casual event, and we all bonded over playing Ghostbusters, making posters, and wearing fun hats.”

  To further add to the Halloween effect, the students were allowed to dress up in simple costume attire. Most chose to remain classy and stick with the simple orchestra gown while a small number of the bolder students stunted flashy hats and shoes. The popularity of the concert was evident during the featured theme song from Ghostbusters, during which several Orchestra members snuck to the back of the ensemble and held signs that read the words the crowd would chant along with. With an audience full of beginner and novice middle school students, the interaction between the audience and the orchestra was loud and full of excitement.

“I was amazed by the crowd’s participation and the exhilaration. Every syllable sung in sync,” Maxson Chu ‘17 said. “Looking at the smiling beginner orchestra students, I thought to myself that this was definitely worth it.”