Showcasing their hard work, Region 26 students performed at the annual region band concert at the Pflugerville High School Performing Arts Center (PAC) on Saturday, Jan. 20.
To be selected for the clinic and concert last weekend, students from all over Region 26 had to go through an extensive audition process last December. 125 Westwood band members auditioned, and over half of the students were accepted into a region band.
“I’m happy that this year I’m in the top region band, but I feel motivated to practice more and do even better next year,” Eileen Wu ‘26 said. “So that I could play a top part in the first band and have an even better time playing the music.”
The 5A Symphonic Band began the concert with three pieces: Urban Light by James M. David, Safely Rest by Nicole Piunno and Mvt. IV. Finale from Pineapple Poll by Arthur Sullivan, arranged by Mackerras. The 6A Concert Band followed by performing An American Fanfare by Rick Kirby, Fandango by Frank S. Perkins, arranged by Werle, Adagio of Spartacus and Phrygia by Aram Khachaturian, arranged by Moreru, and lastly Journey Through Orion by Julie Giroux.
“I loved the Adagio from Ballet of Spartacus and Phrygia,” Max Fullerton ‘27 said. “It’s so expressive and beautiful. I almost cried while playing it.”
To wrap up the concert, the 6A Symphonic band took the stage and performed Zoom! by Scott Boerma, Intermezzo from La Boda de Luis Alonso by Gimenez, McAllister, and Graham, This Cruel Moon by John Mackey, and Kaleidoscope Eyes by Katahj Copley. However, the clinician made them replay the last page of a piece on stage once the audience had already begun clapping.
“My favorite part of the concert was when our clinician made us replay the last page of the last piece, cutting off the audience’s applause, you [could] tell how bad that part was,” Wu said. “It was very unexpected for sure.”
During this event, students were placed in bands with people they had never rehearsed or performed with before, which many students enjoyed as it was an experience that only came around a couple of times a year. Students were also very excited to see what would be produced with this new group of students working together.
“I think the two most striking differences [between rehearsing with my normal band and region band was] the pace of rehearsal and the quality of sound coming from all the players,” Keshav Sreekantham ‘24 said. “The guest conductor for the region’s top band was experienced in his job, and he did a good job cleaning the pieces. You can tell the group is more skilled than a school band, and it’s reflected in the sight reading technique and sound quality of the band as a whole.”
To prepare for the concert, students were expected to learn the pieces on their own and then put them all together in just two rehearsals. This is an extreme contrast to a regular high school band, where a typical number of rehearsals can get close to 100. But despite the limited amount of time to get the pieces ready for the concert, the three bands were able to play the pieces with only minor bumps in the road.
“Whoever decides what music we play at region takes into account that we only have eight hours to learn it,” Sreekantham said. “I think it was a good difficulty for the time we had.”
The next band concert will take place on Thursday, March 7 for the Full Orchestra University Interscholastic League (UIL).
