After weeks of learning holiday music and preparing for a performance, the Glenbrook Symphony Orchestra (GSO), Wind Ensemble, and the eight choirs and co-curricular groups of South, united and performed for the entire student body on Dec. 11. The Winter Assembly is a festive send-off into winter break creating a holiday-themed atmosphere, highlighting the talented Music Department at South, Auditorium Manager Rich Winship said.
The assembly has had a decade-long run and is stage-managed by five to seven students who work to control the lighting, sound system, and placing props. The stage setup includes placing the choral shells, portable curved structures that reflect sound acoustically back into the audience, placing risers for the choirs, and then arranging chairs for GSO and band, Winship explained. Additionally, stage crew prepares performers with microphones and organizes everyone in their correct positions prior to taking the stage, Winship said. Once all the preparations are done, colorful spotlights, seasonal decor, and winter costumes take center stage emulating the holiday spirit, Winship said.
“We are trying to set a holiday mood and trying to make it a cozy, warm atmosphere,” Winship said. “It’s a great way to go into the holiday season.” The choirs, especially Chamber Singers, have a large role in assembly following the tradition of performing “Let There Be Peace on Earth” with GSO, junior Hope Murray, Chamber Singers and Master Singers Member, said. While Chambers performs this song to match the carolling aesthetic of the group, each choir has their own theme with pieces to match that respective theme, Murray added.
“Fusion does a peppy one, Scat That does a jazzy piece, and Chambers, being the carolers and their Victorian outfits, definitely has a large role in the assembly with ‘Let There Be Peace on Earth’, which is a schoolwide tradition that has always, and probably forever will be, the song that we sing,” Murray said.
Getting the music right after Thanksgiving Break, Wind Ensemble Band dove into their rehearsals until the music was ready to be performed, senior Anaya Patel, Wind Ensemble Member, shared. Interacting with all the other music groups during the assembly and working to get everyone in the correct spot at the correct time is tricky, but the trouble is worth it after seeing the audience’s reactions, Patel said.
“It’s organized, but also a little bit chaotic, because there’s a lot of moving parts, moving instruments, chairs, stands, and people,” Patel said, “But that’s why we rehearsed, and so that way, we can perform smoothly.”
Through all the moving pieces, there is also an impressive level of confidence needed to get up and be able to perform in front of the entire student body, Murray said. And while it is hard performing on stage, it is also a special experience for the audience to watch their talented peers, Murray said.
“Some people will never have the chance to listen to a live choir and a live full orchestra in person, outside of school, and it’s important to give people that experience so they can truly appreciate what the fellow student body is doing,” Murray said. All GSO performances are enjoyable but the holiday performances are especially noteworthy, senior Myles Yiu, GSO Member, said.
“On the holiday assembly days, there’s a different feeling,” Yiu said. “People are more high-spirited on the holiday assembly days and there’s also an excitement for the chance to perform for your peers.”
