Sancta Maria’s music department hit great success at this year annual KBB festival. The countless hours of practice and rehearsals have been exemplified through the impressive results across all our bands. This year we sent four groups, including our Big Band, Symphonia, Concert Band and Stage Band, all winning silver or bronze awards.
Held all the way in Parnell, this festival brings together thousands of musicians from all across Auckland, from over 50 schools.
Our Symphonia Orchestra received an outstanding bronze award. Conducted by Mr Gibbs, their set included ‘Etude 2 from Glassworks’ (featuring a piano solo from Cady Lim), ‘Elanor Rigby’, ‘Promenade’ (with a clarinet solo from Samuel Hong), and Let You Break My Hear Again. (Arranged by our very own Ryan Ebron and sang by Audery Basilio).
Our Stage band also received an impressive bronze award, especially since many of the players had only recently started learning their instruments. Led and conducted by student leaders by Maia Tay-Morrison and Aaron Chan, they played ‘One Flight Down’, ‘Cubano Chant’ and ‘Five Spot After Dark’.
The Concert band, conducted by Mr Hamish Arthur, magnificent earned a silver award. Their set included ‘Dance of the Garden Gnomes’, ‘Arabian Dances’, ‘Good Omens’, ‘Grover’s Corner’ and ‘Under the Prairie Sky.
And finally, our Big Band, receiving a silver award, additionally won a very impressive Tour Time Soloist Award for ‘Highest overall standard of Jazz Improvisation’. A big congratulations to the students and their conductor, Mr Lukas Fritsch. Their set included ‘Haitian fight song’ (arranged by the big band themselves), ‘This Can’t Be Love’ (featuring our vocalist Audrey Basilio), ‘Mood Indigo’ (with a trumpet solo by Maia Tay-Morrison), and ‘Cold Duck Time’.
The great dedication and commitment of our musicians has shown through the results of this year’s KBB. It was a great opportunity to share and listen to the spirit of music between the schools.
In addition, three players made it to the KBB Festival Honours concert – as KBB Festival gets underway, three of our senior musicians were selected to represent Sancta Maria College at the prestigious Honours Concert: Ryan Ebron played bass in the jazz band, whilst Cady Lim and Ethan Karl played organ and double bass (respectively) for the Honours Orchestra. The concert was held on Friday 16 August at 8.30pm in Holy Trinity Cathedral, Parnell. We can be very proud of our young players to have been selected to represent our school at such an event.
A big thanks to all conductors, directors and music teachers involved who gave all their support to our young musicians, helping them refine their talents!
