On November 6^th, the Jazz Band, all dressed up in tuxedos with instruments in hand, took stage at the IHS theater. The 30-member Jazz band started off with a slow and relaxing rhythm. But without any announcement they started to belt out beautiful tunes, blowing the minds of the audience.

A very interesting component of the Jazz band was the introduction of the piano, guitars, a singer, and even a solo. Senior Brienne Berger sang the song, “It’s Only a Paper Moon” wonderfully, belting out some extraordinary notes. I was not unaware that the Jazz band was going to include such wonderful aspects like this, and I am sure the audience was, too.

During the song “God Bless the Child,” junior Matt Wilkinson played an amazing solo on the trombone, and all the spectators in the crowd were blown away with his ability to play such amazing music by himself. He constantly received applause from the audience every time he performed a solo.

Spectator, Troy Gamble said he “was very impressed and caught completely off guard.” As was I, since this was my first ever Jazz Band concert, and I will certainly be coming to the next concert. The Jazz Band was only one stage for about a half an hour, but the players ability to perform so quickly that the attention of everyone in the stands was on them.

Freshmen trombone player Louis Violette, who has been playing for four years now, told me how “Crescent River Ramble” was his favorite song to play because it is very fast and awesome to play. Luckily for Violette, the Jazz Band saved the best for last. The tunes started out hopeful and slow to entice us. Then out of nowhere, a sudden burst of sound from the trombone and trumpets lit up the theater. From then on, they kept the beat very quick and energetic, giving me a “feel- good” moment inside.

I was flabbergasted to notice how well they had played, especially only rehearsing for about two months. They all played in sync as it sounded like one perfect instrument playing in unison. One person who must have been extremely impressed was the Jazz Band Director, Patrick Holen, who said, “I was really proud with how they performed,” proving that hard work and dedication truly pays off.