Cornerstone’s Fifth Subscription concert is here! And this time, it took place on an outside venue for the first time ever. As we look back at this concert and the events leading up to it, let us reflect and analyze the orchestra overall.

Elementary, middle, and high school students all participated in this event. The venue was located in Seoul Children’s Grand Park, with the concert starting at 3 PM on a sunny afternoon. Due to the orchestra event happening on a Friday, for high school, Cornerstone was on a half-day, while those participating in orchestra left earlier after the first period.

Once the orchestra members arrived at their destination, lunch was given out in a buffet-like style, and then rehearsals were conducted.

Later on, at three, the performance began. The younger children went first, performing their songs such as “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” and “Old MacDonald Had a Farm.”

The performance would continue on next, with the lower and upper elementary classes doing their show as well. Then, the middle schoolers would perform.

 

The highlight of the event would come last, when the high school orchestra, middle school, and elementary both combined to play four songs: Tchaikovsky Symphony 5 Movement 4, Pirates of the Caribbean, Journey (the school anthem), and You Raise me Up.

 

The overall performance of the concert was generally okay. However, there were still some issues regarding the concert itself. First of all, the weather was excruciatingly hot, which impacted the audience, albeit they had shade. In addition, there was not enough room behind the stage for the orchestra students to stay, so pop up canopies were set up as a base for the orchestra students. It of course didn’t evoke the “behind the scenes” feeling, but that was the price to pay for the feature of having the orchestra outside.

We interviewed one member of the orchestra and one member of the audience who attended the performance.

 

Ellie Kong (G10), performer

Q: What instrument do you play?

Kong: I play the cello.

Q: As a member of the orchestra, how was the orchestra in general?

Kong: This year, we played a very difficult piece, but to my surprise, in the end, we pulled it off. A lot of the high schoolers were busy this season because of APs, but we pulled through. I was very proud of all of us at the end of the concert.

Q: What do you think is different compared to the previous orchestra? (except for the fact that it was outside)

Kong: The song was a lot harder this time, and a lot more kids from elementary joined. Furthermore, I think I saw a lot of growth in the elementary school kids, especially the 1st-3rd graders. As the years progress, I think the songs are advancing with us!

Q: If you had one thing to say to the orchestra, what would it be?

Kong: Let’s have another spectacular concert next year! We got this.

 

 

Emily Song (G12), audience

Q: As a member of the audience, how was the orchestra in general?

Song: I liked how the orchestra featured multiple groups of performers. I could enjoy many songs performed by Cornerstone elementary, middle, and high school students. The orchestra performance actually amazed me with its quality. The orchestra club had an extremely long performance, which made my arms ache from holding them up for so long, but it definitely showcased high school students’ ability to perform a long song.

Q: What made things different since this orchestra performance was done outside?

Song: Since the orchestra performance was held outside, I really enjoyed the warm weather and the surrounding nature. I could feel the energy of the orchestra members more vividly. Also, I could see each other’s faces clearly under sunlight, so I liked the outside performance.

 

Q: If you had one thing that could be improved in this orchestra performance, what would it be?

Song: Everything seemed great! I hope they had more songs as two songs per group felt a little short.

Q: What is one feature that was interesting in this orchestra (except for the fact that it is outside. Make sure it’s unique!)

Song: It was unique to see a high school student conducting the orchestra. Isaac’s conducting was amazing.