INSPIRATIONAL: Poly Orchestra listens to the world-renowned Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Walt Disney Concert Hall.
By Kate Santoso, Staff Writer
After two grueling weeks of AP testing, Poly musicians sought a peaceful respite from the burdens of school. A harmonious Saturday spent in Hollywood would be the perfect appetizer for a stress-free weekend. In fact, this would be the first professional orchestral performance watched by a majority of the orchestra members, which only heightened enthusiasm for the trip.
On Saturday, May 14, Poly Orchestra and additional band members congregated in a large group, ready for the excitements of a twelve-hour field trip. The trip began with a bite for lunch along Hollywood’s distinguished Sunset Boulevard. Students frolicked down the Hollywood Walk of Fame, a legendary memorial walk adorned with stars dedicated to the biggest names in the entertainment industry. Before boarding the bus to head elsewhere, Robert Habereder, Poly’s conductor, led his musicians to the world’s largest independent record store in Hollywood: Amoeba Records. Music fans adored the bustling shop for its vast selection of vinyl records, videos, CD’s, and live shows. “Amoeba Records is a truly amazing place to find all types of music and movies, whether old or new,” Jeremy Patricio (9) expressed.
After departing from Amoeba Records, the musicians visited Olvera Street, the oldest part of Downtown Los Angeles and California, founded in 1781. Olvera Street, a Mexican outdoor marketplace, is a prominent space for visitors to take a casual stroll while enjoying cultural food, souvenirs, and traditional live entertainment. “I appreciated exploring the variety of music and cultures,” Savannah Torres (10) exclaimed.
The Walt Disney Concert Hall (WDCH), home of the Los Angeles (LA) Philharmonic, is not only one of the most acoustically sophisticated concert halls in the world but is also an international architectural landmark. Conducted by Leonard Slatkin and accompanied with cellist, Truls Mork, the LA Philharmonic played Rossini’s “William Tell Overture,” Elgar’s “Cello Concerto in E minor,” and Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique. Before the concert, Poly musicians listened in on the pre-concert event, where the internationally acclaimed conductor Leonard Slatkin was interviewed by Thomas Neenan, a lecturer in music history and music theory at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). Slatkin is credited for the formation of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) and also conducts the Orchestre National de Lyon (ONL). His pre-concert interview included the struggles he managed to overcome to finally establish a thriving orchestra in Detroit and the fascinating history of the last piece, Symphonie Fantastique. Slatkin finalized his interview by encouraging the audience to “sit back and let this incredible world overtake you. For two hours, you will have truth, honesty, and a connection with something from long ago.”
The concert began with ecstatic feelings from the orchestra, and the audience was overjoyed. Poly musicians were thrilled to find a connection to their orchestra once they heard the familiar tune of “March to the Scaffold,” which was played at Poly a year ago. Like a magical wave of a wand, the concert concluded and left the crowd trembling with elation and disbelief that such an orchestra could capture their minds and deeply entrance them with such delicate music. “The overall performance of ‘William Tell Overture’ and Fantastique was transcendent. I had goosebumps hearing the performance,” Angie Coronado (12) said.
For many budding musicians, this trip was an eye-opening experience that changed their perspective of music forever. For seniors, the trip would be one of the last memories of the Poly High Orchestra. Over the years, it will serve as a reminder of all the friendships the group created, as well as the joy and laughter classical music brought to their lives hereafter with Slatkin’s reminder to “never take music for granted.”