El Sistema Showcase Unites 13 Music Programs

unnamed (3)Thirteen programs, eighteen performances, four hours, and one reason to go: last Saturday, the Third Annual El Sistema Showcase was bursting at the seams with polished performances and lots of energy! The Boston Philharmonic Youth Orchestra teamed up with our school to produce a day-long celebration of El Sistema programs from all over Massachusetts (including one from Rhode Island).

In the morning, young musicians from eight different programs gave it their all, performing everything from Brahms to music from The Lord of the Rings to Camptown Races. They weren’t just enthusiastic, however – these young musicians thoroughly impressed the audience with their musicianship, poise, and nuance. The last performance of the morning session was Conservatory Lab’s own Abreu Orchestra, who blew everyone away with their renditions of “Prelude from the Apollo Suite” and “Hiawatha.”

unnamed (1)The older musicians followed in the afternoon, with bold choices and brassy swagger. From Michael Jackson to Georges Bizet, the older El Sistema groups brought wonderful arrangements of songs from all genres to the stage, and ensured that the day ended on a strong note. The Dudamel Orchestra punctuated the afternoon session with their now-famous performances of “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Music from the Incredibles.”

At the end of each session in the morning and afternoon, all eight of the featured ensembles came together onstage to perform two songs together. This huge performance symbolized how unifying El Sistema is, and showed that although each group that performed that day was a little different, their commonalities – a passion for music, the willingness to keep practicing, and respect for other musicians – are what’s truly important.

Congratulations to all students who performed that day, and to our Abreu and Dudamel Orchestras!