Junior High and Senior High Bands perform winter concert

The start of a busy season for the Cleveland band program, the Junior High Band and the Senior High Band performed a winter concert in a packed new gym on Monday.

“There are a lot of band concerts going on now, but not many have a full house,” said director Erik Hermanson. “Thank you so much. It is a pleasure playing for you.”

The Junior High Band opened with “Great Beginnings,” an energetic composition that engaged every instrumentalist. Next up was “Zig Zag” with its pulsating energy and rhythmic motifs.

“It’s almost like a test for the band students,” Hermanson said.

Influenced by dramatic film scores, the fast-paced Night Fury conjured up legendary images of dragons and castles. The seventh and eighth graders closed with “Thunderstruck.” Cinematic in nature, it harkened back to great movie scores.

The Senior High Band, ninth and 10th graders combined with juniors and seniors for the first time, fired up its jets with “Danger Zone,” the high-soaring classic hit from “Top Gun.” From there, they pumped up the crowd with “Ozzy Osbourne Medley,” which included “Crazy Train.”

Next up for the older group was the uplifting “One with the Wind,” which opened with stillness and gradually gained momentum to running and then flying.

Like switching gears in an old pickup truck, “Redneck Special” was the next piece for the senior band. It featured Queen’s catchy glam rock classic “FBG” and the nostalgic John Denver hit “Country Roads,” a tune that was impossible to not voice the lyrics in your head and that captures longing in such a visceral way that it triggers actual longing.

The ubiquitous Taylor Swift was evoked in the next selection, a medley of her hits, including “Shake it Off.” The high school band was grovin’ with energy when the closed the concert with the 80s hit “Funkytown.”

Performances by Holiday Jazz are next on deck for the school bands, first at the FFA Craft Fair on Saturday, December 2 and then gigs at the home boys basketball game on December 5 and at the Mall of America on December 14.

Holiday Jazz will also entertain at the Dollars for Scholars fundraiser in the commons on December 18 and again during the elementary concert on December 20.