by ELIZABETH ENDERLE and SAMANTHA LEWIS
WESTFIELD, Ind. (Dec. 9, 2018) - With the smell of fresh-baked cookies in the air and "Jingle Bells" heard in the halls, the holiday season has arrived once again. The Westfield High School’s Performing Arts Department is in full swing to prepare for its second annual Holiday Festival, featuring the Symphonic Band, Wind Ensemble, Jazz Band, Signature Sound and Limited Edition.
“It’s kind of an all inclusive band and choir production. It’s kind of the first of its kind within this area," Mr. Jonathan Majors, the Auditorium Director and Technical Director of the Holiday Festival, said. "A lot of people do just band-specific concerts or choir-specific concerts, and we’re taking it and putting the two together. We don’t have other schools that we can look at to see...how they do it or how this school does it. We’re kind of creating it by ourselves.”
Nevertheless, all of the directors expressed enthusiasm at the idea of working together again.
“Jazz choir and Jazz Band are going to perform together for the very first time which is exciting," Mrs. Alison Wessel, director of the Limited Edition and Signature Sound Choirs, said. "We also have the big number with the choir and the band together at the end so bringing the entire department together like that. It’s great."
Wind Ensemble Director Mr. Mark Sands agreed, expressing excitement at this year's novelties.
“We’re doing more interactive things this year, where the choirs are singing while the band is playing," Mr. Sands said. "We only did that once last year, and this year we’re doing it on a couple of different occasions. We’re looking forward to that.”
The theme for this year’s Holiday Festival is “Music in the Movies.” All of the pieces will be connected to famous and beloved holiday movies.
“Just having a very specific theme with it being about music from movies specifically. I think it generates some excitement about it,” Mr. Curtis Prichard, Director of the Symphonic and Jazz Bands, said. “I’d say the movie suite that we put together is probably the single thing I’m most excited about. That’s the Symphonic Band that’s playing the movie suite, and we commissioned it by a friend of mine who’s an international composer... In that one, we have music from Home Alone, from the Santa Clause, The Snowman, and from Nightmare Before Christmas.”