Performing at Carnegie Hall on April 4 at 3:30 pm, the combined Brookfield Central and East orchestras will be traveling to Manhattan in New York City for an outstanding opportunity over Spring Break.

A total of 46 students (in symphony and chamber orchestra) from both high schools participated in the making of an audition DVD for the National Band and Orchestra Festival at Carnegie Hall, the world’s most prestigious concert hall, sponsored by WorldStrides, an organization which allows young qualified students to participate in remarkable experiences such as this one. The students will be receiving comments and advice from music professors and directors who are serving as judges for the festival. Cellist Ben Karbowski (‘15) stated, “The trip is meant to give us orchestra students the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get to perform in an internationally known, musically-historic concert hall … where Tchaikovsky conducted the opening concert” in 1891.

The students as well as multiple parents will leave on April 1 after a rehearsal until 5:30. The trip will come to end in New York on April 5, around 9:30 at night, when the bus will drive back to BCHS overnight.

While the orchestra has performed in New York before, the opportunity to perform at Carnegie Hall is not at all a yearly occurrence. The concert, which will be played in the Isaac Stern Auditorium, is open to the public, though each ticket costs $85. When asked is she was looking forward to the trip, director Dr. Denise Haney remarked with passion, “Of course! I live to see students empowered through music.”

“The music we will be performing was composed of Living Composers,” Dr. Haney expressed, “Part of our semester goal is to connect with each composer in some way.”  The pieces the orchestra will be playing includes Overture to the Wind by Kirt Mosier, Wind River Reflections by Jared Spears, American Sketches by Joshua Reznicow, and Concertino in C Major for Two Cellos and String Orchestra, Opus 3 No. 1 by Ben Karbowski.

“One of the composers is BCHS Senior Ben Karbowski. He has written a Sonatina for 2 cellos and orchestra [entitled Opus. 3 No. 1],” Dr. Haney added, “Ben and Sam Ranney will be performing the piece at Carnegie Hall.” This is a truly enticing experience for Karbowski as he said, “I am very excited to go, as the orchestra will be premiering a piece that I composed.”

Although the performance is their main focus of course, the students will have a chance to explore New York City. When not performing or rehearsing, the students will get a chance to visit Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty, various additional sights, see a Broadway musical, and attend a special dinner to celebrate the performance among several other activities.

Everyone is looking forward to the trip and there is no doubt that the orchestra will have an amazing performance. Violinist Cassidy Mazurek (‘16) added, “I’m very much looking forward to it. I’ve never been to New York, so the fact that we get to play at Carnegie Hall is really exciting.”