Benefit concert to help McKay students pay for lessons, Chicago field trip

Long after McKay High School’s commons emptied out on a Friday after school, laughter could be heard from the band rooms. Groups of students hung out and chatted, some fiddling with instruments, and a marimba player in the hallway made repeated attempts to perfect a complex phrase.

It was quieter in the auditorium, which was hosting the first rehearsal between the Chamber Orchestra students and Oregon Symphony members ahead of the school’s 4th annual benefit concert. The concerts’ ticket sales help students pay for private lessons, fix well-used instruments and, in a few weeks, will put the orchestra on a plane for the first time.

On Friday, March 21, they’ll play Johann Sebastian Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 6., backing the professional soloists. Tickets are $25, or $5 for students, and are available online or at the door. 

There will also be a silent auction featuring offerings from businesses, including spa days, an In-N-Out Burger basket and autographed merchandise from the Portland Trail Blazers.

During rehearsal, after an attempt playing the piece that elicited some furrowed brows from students, Oregon Symphony viola players Amanda Grimm and Charles Noble shared ways to enhance the section of the song they were focusing on, along with encouragement.

The students’ next attempt at playing may have sounded similar to the untrained ear, but the feeling of a piece falling into place was visible throughout the ensemble. The string players swayed more as they played, and when they reached the end everyone exhaled collectively. A few students let out excited giggles.

“How was that?” their conductor, Alex Figueroa, said, to emphatic nods from the students and the professionals. “Write that in,” he said. The students snatched their pencils up from the stands.

In a few weeks, McKay’s Orchestra will take its first trip on a plane to hear the Chicago Symphony and learn from professors at Northwestern University. With the support of the concert it won’t be a major financial burden to students, Figueroa said.

“We’re really fortunate that we’ve been able to fundraise, and the community has been so supportive with the last little bit here to make that happen,” he said.

This year’s concert has a fundraising goal of $15,000. Proceeds also help fund free private lessons for students, which about a third of the music program’s players use, Figueroa said. The money also helps repair and update the school’s instrument inventory.

This is the first McKay benefit concert to feature professional viola players, which will be featured especially beautifully in Bach’s work, Figueroa said. They’ll also play Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 which he said has been a fun challenge for the students.

Noble, Oregon Symphony violist, said that he was inspired to participate in the benefit concert because of a former student of his who went to high school in Salem and is now with Project Chamber Music: Willamette Valley.

“There’s always been such a strong support of string music here in Salem. That’s something that is lacking in, for example, in Portland Public Schools that don’t have a string program,” he said. “It’s really great to be able to come down here and work with the students, and really enjoy the fact that there is a wonderful string program here.”

Noble said he was inspired to become a professional musician by his high school orchestra teacher.

“He just really instilled a love of music in me. I always had fun being in orchestra in school, so that was really nice. Because sometimes it’s not necessarily the best experience,” he said. “To have a great experience like that really set me up for at least wanting to be involved in music through college.”

Noble described the McKay students as wonderful and attentive.

“They’re obviously getting really great instruction here,” he said. “I’m not surprised, but I’m very pleased.”

Lily Cervantes, a senior cellist, said McKay’s music program feels special among the communities in the school, and that Figueroa works to give everyone opportunities to improve.
 
“In orchestra, everybody really does come together,” she said. “Anybody can have that sense of belonging.”

Cervantes is looking forward to the Chicago trip, and is excited to go to the Willis Tower, the tallest in the city.

As a senior, Cervantes has already worked with three different groups of Oregon Symphony professionals for the annual benefit concert.

“You’d think that you would feel scared playing with them because they’re so good, but they’re so good at helping everybody feel comfortable playing with them,” she said. “I think that’s why we keep doing this.”

Contact reporter Abbey McDonald: [email protected] or 503-575-1251.

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