A Rollercoaster of Music

The Fallston High School band, chorus, and orchestra traveled to Hershey Park on May 20th to participate in the Music in the Parks Festival. Ms. Breidenbaugh and Ms. Stout brought back this tradition after four tedious years. Being a double-A school, Fallston played against other schools in the same category, being scored in the range of five possible points. 

Just like golf, the lower the number, the better the score. The best score a group could get is a one, which is called “superior,” then “excellent,” “good,” “fair,” and lastly, five points called “poor.” While the main competition was between the schools in the same category as their own, awards were also given out to the best band, chorus, and orchestra across all high schools competing. After performing, all groups spent the day at Hershey Park, taking a break in between the performance and the award ceremony later that day. 

Band, chorus, and orchestra selected two students each as representatives to accept the awards: Kyle Wolferman and Jonny Campbell for band; Sydney Olsen and Sienna Smith for chorus; and Molly Lorden and Brynn Seergae for orchestra.   

Fallston High School’s band had 50 students performing Mar Y Cielo for their warm-up, Air for Band by Frank Erickson, and Declaration in Blue by Robert W. Smith as their adjudicated pieces. During the ceremony, the band won the Double-A Highschool award with the score “superior,” and the overall high school band award as well.  

Fallston High School’s chorus had 24 students performing Pure Imagination for their warm-up, Famine Song by Vida, and Baba Yetu by Christopher Tin as their adjudicated pieces. During their ceremony, the Chorus won third with the score “excellent,” with second place scoring one point higher.  

Fallston High School’s orchestra had 23 students performing Merry-Go-Round-of-Life for their warm-up, Storm Chasers by Lortz, and Downton Abbey by Lunn as their adjudicated pieces. 

During the ceremony, the orchestra won third with the score “excellent,” with second place scoring two and a half points higher.  

Eric Vanderbeek and Noah Walter accompanied the chorus during their performance and Noah Walter won the individual award for Best Student Accompanist during the ceremony. “This festival was the perfect end to a great year of music making, and I have loved working with everyone this year,” said Fallston’s band director, Ms. Breidenbaugh. 

The chorus used the stage to their advantage which showed when the “judges even mentioned that overtones could be heard during Famine Song,” said Fallston’s chorus and orchestra director, Ms. Stout, which really shows how “the group really locked into the chords to create pure harmonies.” Special shoutout to the soloists, Lilyana Herbert, Kaylee Spiegel, Theo Kidwell, and Nick Spangler. 

“I am so proud of the hard work that these students put into this trip!” says Ms. Stout. Special shoutout to Hailey Johnson for “learning first violin music the week before to help balance the group,” and Helen Urdaneta and Peter Morton for learning new music as well.

With none of the current students in band, chorus, or orchestra ever participating in a competition before, many were blown away by how natural each group looked, and more importantly, sounded. Having this tradition back in the books, we hope to see many more trophies fill the music hallway.