On November 20 at Meymandi Concert Hall, the Wakefield Orchestra was invited to play for the esteemed North Carolina Symphony for the very first time. The orchestra was comprised of a small ensemble of twelve students who played pre-concert music.

Being invited to play at the prestigious symphony was a huge honor for the members of the orchestra. To start out their performance, they chose a specific piece that would both draw in and entertain their audience.

“We always start with a great opener, something upbeat and lively,” said LaSaundra Booth, director of the orchestra.  “When playing pre-concert music there are a lot of things going on- people are talking and trying to find their seats, so we always play a piece that will grab people’s attention. At this concert we played Brahms’s Symphony No. 1. It opens with a very powerful melody.”

There was limited time to prepare for the performance, but with practice and hard work, the concert lived up to the expectations.

“We prepped for about two weeks,” said Booth. “The students are just an amazing group because they had so many other things going on, but they got it done and performed.”

Members of the orchestra felt a range of emotions before and after their performance. However, the performers ultimately felt that their hard work had paid off.

“Before the performance I felt nervous, but I also felt excited because I got to show off,” said senior Cameron Cabell, member of the orchestra. “Afterwards I felt a sense of accomplishment.”

The ensemble contained a mixture of Wakefield and Wake Forest students- a characteristic of the orchestra that the musicians thought made their performance unique.

“My favorite part was playing with musicians from Wake Forest,” said Cabell. “It’s a kind of communication while you’re playing. There are different sounds from different people and it was a new experience with them.”

Coordinating schedules with both Wakefield and Wake Forest posed a challenge for the musicians. However, the collaboration between the schools was well worth it.

“I was absolutely satisfied with the performance,” said Booth. “The only thing that I would have liked to do more of was rehearse with the students from Wake Forest High. Other than that, it went absolutely great.”

In edition to the overall satisfaction that resulted from the performance, the orchestra went an extra mile by making the atmosphere interactive for their audience.

“As we continued to move on in the program, I played a little game with the audience because there were so many people there,” said Booth. “We would play a piece, and I wouldn’t announce what we were playing. Then I’d turn around and ask the audience to name the tune.”

The members of the orchestra especially enjoyed this interactive portion of the performance.

“My favorite part was that we were able to interact with the people who came to see us play at the symphony,” said senior Vi Le, orchestra member. “Ms. Booth had this interactive thing going on, and I liked that.”

After the orchestra’s pre-concert, members got to stay and watch the NC Symphony play. At intermission, the musicians who play for the NC Symphony came out, and students got to meet and talk with them one-on-one.

“It was an amazing opportunity,” said Booth. “Many of the symphony musicians were eager to learn about us and some of our students were able to ask them questions to help them improve their musicianship.”

The opportunity that students received through meeting the symphony musicians made their experience playing for the NC Symphony all the more memorable.

“I loved just playing with older people who actually do this for a living, seeing as they enjoy it so much. I thought that was great,” said senior Ava Lockamy, orchestra member.

The orchestra is immensely proud of their concert for the NC Symphony. They hope to perform for the event again, as well as continue the legacy and successes of the Wakefield Orchestra.   

“I think that our orchestra is special because we get to go out and get opportunities like this,” said Le. “I really hope that everybody continues to support us.”