Category Archives: Front/Home

Community, Front/Home

‘Jazz Meets Symphony’ concert has many fans in awe

Leave a comment

By H. Suzie Lee

The Cleveland Jazz Orchestra and Akron Symphony Orchestra orchestrated Orchestral Jazz together in EJ Thomas Hall for the concert ‘Jazz Meets Symphony.’

    Jazz Meets Symphony concert was performed on April 14, 2018.

    Christopher Wilkins was the conductor of the concert and Paul Ferguson, also known as trombonist, was the Artistic Director of the concert.

    Sam Sandman, the school’s band director, also performed at concert playing Bari Saxophone from Cleveland Jazz Orchestra.

    The concert’s first tune was Artistry in Rhythm by Paul Ferguson including piano solo by Theron Brown.

    Beautiful yet mysterious jazz piano opened up the concert creating a silent atmosphere; however, the mood quickly changed with classical jazz rhythms.

     Next was Eine Kleine Nachtmusik by Wolfgang Amade Mozart arranged by Ferguson. The piece started out as the classical, famous melody of Mozart and suddenly the whole vibe changes to Jazz.

     String instruments were playing the famous melody and jazz instruments took over the whole piece in a different vibe; the piece went back and forth between Mozart’s classical melody and modern Jazz style.

     Eine Kleine Nachtmusik piece was a perfect example of how beautifully Jazz and symphony can blend in together.

     Third piece of the concert was La Vie en Rose by Edith Piaf arranged by Ferguson featuring Jack Schantz on flugelhorn.

     While La Vie en Rose is cult-favorite, classic piece in jazz industry performed by Louis Armstrong and often gives more bright and swingy feeling, Jack Schantz’s flugelhorn solo was so mellow and beautiful that the audience experienced chills and melancholy emotion.

    The concert continued performing in the following order: Astieri by Paul Ferguson, The song is you by Jerome Kern/Oscar Hammerstein II arranged by Ferguson, I’ve Got the World on a String by Harold Arlen/Ted Koehler, and Gershwin Medley by George & Ira Gershwin featuring Evelyn Wright, vocalist, Glenn Miller Medley by Ferguson.

      After ten minutes of Intermission the concert performed pieces such as Three Pieces for Blues Band and Orchestra: 3rd movement by William Russo, Rays of light by Paul Ferguson, Dorsey Medley by Tommy Dorsey, Stardust by Hoagy Carmichael arranged by Ferguson with clarinet solo by Tom Reed, Just One of Those Things by Cole Porter, But Beautiful by Jimmy Van Heusen/Johnny Burke arranged by Ferguson featuring Evelyn Wright, vocalist, and ended the concert with Ellington Medley arranged by Paul Ferguson.

      At the end of the concert, the audience were overwhelmed with the passion and energy that they received from the performers. They did not stop clapping and resulted in two encores from the vocalist Evelyn Wright.

    ‘Jazz Meets Symphony’ was truly an incredible, exceptional concert that will be remembered in many people’s memories.

  

 

Front/Home, News

Students begin state tests this week

Leave a comment

testingscheduleBy Stohion Staff

Students at the high school will begin state testing this week.

Beginning Tues, April 17, students will have an altered schedule to accommodate for the testing times.

This week’s tests will run from 7:30 a.m. until 10:30 a.m., and then an altered class schedule will follow through the remainder of the day when students are dismissed at 2:30 p.m.

According to the schedule sent out by administration, Tuesday is 9th and 10th grade English, Wednesday is Math I and II, Thursday is American History and Government, and Friday is Biology.  Students needing to take these tests must report to school by 7:30 on their scheduled testing days.

Any student not taking the required test will be asked to make it up the following week during the make-up sessions.

Front/Home, Sports

Girls Track finishes rained-out meet

Leave a comment

By Lauren Rayman

    The girl’s track team got rained out while facing Wadsworth on Tuesday, April 3. They went back to the Grizzly Stadium to finish the meet on Thurs, April 12.

   “I was happy at first because it was so cold and the weather was gross, but now I wish it wasn’t cancelled because they were on spring break and had a lot of girls missing so we had a better chance of winning,” captain Maddie Merlene said.

    At the first attempt of the meet on April 3, the 4×800 meter relay, 100 meter hurdles and the 100 meter dash had been completed. Freshman Jordan Lyle had already competed in the 100 hurdles.

    “I think I did better today than last week because the weather and the vibes were a lot better than last Tuesday,” Lyle said.

    Despite being ready to run in the poor conditions of the meet last week, the team agrees that running this week was better for the team all around.

    “I don’t think it messed with us. If anything, it gave us more time to practice and prepare for our next meet,” Merlene said.

    Lyle believes that the meet being cancelled last week and rescheduled for this week was better not only because of the weather but because the girls had a bigger team this week.

    Many girls who were injured and unable to run last week had recovered and were able to compete this week.

    These are just some of the benefits of the meet last week being cancelled due to weather conditions, but there are also cons about it being this week.

    “We had to drive 45 minutes again to Wadsworth, and all of their girls came back from spring break, and they were able to do all of their field events from the start, when many of our girls had to do their field events when it was cold and hard to do anything,” Merlene said.

    This was also the second meet of the week for the team and some athletes will be competing at the Walsh Relays at Walsh Jesuit High School on Saturday.

    The girls track team has two home meets next week. They will face Twinsburg on April 17 and Hudson on April 19 at senior night.

 

Community, Front/Home, News

Monday’s BOE meeting focuses primarily on student walkout

Leave a comment

By Maria Leonino

    Mon March 19 the Board of Education had a meeting discussing the student lead walkout. Board members included Gerry Bettio, Lisa-Johnson Bowers, David Licate, Kelly Toppin and Jason Witacre.

    Principals, teachers, students and parents gathered to listen to the board talk about their views on the walkout. Many students spoke, including Student Council President, Moriah Payne.

    Payne was in charge of leading the walkout. She wanted to make sure she made a point to say the purpose of the walkout was to promote safety.

    “Four out of five board members responded with amazement at the respect of the student body and congratulated us for handling the issue so maturely,” Payne said.

    Along with promoting safety, the student walkout served as a memorial for previous shootings and to empower the students for the change they can make in the world.

    Payne, along with the other students who led the walkout, wanted to show students that they can come together to overcome the political differences for a common cause.

    There was backlash from the community about the walkout, and the Board of Education wanted to have more interaction with the students leading up to the walkout.

Overall, Payne wanted the board to know it was not her nor the students intention to disobey the rules of the district.

    “We know we cannot change the minds of everyone, but we would appreciate the consideration that our intentions were not to debate the 2nd amendment, but rather to demonstrate the power of the 1st amendment,” Payne said.

    In response to Payne’s speech, Board of Education member, Jason Witacre pitched an idea of students being more involved with the community and the board.

    Witacre feels if students were to organize a committee linked to the board, it could help prevent further complications with events in the district.