On September 29th, the concert band performed for the first time this year. It was held in the Amador multipurpose room from 7 to 9 p.m. 

“The students have been preparing for this fall concert by of course meeting for class each day and putting a lot of time in on their own outside of school to prepare their parts. Those are the two primary ways that we prepare for our performances,” said Band Director Jon Grantham.

The performers were from Jazz A, Wind 1, and Wind 2. This was the first time Jazz A has played in the fall concert. There was no theme, but music from Tchaikovsky could be heard. For some senior performers, this was the last first concert they will experience at Amador.

“It’s kind of sad knowing that this is the last time I will be doing this. This was one of the hardest concert sets I have ever played, and the fact that we did it this well in September, I think, is a really good sign for this year,” said Chloe Brunner (‘23).

Jon Grantham, and Edwin Cordoba, assistant band director, conducted the band. Grantham has been teaching at Amador for 20 years now, and this is Cordoba’s 2nd year teaching. According to Grantham, the music played was chosen for its entertainment factor, and how much it would challenge the students. This concert was just the beginning for the band however.

“We have a lot of exciting things planned for this year. The Wind Ensemble 1, our very top band of the five, has been selected for the fourth time to perform at the music educators conference by audition and invitation, which is a pretty impressive honor.  And then in April, 225 band students will be traveling to New York City and will be performing at Carnegie Hall, which is one of the most impressive musical venues you can perform in,” said Grantham.

According to Grantham, music can give students a chance to unwind from all of the academic pressure and standards they experience here at Amador.