Five minutes before the start, the musicians walked onstage. By ones and twos the seats of the orchestra filled: some players practiced their chords, others glanced over sheet music.
With the entrance of the first chair, the cacophony onstage quieted to a hush. All the instruments hummed in unison and the first chair sat for the opening piece.
This was the beginning of the Concert Orchestra’s Wednesday night performance — the 607th performance of the 2014-2015 season — led by conductor David Effron.
Jacob Hook, a junior in the Jacob’s School of Music, said he was especially impressed with this orchestral performance in comparison to others he attended.
“I’d say this is slightly above-average, like 60th percentile of orchestral performances,” Hook said.
He elaborated upon this ranking further, pointing out one of his personal highlights: the togetherness of this particular group of musicians.
“It’s hard to play together in an orchestra setting in a collegiate environment just because you’re only with this ensemble for one semester, whereas professional orchestras, you’re playing together for years and years with very little change,” Hook said.
The show began with a piece with a strong trombone focus, “Night on Bald Mountain,” which senior Stephanie Lebens said inspired her to attend the show.
“I’m a trombone student, so I’m here to kind of hear the section that’s playing,” Lebens said. “I know they’re good.”
At intermission, Hook said he appreciated many aspects of the performance and he looked forward to the final act: a collection of Robert Schumann pieces. He felt so strongly about the pieces, he said, that he had a hard time choosing a favorite part.
“The low brass sounds amazing right now,” Hook said. “Effron looks great, the violinist sounded great. The Schumann, too, is really when you’re going to hear the orchestra shine, so I don’t necessarily know, but I thought the (Modest) Mussorgsky sounded good too.”
The performance featured a series of solos by violinist Yu Wang, who entered after the Mussorgsky piece. Wang walked onstage in a bright blue dress, immediately focused on the music.
Wang spent all her time absorbed in the Benjamin Britten pieces she performed, and Lebens said she thought the soloist did a good job of capturing a different musical aesthetic.
“The Britten concerto is a different piece,” Lebens said. “It follows a different form than other concertos. If you’re familiar with Britten’s other work, it’s a lot more accessible.”
Hook said he appreciates concerts such as this one as educational experiences, ways to further his understanding of music as a whole and the group performing that music.
“Every orchestral concert, I just try to judge it and pick it apart to the best of my abilities in broad fundamental categories like intonation, togetherness, musicality, overall sound, things like that,” Hook said. “I’m just trying to hone those skills, to better pick it apart.”
The part of the show Lebens said stuck with her the most was the feature of the instrument closest to her heart.
“I really enjoyed the trombone section tonight,” Lebens said. “I just want to give the principal player a hug.”
The quality of a night, Hook said, can hinge on his enjoyment of a concert. This concert was satisfactory, according to Hook.
“I’ll take away the great performance,” Hook said. “I’ll probably be in a better mood the rest of the night because music puts me in a good mood.”
Hook said he has just one message for any orchestral music lovers out there.
“I would like to go on record as saying IU Orchestra is the best orchestra in the world,” Hook said.
