On May 15, 2015, Skyline College’s Concert Band (MUS. 430) and Symphony Orchestra (MUS. 440) joined with the South San Francisco High School Band and a professional string quartet to provide their receptive audience with a diverse and impressive performance.
The Friction Quartet, a San Francisco-based ensemble of classically-trained professionals who specialize in modern music, opened the concert with a selection by Ludwig van Beethoven, followed by a selection composed in 2010 by legendary Bay Area composer John Adams. The Skyline College Symphony Orchestra, led by Dr. Zachary Bruno, took the stage alongside the Friction Quartet and performed pieces by W.A. Mozart, J.S. Bach, and Sergei Taneyev.
After intermission, the bands were the stars. South San Francisco High School’s Symphonic Band, led by Dan Talbert, performed the Sea to Sky suite, a 25-minute four-movement work by Ralph Ford. Skyline College’s Concert Band then performed pieces by John Philip Sousa, Alfred Reed, W.A. Mozart, with student trumpet soloist and concerto competition winner Alan Burnett stealing the show in a Herbert Clarke piece composed for trumpet and band entitled “The Debutante”. The 96 musicians of the two bands joined forces for Henry Fillmore’s “The Circus Bee” conducted by Skyline College alumnus and current San Francisco State University music student Ben Villa, followed by the Skyline College “Alma Mater” and South San Francisco High School’s Fight Song.
Article by Zack Bruno
