John Jay High School Winter Concert Series Offers A Perfect Escape

CROSS RIVER, NY — If you're looking for an escape from the winter weather this month without traveling far from home, the John Jay High School Winter Concert series might just be the climate- controlled adventure you didn't know you were looking for.

The line-up performed by the orchestra, vocal jazz and band ensembles will offer a musical chance to explore the world in a way that even the best travel agent couldn't hope to match.

John Jay students aren't waiting for the spring thaw to come alive. The Performing Arts Department is already abuzz as it prepares for a trio of concerts this month.

"John Jay High School’s Orchestra is the largest it’s ever been, so get ready for a big sound," said Conductor Elissa Leventhal.

Your first chance to do just that is coming up soon.

January 8: John Jay High School Orchestra, conducted by Elissa Leventhal

Conductor’s notes: This varied concert includes an arrangement of Gabriel Fauré’s Après un Rêve, which contains lots of complex harmonies, shifting and rhythms throughout. Another piece they will be playing is called Dia de los Muertos, which features percussion instruments and centers around the Latin-American holiday Day of the Dead.

January 18: John Jay High School Vocal Jazz, conducted by Carly Spaeth

Conductor’s notes: Highlights include Suite: Judy Blue Eyes written by Stephen Stills and performed by Crosby, Stills & Nash as well as a medley of songs from the 1987 Tony award winning musical Les Misérables. This concert will also showcase a number of vocal soloists throughout the five selections we will be performing.

January 31: John Jay High School Jazz Band, Concert Band and Wind Ensemble, conducted by Jared Henderson

Conductor’s notes: Jazz Band will perform Nica's Dream, a jazz standard composed by Horace Silver in 1954, and Flow, composed by multiple GRAMMY-nominated/winning trombonist-composer-arranger Alan Ferber. Concert Band will perform highlights from The Greatest Showman, a 2017 musical drama film based on P.T. Barnum, and Hadrian's Wall by Robert W. Smith. Wind Ensemble will perform Culloden by Julie Giroux, inspired by Scottish folk music of the mid 18th century, and Gandalf by Johann De Meij—the first movement of the composer's Symphony No. 1 based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings.

All concerts are free and open to the public, take place in John Jay High School’s theater, and begin at 7 p.m. Check the district calendar for snow dates.