A rush of relief came Thursday, which marked the end of the exam week. However, there were still a few dedicated music students who had one final task to complete. At 1PM, the annual Grade 12 ISU Recitals took place in Room 100. To be honest, I went in with the mentality that this would be really good. However, I was wrong. From my position in the second row, holding a Student Adjudication Form in one hand, it was nothing like I would have thought…it was better. Continuing with being honest, I was blown away by the experience and professionalism that was displayed. As I said, I went in thinking it would be really good, but it was more, it was astounding.

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PHOTOS Images from the recital

The Recital began with Barbara Leung’s two pieces, Concerto for Clarinet (Tartini) and Konzert for Klarinette und Orchestra. Barbara was accompanied by Woburn Music Alumnus, Melody Chow on the piano. All in all it was a great introduction to an equally great recital.

After Barbara, was Krissy Hunter on Alto Saxophone. Krissy played three pieces: Rondo alla Turca (Mozart), Meditation (Massenet) and Hungarian Dance (Brahms), all of which were amazingly done. She was accompanied by Jennifer Looi. Personally, I really liked all of Krissy’s performances…definitely some catchy rhythms in there that were expertly presented. Great job Krissy!

Next up was Jessica Aun, who did something totally different. I did not know that Jessica was a vocalist as well as a flautist, and she gave justice to the Duke Ellington/Nora Jones classic, Don’t Miss You All. Following this was a piece by Schumann and one by Faure, both of which were really well done. Also, she was accompanied by Mufei Jiang.

In the second half of the recital, we saw some equally astonishing pieces. Kim Wilson played three pieces, two of which contained self-written Cadenza’s which were really breathtaking. However, I’d have to say that my favourite moment of this performance was when she played into the piano. This created overtones and gave the piece a more echoed and mystic feeling. Again, she was accompanied by Mufei Jiang

The second performance on clarinet was by James Rosselet, who played the second and third movements of Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto, which displayed great variety of music. Being a “clarinetist” myself, this performance really touched me. It was really well done, and if you don’t believe me, ask Mr. Farrow, who was sitting at the back, humming along. Once again, Mufei Jiang was the accompanist, doing great, like always.

Last but not least, we had Timothy Mark, also known as “Mr. President” with movements II and III from Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto in Eb. I remember coming out from the recital humming that tune…and even hours after, I found myself humming that same tune. This was definitely a keeper, and personally, one of my favourites.

All in all, an excellent beginning, middle, and end to an excellent recital. I just want to congratulate all the performers on their accomplishments, and it was really a job well done. Vicky Lee and Andrew Beaudoin were unable to perform during this recital - due to exam conflicts - but they will perform on Tuesday, which I definitely look forward to. Now, how much of this can I use for my own “ISU Evaluation Assignment” … or is that plagiarism??? I need another one of those visits to the library where we watch videos on plagiarism.