Opus 28

Yesterday was Wayne's big day.

We traveled 2 hours in the rain to Ludlow for the Opus 28 concert. Wayne finally met his music composing mentor, Erik Neilson, in person for the first time.

There were 25 student compositions being rehearsed throughout the day before the evening performance. Wayne's piece was first on the rehearsal list. He and other students joined the musicians on stage as they played his composition and Wayne made comments, gave feedback, and mentioned some things he's like them to do differently. Cole and Ben came along as well, because they are part of the school's composing club. Another friend was supposed to come along, but was not able to make it. Students are encouraged to listen to each others rehearsals and learn from them.

It was quite an experience to hear Wayne's piece played live for the first time. It sounds so much more rich and lively after getting used to hearing the computer generated version all these weeks. I was so proud I almost burst into tears.

The people who run this project, including the mentors and musicians, are so organized and so nice. It was such a great experience. Wayne's mentor saw his name tag and immediately knew him, even though he probably mentors dozens of kids. He also saw Cole's name tag and said, "Oh you're the fella who's writing Dark Piano."  Wayne's mentor told me that he was very impressed with how hard Wayne worked on his piece.

When the coordinator saw me with my camera she told me to feel free to go right up on stage and take as many pictures as I wanted, wherever I wanted.

Wayne on the stage during rehearsal with his teacher, Ms. Kennedy, Cole, and Ben.

After Wayne's rehearsal and after listening to some other rehearsals, we took a rainy walk to Subway for lunch.

After lunch, there were workshops to attend.

And snacks. I later learned that Cole ate 7 brownies.

Wayne had to be interviewed for DVD footage. His teacher, Ms. Kennedy , read the interview questions, while a tech from Lake Champlain Access Television recorded it.

There was dinner of lasagna, salad, bread, and desserts.

 If I had known that Cole had already consumed 7 brownies that afternoon, I would not have let him have dessert.

Showtime. Wayne's composition was the last before intermission. 

We listened to 14 student works, including Wayne's. Since intermission was right after his, we decided that was a good time to gracefully duck out for the long, rainy drive home.

All of this music sounded completely professional to me. I would never have guessed that it was all written by elementary, middle school, and high school students.

Wayne said that he wants to do the next Opus project as well, and that even if he doesn't have a piece that is chosen for the concert, he wants to attend the day and concert.