We members of the Junior Orchestra had been rehearsing for our summer concert since the beginning of the school year. Although some rehearsals had to be cancelled, we received a lot of support from our music teachers – Ms Wenz, Ms Sigg, and Mr Anjarwalla – and in the end it was a fantastic concert. Our special day was 4 July 2022. First the musicians gathered at 6 p.m. for one long final rehearsal. Then our audience – parents, mentors, and fellow students – began to fill up the Wohnzimmer, our concert hall. Naturally we began to grow more and more nervous before the concert started at 7:30 p.m.

We began with the Menuet II from George Frideric Handel’s “Music for the Royal Fireworks”. Then we played a piece of Irish folkdance music titled “Circassion Circle”. And, finally, we performed the canon “Ich will den Herrn loben” by Georg Philipp Telemann. In addition to the orchestra pieces, some musicians performed a solo or a duet on the violin or flute and others sang songs. We even had singers from Salem Kolleg performing with us. Those who chose to perform a solo, could also have our piano teacher, Ms Nagata, play the accompaniment. After mastering our concert with bravura, we received a loud round of applause. That made us all feel very proud. We want to thank Ms Sigg, Ms Wenz and Mr Anjarwalla for the wonderful preparation and organisation! And we would also like to mention that the Junior Orchestra, which also includes some of Ms Sigg’s private violin pupils, is always pleased to welcome new members.