Full house

54th annual All-County Music Festival fills the seats in Tri-Valley’s gorgeous theatre

By RICHARD A. ROSS

GRAHAMSVILLE, NY — It was going to take far more than an impending monsoon to keep hordes of avid listeners from taking their seats at this year’s All-County Music Festival, held for the first time in Tri-Valley’s new theatre on March 8.

The staging of this year’s festival, the 54th annual one put on by the Sullivan County Music Educators Association (SCMEA), featured two concerts that each packed the thousand-plus capacity of the theatre. The concert’s staging in Tri-Valley’s new theatre was the fulfillment of a dream long held by former school board president Lenny Bernstein. With the construction of the new theatre that now offers the largest and best state-of-the-art acoustics of any venue in the county, the concert finally found its way to Grahamsville, and the throngs of parents anxious to see their children perform in the renowned festival followed suit.

Following an introduction by SCMEA All-County Festival Chairperson Lori Orestano-James, the audience was addressed by New York State Assembywoman Aileen Gunther and Sullivan County Legislator Leni Binder, who offered resolutions affirming the value of music education and of the work done by the music educators of Sullivan County.

Orestano-James thanked outgoing SCMEA chairperson Kevin Giroux and presented him with a plaque commemorating his six years of service.

The first concert featured a performance by the High School String Orchestra, conducted by Steven Thomas, who has wielded his baton in front of the Amherst High School orchestra for the past 28 years.

Monticello’s Rebecca Perlman served as this year’s concertmistress. The orchestra’s rendition of Verdi’s “Overture to Nabucco,” Grieg’s “Ase’s Death” from “Peer Gynt,” the “St Paul Suite” by Holst and “Plink, Plank, Plunk,” by Anderson were delightful. The string orchestra was comprised of students from Monticello and Liberty high schools, the only two schools in the county with string programs.

Next up was the Elementary Chorus, conducted by Erica Feldman. Singing a variety of tunes from “Dansi Na Kuimba,” by Dave and Jean Perry, to the pulsating rhythm of “From a Railway Carriage,” by Mary Lynn Lightfoot, the group of 115 children, hailing from the eight Sullivan County schools, finished on the resounding notes of “The Banjo’s Back in Town,” by Earl and Alden Shulman and Marshall Brown.

The Women’s Chorus, under the direction of Dr. Jim Blanton, took to the risers to serenade the audience with “Esurientes,” by Vivaldi and selections from “Magnificat,” composed by Aaron Copland, Douglas Wagner, Cecil Effinger and Francisco Nunez. Both choruses were extremely well prepared by their music teachers, making their concert performances sound far better than what might be imagined given so few rehearsals together.

The festival’s first concert concluded with a performance by the Middle School Band, conducted by Stephen Austen. They opened with “The Battle Pavan,” by Tielman Susato, and closed with “Gypsy Dance,” by David Holsinger.

The evening concert featured the Junior High School Jazz Band conducted by Michael Pacer, the Junior High Chorus under the direction of Dr. Heather Eyerly and the Senior High School Band conducted by Paul Shewan.

Their final number, “The Black Horse Troop,” by John Phillip Sousa, left a lasting resonance with a most appreciative audience.

This year’s festival showcased 540 students and made Music in our Schools Month come alive for legions of children performers, and the enthusiastic public that braved horrendous weather to hear them sing and play.