The Bakersfield Californian

It's a Grand Night for Music

The best of Kern County’s best perform during honors festival

BY STEVE VIRGEN svirgen@bakersfield.com

hen Gary Hill spoke about the orchestral piece “Dusk,” performed during Tuesday’s It’s a Grand Night for Music, he could have easily been referring to the high school students performing in the annual musical event featuring Kern County’s best of the best, honor band, orchestra and chorus.

“Just when you think it doesn’t get better, it does,” said Hill, the world-renowned conductor who worked at Arizona State as director of bands for 20 years.

He was talking about the

light before sunset, but the statement applied to the nearly 800 high school musicians who auditioned in December and were selected to perform Tuesday night at Mechanics Bank Theater.

The concert included performances from each, the orchestra, band and choir, and closed with all of them together.

When Hill ended his portion of the concert, he encouraged parents to thank the music teachers.

“It’s been an extraordinary privilege to work with these students,” Hill said.

Centennial High choir director Patrick Burzlaff and Ridgeview choir director Ryan Clippinger were among teachers who were honored before the concert began. Burzlaff received the Multicultural Music Educator Award and Clippinger the Choral Educator Award.

Backstage before the concerts, different groups of choir singers from various high schools huddled together to practice tunes. Other small groups also huddled to take selfies.

On the other side of the theater, Kern County’s honor orchestra practiced the finishing touches of “Dusk” and “Lightspeed.”

“I just really like the different music we get to play each year,” said Stockdale High senior Nathan Chen, a bassoonist who’s been a Kern County honor musician for four years. “You never know what the music is going to be. I like the guest conductors. They have their own styles. Just seeing what they’re able to accomplish is absolutely amazing.”

For the past two weekends, the high school students from various Kern County high schools have been rehearsing at Bakersfield High. Some of the rehearsals went on for four hours.

“It’s difficult, but definitely worth it,” said Aiden Park, a Stockdale senior who plays the cello. “All the rehearsals are very necessary, especially with the caliber of music that we’re playing.”

Travis Cross, director of bands at University of California Los Angeles, served as the guest conductor for the Kern County honor band.

Geoff Ruud, in his third year as chairperson of the Kern County honor band, said he simply sent an email to Cross and asked him to be a part of the show.

He said he has enjoyed selecting guest conductors and providing students with a new experience. Tuesday night was all about the students, their achievements and their dedication to perform with the best of Kern County, he said.

“I like seeing it all come together at the end,” Ruud said of what he enjoys about It’s a Grand Night for Music. “In the end when it all comes together you can kind of just watch everything happen. For me that is the most important thing and giving the kids a good experience.”

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2023-02-01T08:00:00.0000000Z

2023-02-01T08:00:00.0000000Z

https://bakersfield.pressreader.com/article/281505050362627

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