Goshen Junior High School Orchestras
The Goshen Junior High School Orchestras have a long tradition of excellence in music performance as we prepare students with the knowledge, understanding, and technical training to become great musicians. The Goshen Junior High School Allegro and Vivace Orchestras rehearse during the school day, four times a week.
Allegro Orchestra: The Allegro Orchestra is for students continuing in orchestra that participated in 6th grade orchestra the previous year. Allegro Orchestra focuses on building competency and understanding in intonation while incorporating shifting and vibrato techniques. Students will work to play musically as a group. This orchestra performs in the Fall Orchestra Concert in September, the Winter Orchestra Concert in December, at the ISSMA JME Organizational Festival in March, the Spring Orchestra Concert in May, and the Music in the Parks Festival in May. Sean Patrick is the podium director of the Allegro Orchestra. Rachel Pellerito and Jason Pfeifer assist this ensemble.
Vivace Orchestra: The Vivace Orchestra is for students continuing in orchestra that participated in Allegro Orchestra the previous year. Vivace Orchestra continues to hone intonation while maturing vibrato techniques all while playing more challenging music. Additionally, we work for students to build an independent understanding of phrasing and musicianship. This orchestra performs in the Fall Orchestra Concert in September, the Winter Orchestra Concert in December, at the ISSMA JME Organizational Festival in March, the Spring Orchestra Concert in May, as well as performing on the elementary tour and at the Music in the Parks Festival in May. Sean Patrick is the podium director of the Vivace Orchestra. Jason Pfeifer and Rachel Pellerito assist this ensemble.
GJH Cadenza Orchestra: Goshen Junior High School’s Cadenza Orchestra is a volunteer group comprised of students ranging from eighteen months to three years of playing experience. Started in 2011, this ensemble rehearses after school for just 75 minutes a week starting in September. This ensemble focuses on jazz and pop styles as well as traditional orchestra music. Student work on understanding the style and articulation for different genres and get experience with improvisation. We also have a lot of fun and eat a lot of cookies. Sean Patrick is the director of this extra-curricular ensemble.
Chamber Ensembles: In the Goshen Orchestras we affirm the importance of chamber music for our students both from an educational, and practical standpoint. Chamber music encourages independent musicianship, demands music literacy, and fosters meaningful musical and social growth in students. All 7th and 8th grade students participate in the "Chamber Unit" which takes place from late November and extending to early February. Students choose their groupings of 3 to 20 members of any instrumentation, though they are encouraged to choose standard instrumentation such as string quartets, violin quartets, string trios, etc... Students then spend a portion of class time over the next seven weeks working on a piece of music independently and with some teacher guidance. All ensembles participate in our "Chamber Assessents" in which an outside adjudicator comes into the school during on the Tuesday before Solo & Ensemble, listens to the groups giving them feedback and suggestions for improvement. Most ensembles choose to participate in the ISSMA Solo & Ensemble event. Students can choose to remain in these ensembles beyond the chamber unit by arranging rehearsals outside of the school day.