On Wednesday, May 11th, the Shea 101 recital hall filled up with parents and teachers, all there to see the musical performances of pieces like Ode To Joy and Hard Rock Blues. The musicians though, were students of the Music After School Program.
The Music After School program, led by Executive Director Carol Frierson-Campbell Ph.D, pairs students from the Norman S. Weir Middle School with students from William Paterson University music majors. This program gives the younger students music lessons and the William Paterson students teaching experience. They meet once a week, where students can learn instruments like the flute, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, and more. This extracurricular activity offers educational opportunities to students who would otherwise not be able to take music lessons. Supported financially by the Muna and Basem Hishmeh Foundation, the program hopes to grow and receive more support from the community to enable them to reach more students.
The concert featured all the middle school students being led and conducted by the William Paterson students that worked with them all year, known as Hishmeh Fellows. The concert featured performances by many different groups of students, such as, a flute trio, a brass ensemble, a trombone duet, and even have a handful of solo performances. Crowd favorites seemed to be brothers Joshua and Jonah Capers playing the seasonally appropriate Jingle Bells and the percussion ensemble’s Latin Jam lead by Hishmeh Fellows Sean Dello Monaco and Elise McAloon.
At the end of the concert, all students joined on stage together to perform as a full ensemble. The students performed two pop hits, Happy by Pharrell William and Roar by Katy Perry, which were arranged by Assistant Program Director Caleb Rumley. Overall, the room was filled with joy and excitement in the end as the children reveled in the completion of their performance while the parents and staff members of the Music After School program were filled with pride.