Abigail Shimniok

The University of Wisconsin-Platteville University Band performed a 6-song concert Tuesday evening. The band was directed by Aaron Cooley, with a guest student conductor. This was the second and final performance of the semester from the University Band.
The concert was held at 7 p.m. in the Brodbeck Concert Hall, located in the Center for the Arts. The concert began with Standridge’s “Imaginarium,” followed by the second piece, “Brighton Beach,” which was directed by UW-Platteville student Alison Clemitus-Rogers.
“In This Moment” was the third piece, followed then by “Summit.” “December Lullaby” was the fifth, which featured a few soloists throughout the piece. Lastly, “Imani” was performed, a festive Kwanzaa piece that involved the instrumentalists singing along in certain sections. Soloist Victoria Logan said, “It was an honor to play with the University Band.”
The University Band is comprised of 53 members playing woodwind, brass and percussion instruments. Saxophone player Jonah Gjersvig also played piano in the piece “December Lullaby.”
“I’m really impressed with how well the concert went,” A band member said. “It was nice to see all our hard work accumulate into a good performance.” Trumpet player Seth Luxem continued, “I believe that a big part of success is having a good conductor. (Cooley) prepared us well for the concert and we were able to perform well because of that. The band is also like its own family. We enjoy coming together and making music. Being close with your band friends makes it easier to play as one band and not a lot of individuals.”
Cooley said, “Everything went very well; I’m very proud of everybody. We really came together in the last couple weeks’ rehearsals, and they did awesome.” It is unsure what next semester holds for performance, and the final concerts this semester were the Saxophone Studio concert on Dec. 10, and the Pioneer Piano Studio recital on Dec. 11.