The Mona Shores High School Fiddlers are taking to the streets of Muskegon as a Street Performer on June 3, 2016, 6pm-8pm. The Fiddlers will be performing in the SW corner of the Muskegon Farmers Market. Bring a lawn chair and grab some dinner as most of the food vendors will be at the Farmers Market as well. Mark your calendars now for some a night of great entertainment.
The 2016 High School Spring Concert and Awards Ceremony was an amazing show. Mrs. DeRose said “The concert is bittersweet. The 8th grade orchestra sounds great, I can’t wait to work with them. The seniors are such amazing group of people I am sad to see them go but excited for them as they leave Mona Shores.”
Mr. Mosley’s Eighth Grade Orchestra open the concert with Richard Meyer’s Geometric Dances.
The Mrs. DeRose’s High School Concert Orchestra took the stage starting the evening musical theme of Tributes. They played Andrew Dabcynski’s arrangement of An Armed Forces Tribute, Jon Williams The Olympic Spirt, and a Beatles Melody.
The Mona Shores Fiddlers played two tunes. One original piece Amran nut de Caerlaverock by our own Greg Beaudoin. This piece was first performed by the Fiddlers at 2016 Collage Concert but tonight we got the touching explanation on how Amran nut de Caerlaverock is a tribute to his family. The Fiddlers finished night with a new version of Jackie Tar.
The Symphonic Orchestra continued the tribute theme with John Phillip Sousa’s Stars and Stripes Forever and a Tribute To John Williams adapted by Paul Lavender. Tribute To John Williams was accompanied with a video arranged by Mr. Dave Droski and Jacob gravel.
The Combined Orchestras played Franz Hayden’s The Finale from Symphony No 45, arranged by Richard Meyer with the musicians turn off their stand lights when leaving the stage as they played leaving only the Seniors at the end.
The Senior Strings presented some touching gifts to Mrs. DeRose and performed Jupiter From The Planets by Gustav Holst, arr. Deborah Baker Monday.
2015-2016 Awards:
National Orchestra Award: Dale Liddle
Directors Award: Margaret Henrikson
Outstanding Fiddler Award: Greg Beaudoin
MSBOA Scholar Musician Award: Paul Young
Edquist Memorial Fund Scholarship Awards: Dale Liddle, Emily Morris, & Paul Young
Senior Strings:
Ezekiel Clark – 2008-2016
Margaret Henrikson – 2008-2016
Dale Liddle – 2008-2016
Emily Morris – 2009 – 2016
Shelby Sikes – 2008-2016
Paul Young – 2008-2016
Senior Winds:
Madalyn Bacon – 2015-2016
Matthew Farmer – 2015-2016
Madison LaDuke – 2015-2016
Noah Sowles – 2014-2016
Hayley Towers – 2012 – 2016
Exchange Student: Kako Nishiyama – 2015-2016
The link below is to the PDF file of the latest Student Account Balance Sheet. If you have any questions about the balance please contact Kathy Morris, MSOPA Student Account Treasurer
The annual general membership meeting of the Mona Shores Orchestra Parent Association will take place at 6:55 PM on Tuesday, May 10 just prior to the High School Spring Concert in the High School Performing Arts Center. Agenda items include voting in the board of directors for 2016 – 2017 school year. All parents with an active student in the orchestra program is eligible to vote.
Thank you in advance for your participation in our annual meeting.
Sincerely,
MSOPA Board
Karen Grace, President
Erin Kuhn, Vice President
Angela Oullette, General Accounts Treasurer
Alexis Liddle, Secretary
The Mona Shores Orchestra Parent Association has teamed up with Harvey and Matt Anderson of the Meat Block to help our organization and our students raise money. The attached order form lists seven delicious ways you can support our orchestra. $5 of each product ordered will be given back to the orchestra, and half of that
$5 will be placed in the student account of the seller. Simply fill in the name and phone number of the customer and clearly mark the selected product. Money should be collected at the time orders are placed and checks should be made payable to Mona Shores Orchestra Parents Association (MSOPA). All order forms with payment must be turned in by Monday, May 9. Products must be picked up by the seller on Monday, May 16, from 4:30 5:30 PM, in the high school east parking lot (by the orchestra room). Any orders not picked up during this time will be shipped back to the Meat Block and can be picked up at a later date.
ALL ORDER FORMS MUST BE TURNED IN TO YOUR ORCHESTRA TEACHER BY: MONDAY, MAY 9
Thank you for your continued support of the Mona Shores Orchestra Program!
Day 8, Friday, April 8, 2016: A day in Milan.
Milan at last or as they say in Italy “Milano, Finalmente!” Milan is our last city of our Italian tour and this is our last day before our travel home begins.
Our day began with a short bus ride through the Brera neighborhood where many artists, fashion designers, people of influence in the design/art world, etc. live and then a short walk to Plazza della Scala. From the Plazza we began our guided walking tour where we were able to view the La Scala (The Opera House), Gallerie D’Italia and the entrance to the Victor Emmanuel II Galleria.
We made our way into the impressive Galleria Victor Emmanuel II. This impressive Galleria was this first of the modern era of a unified Italy built by the King, Victor Emmanuel II who either fatally fell or was pushed from the top of 4 Story Glass Dome. Since the beginning of the Galleria it has been home for the luxury shops of Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and Prada. Our tour was briefly stopped for a quick limbo contest that some street entertainers were conducting to earn a few Euros, some in our group did an amazing job.
From the Galleria we made our way to Plazza Duomo. This is Milan’s main square and is very large. We made our away around the impressive and very large Duomo. The Duomo is a 14th century church and is the fourth largest church in Europe. The sculptures and the “Lego style” uniquely cut bricks make the structure very unique.
A walk through the Plazza del Duomo to our journey through the Brera Neighborhood ended in the courtyard of the Brera Gallery. The Gallery houses some of the top Italian collection of paintings as well as Napoleon’s looted art. The Gallery is also a very prestigious art college and it was graduation day when we visited. There were many graduates walking with their families in their graduation gowns and a wreath on their head.
From the Gallery we made our way deeper into the Brera neighborhood to get to the Sforza Castle. This brick 13th century military castle is a fortress within a fortress. It has a gate and city walls to protect from foreign enemies with a Renaissance palace inside another fortress to protect the Royals from enemies “within” the city walls. From outside the castle you can see the Branca Tower across the Palazzo Dell’Arte.
Our tour ended back at our original entrance of Sforza Castle at the Piazza Castello. From here we were able to venture out on our own to shop at the high end stores, lunch, or explore more landmarks in detail. This would also be our meeting spot to leave for our last Italian diner at Restaurant Da Cecco.
This was our last day in Italy. We had amazing weather, on a great trip, with a great group of people!! The only bad part of the trip was the air travel and the delays. For more information on the trip visit the previous Italian Day Trips Postings or view more pictures of the trip visit our Flickr Italy Group Page.
Previous Italian Day Trip Postings:
Day1-2: All Roads Lead To Rome
Day 4: Giorno di Viaggio per Firenze
Day 5: La Nostra Giornata a Firenze, Italia
Mona Shores Orchestra Italy Flickr Page
Day 7, Thursday, April 7, 2016: A day in Cremona and then travel to Milan for our final city in Italy.
We started our day with a guided walking tour of Cremona. Cremona is a northern Italian city with a long rich history since 400 BC that has been occupied, destroyed (Natural or War), and been rebuilt over the years but rich in Romanesque-Gothic art. The tour began outside a clothing store where a window beneath our feet to view a lower level revealing the original Roman Era streets, shows how the city has been rebuilt on the rubble.
The tour took us to the Piazza del Comune where Duomo di Cremona, Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assent is. In the Piazza we are able to see how the Church and the local government occupy the Piazza this has had much influence on the city. Streets from the Piazza we able to see one of the many store fronts of master local violin makers.
We able to enter Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assent and get a small tour of the Frescoes on the walls. The cathedral is home some of the oldest frescoes, from the late 14th and 15th century, portraying the Life of Mary and Jesus.
Our guided tour ended at the Stradivari Museo del Violino. Here we able to see many priceless Stradivari instruments on display, learn the history of the instruments, process/tools into making the instruments, the important elements of the instruments, and much much more.
After lunch on our own, we made our way to Milan for late afternoon arrival. We had free time to take on some of the incredible shopping of Milan before dinner at Restaurant Scorpion. Dinner this night also included a Birthday Celebration for Alexis.
Note: Pictures and details of the trip will be posted over the next several days in chronological order of the trip.
More pictures of Day1-7 are on our Flickr Italy Group Page.
MSO Italy performance Group on top of the Fortress.
Day 6, Wednesday, April 6, 2016: Day is a travel day from Florence to Cremona with a performance in Livorno, Prestazoni a Livorno.
Our day began with a short one and half – two hour drive to Livorno, on the north western Italian coast of the Ligurian Sea. We arrived in Livorno before lunch, so the group had free time to explore the coast, eat on their own, shop, etc. Most of us enjoyed the very sunny day on the ocean with lunch on shoreline.
Early in the afternoon we met by our gracious host, Mr. Andrea Pellegrini, at the 14th century Fortezza Vecchio. We made our way through the fortress to performance room. The orchestra rehearsed and the remainder of the group explored the the rest of the fortress.
The fortress is being restored, into a more of a tourist friendly site and community use. The fortress has long history of use since the 14th century on the coast and has stood guarding Livorno. The fortress and Livorno received extensive damage during WWII in pre-invasion Allied bombing. For more information on the history of the fortress visit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Fortress,_Livorno
After rehearsal Mr. Pellegrini took us across the channel for an amazing pizza dinner. We were able to see the pizza get hand tossed and made. Very good pizza!!!
We made our way back to the fortress for a pre concert reception. The concert in the fortress included a performance from the Livorno Municipal Concert Band. They are an amazing band and gracious hosts. After Livorno Municipal Band Performance Mona Shores took the stage playing various music from the US & Italian National Anthems to music from Italian Composers to some American classics. Below are a links to two of the pieces Mona Shores performed.
Shenandoah and America The Beautiful:
Stars and Stripes Forever:
At the after concert reception the students and members of the Livorno Municipal Band were able to meet and talk. It was a short reception because of our long drive/late check in to Cremona. I think all would have like the the reception to last longer.
Note: Pictures and details of the trip will be posted over the next several days in chronological order of the trip.
More pictures of Day1-6 are on our Flickr Italy Group Page.
Day 5, Tuesday, April 5, 2016: Day 4. Our day in Florence,Italy; La nostra giornata a Firenze, Italia. Our day began with a guided walking tour of Florence. More of a guided Renaissance walk through Florence with not your average tour guide. A tour guide who is also a university history professor, took us on the Renaissance journey of the history of the buildings, art history & political statements of the buildings, paintings, and the sculptures. He showed us how the birth place of the Renaissance was in Florence, how it affect the region to how Florence is a Fashion Capital of the world to how its influence even shapes all the Apple stores.
Our guided tour took us from Plazza di San Giovanni, to the Piazza della Repubblica, to the Strozzi Palace. Continued with a walk over the oldest bridge in Florence the Ponte Veechio and the to the Piazza della Signioria.
After our guided tour and free time for lunch we met back up at the Piazza della Duomo where we made our way to Accademia. Accademia is home to Michelangelo’s David and the unfinished Prisoners. The art work and sculptures in the Accademia are amazing. Some of the orchestra members while visiting Davis had a Hunger Games celebrity run in with actress Willow Shields (Correct me if I am wrong on the actress). They do have photos to prove it, maybe they will share.
We all had the rest of the afternoon off, to shop, stay in the Accademia, visit the leather markets, relax, get gelato, etc. till a pre dinner rehearsal for the performance the next day. We finished our day with dinner at Restaurant Alfredo. It was an early night with a performance in Livorno and traveling to Cremona the next day.
Note: Pictures and details of the trip will be posted over the next several days in chronological order of the trip.
More pictures of Day1-5 are on our Flickr Italy Group Page.
Day 4, Monday, April 4, 2016: Day 4 was a travel day to Florence,
giorno di Viaggio per Firenze. On our route to Florence we made two major stops. The first stop in the beautiful city of Siena and the second stop in Pisa to the Leaning Tower. It was a long day on the bus but the views of the Hill Towns through Tuscany were amazing.
Siena is a fortified medieval town built on top of three hills and competed with Florence for political and economic superiority. The city is made up of 17 neighborhoods and each neighborhood purpose was to organize and defend their city section from invading forces. This small city of 60,000 fits into a very small footprint on the hills with each neighborhood or Contrada is alive and very competitive with it fellow Contrada. The Contrada’s compete twice a year in Siena’s Palio. Palio is very competitive bareback horse race that take place in the Il Campo (The city’s square). The Palio is now a major sporting event in Italy attracting thousands to Siena and broadcasted on Italian TV.
Our guided walking tour began outside the city walls Porta Ovile walking through the Giraffa Contrade. The narrow streets wind up and down throughout the city. Each Contrade has its own church, and stable. We made our way to the Santa Maria Di Provenzano which was originally a hospital. We walk through the streets to the, Piazza de Mercarto, and Plazza Del Duomo. From Plazza Del Duomo we walked through some incredibly narrow, hilly streets to a stable tucked in the Contrade. We finished our tour in the Il Campo, where we had some free time for lunch and shopping.
After lunch we met at the base of Mangia Tower in Il Campo. We walked to the Church of San Domenico which is the resting place for Siena’s patron Saint Catherine (1347-1380) head and left thumb. Yes you read that right, they have on display her head and left thumb. We finished our time in Siena with a walk from the Church of San Domenico to the Siena Fortezza where our bus was waiting for us.
From Sienna we made our way to Pisa cutting through the countryside of Tuscany’s Hilltop towns on a small two lane road. The trip to Pisa was a needed rest after the hill walk through Siena. The countryside and views were spectacular.
The immediate surrounding area to Pisa is a mostly a industrial area and once into Pisa sights of the Duomo, the Baptistery and the tower its very touristy. Our trip to the tower was a very quick one, long enough for our driver to take a break, visit the WC and visit the tower.
The tower has one of the most amazing lawns you will ever see!!! Two things I found annoying at the Tower. First, the number of tourists trying to take to take pictures of them either pushing or holding up the tower. Second, the number of aggressive immigrants trying to sell Selfie Sticks and/or bracelets.
From Pisa we made our way to Florence where we will stay for the next couple of days. After we arrived at our hotel, Residence Palazzo Riscasoli, where we made our way for a late (Normal time for the Italians) dinner at a local restaurant. We on walk from dinner back to the hotel the city was alive with street musicians, people socializing at the church plazas, and of course the restaurants filled.
Note: Pictures and details of the trip will be posted over the next several days in chronological order of the trip.
More pictures of Day1-3 are on our Flickr Italy Group Page.
Mona Shores Orchestra 