The ultimate away game for Wooster High School musicians

  • By D.R. Haught
  • April 24, 2010
  • 457
                        
On a Thursday morning during spring break, the alarm clock went off a lot earlier than most days. The usual groaning and complaining about an early wake-up call were there, but after remembering that was the day of a monumental trip to New York City, things began to look up. More than 200 high school musicians from the Wooster High School band and orchestra program spent the last weekend of their spring break on a trip to Manhattan to perform at a Saturday afternoon New York Mets game, where they provided the pregame entertainment. The Wooster High School band and orchestra left town at around 8 a.m., expecting to arrive in the Big Apple in just a “New York Minute” (about 12 Ohio hours). While in New York, the group made stops at countless sites. After the long bus trip, they began by seeing the city from the “Top of the Rock” at Rockefeller Center. Looking out at the epic night landscape of New York City seemed to put the city and trip in perspective for everybody there. The Statue of Liberty was visible from a distance, the Empire State Building loomed ahead and everyone soon came to realize that they were really in New York. However, the best of the trip was yet to occur. On Friday, when a bus broke down, Bus #3 walked the streets of New York in a guided tour, getting up close and personal with the people and sights of everything from the New York Stock Exchange to Ground Zero. For approximately 50 of the band members, New York was a whole new experience of mass jaywalking, insane traffic and busy sidewalks full of pedestrians. Following a shopping spree in Chinatown, the band attended a Broadway production of West Side Story, the highlight of the trip for the majority of people there. Even for those who hadn’t enjoyed theater before, the musical changed their perspective on drama and wowed the audience. To conclude the trip on Saturday, the group made their way to Citi Field to perform in front of thousands before the Mets vs. Nationals game. While the Mets eventually lost the game, the band was thrilled to be the center of attention on the scoreboard TVs. The trip ended with a short time to explore Times Square, where students could visit any number of shops around the area, from Nintendo to Guitar Center, and everything in between. Finally, the group stopped at the Hard Rock Cafe to share a meal and experience the music of the city, before departing for a return to Wooster late that night. The bus ride home was filled with the sharing of stories until the early hours of morning, when most everybody was exhausted from the short, but fun-filled trip. For more information on the Wooster High School music program and the trip to New York City, including photo galleries of the trip, visit the Wooster High School Music Department website at www.whsmusic.nvi.net/.


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