Melodies, Music Notes, and a Magical Winter Night

On Tuesday, December 19th, 2025, both the middle school and high school bands and orchestras performed in the Secondary School’s Winter Concert, a two-hour-long event 

sharing both culture and music with the audience. The song ranged from Spanish to Middle-Eastern to Asian, highlighting the cultural diversity of AIS. 

The concert, in a way, was entirely run by the students, with the pieces played having been previously chosen by the students from summatives at the end of the 2024-25 school year. The summative was assigned by teachers to give students a chance to not only explore their sense of music but also to improve their research skills by being able to explain the reasoning behind their choices. The students not only presented their song choices to their peers but were also allowed to vote on which pieces would be played. 

First to play was the middle school band, where they played Mythos Unleashed, The Darklands March – a simplistic yet compelling and energetic march, Home, a slow and calming lyrical piece, and finally, ending with Brace for Impact.

Next was the middle school orchestra, with its dynamic and rhythmic performance. First, they played Colorful Clouds Chasing the Moon, followed by Bèsame Mucho, a dramatic Spanish piece, which opened with a beautiful Spanish song sung by one of the players. Finally, the middle orchestra finished off with Gauntlet. Notably, the middle school orchestra’s performance was conducted by Patrick Amevo, a senior cello player in the upper school orchestra. 

Third to go was the upper school band, with its program consisting of the Spanish March, Amparita Roca, Octane–a dynamic and thrilling combination of fast-paced rhythms and strong octaves mimicking the gas. Next was Haunting Old Mountain Melody, a slow and gentle piece to highlight the band’s range of abilities. And

finally, to close their performance, The Great Locomotive Chase, a fast-paced and historic piece emulating the movement of a train. 

Closing out the main program was the upper school orchestra, with their program being pieces entirely composed by women. Beginning with “The Odyssey”, a breathtaking and dramatic piece inspired by the Greek story of the same name. Followed by Lotus and the Upper School Orchestra’s rendition of “Golden” from the hit Netflix movie “K-Pop Demon Hunters”, the winter concert showed immense talent and cooperation from every performer. They then finished off their program with Isma’a (Listen) Traditional Arabic Themes. As the name suggests, the piece was composed in the traditional Arabic style, making for an exciting finish to their performance.

Finally, to end off the night, the middle school and upper school bands came together to perform “Chips and Salsa”, a fun and energetic Spanish piece that combined fast and synchronized rhythms with memorable flair. 

As a member of the Upper School Band, I can say that this concert was incredibly fun. Playing with the middle school was a different experience, but it was fun to have more players in the band. Plus, hearing the results of all of the effort that everyone has put into practicing is always exciting. We also put a lot of effort into practicing, so watching everyone’s reaction to that hard work is super fulfilling.