Under the bright lights of the Reinhart Auditorium, the orchestra students beautifully performed their final pieces of the year, most of which were emotion-evoking or reminiscent of their accomplishments. With one final cheer from their families, the orchestra seniors took their last walk off stage as accomplished high school musicians.
From sixth through twelfth, the orchestra seniors experience a variety of emotions as their high school orchestra career comes to a close with a final concert. After most seniors spending 6 years of dedication to it, orchestra has become an important part of their daily lives. Nylan Maclin, a violinist, recalls his experience as he first joined the orchestra and his thought process for joining.
“I saw the other kids doing it and then I went to a couple concerts when I was younger. I liked how everything sounded and how it made me feel,” Nylan said. “I wanted to be like them, to be like those people on stage and move people with my music and my playing. That’s my main reason.”
As this final year comes to an end, many seniors have mixed feelings about their last concert as it brings both excitement and emotion.
“I’m excited because we have a special slideshow this year. I hated Ode to Joy, but I don’t mind it since this year I am the senior in it, so I’m excited because it’s going to be emotional,” Violist Kaylin Nunn said.
Following their traditional Ode to Joy performance, many tears were shed as the seniors took their final walk off stage. Although many seniors are excited for their new chapter, they will still miss their time in orchestra. “I will just miss this program. I will miss everyone,” Nylan said. “I will miss the class every morning, even if we all dread it, but we love it at the same time. I’m just going to miss everything.”
For many seniors, this final concert was an extremely sentimental event as they dedicated so much time and effort into the orchestra. After many years, it has come to mean a lot to them.
“It means everything to me. My whole life is music. My whole life is cello. My whole life is piano,” Cellist Elise Cheatham said. “Being able to be in orchestra for an hour a day, it means the world to me.”
Not only was this a special experience for seniors but for Mrs. Robley as well. According to her, this was a very special class of seniors. It was a class filled with major talent and passion, all of which she will miss dearly.
“They are one of my strongest working students. They’ve always been go-getters so I can do harder music with them because they want to do it,” Mrs. Robley said. “They’re one of those classes that can slack a little because they will work. They always pull through. This particular group really puts in the work when it needs to be done.”
Along with their talent, this particular group of seniors held a special bond with Mrs. Robley, one of which she had not even shared with her seniors last year, who were her first group of freshmen. With only a few weeks left, Mrs. Robley shares her last sentiments for the orchestra class of 2026.
“I’m just going to miss them. Their personalities, their playing,” Mrs. Robley said, “For some reason this group just feels closer. I’m just going to miss their jokes, their personalities, their humor, and the way that they interact with me and each other. Don’t forget about me when you’re famous.”
As their orchestra career comes to a close, the seniors share some encouraging advice for younger generations of orchestra students.
“For incoming freshmen, don’t be afraid to try new things, don’t be afraid to take a solo to ISSMA because you don’t want to do it by yourself because it’s [truly] not that bad,” Kaylin said. “do as much as you can because it may feel slow at the moment, but in the end you’ll realize how fast time flies by.”
