Orchard Park band's emotional rendition of Hallelujah wins $5K prize in CBC challenge
Band members say it's more than a club, it's a family
The band at Orchard Park Secondary School is more than a club, it's a special place where students have become like family.
That close bond can be be heard in every emotional note the group pour out while playing Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah and on Tuesday the band beat out competitors from across the country when their rendition was announced as the winner of the high school instrumental category of CBC's Canadian Music Class Challenge.
"In our group we always try to express emotions, show our passion, really get our audience to feel what we're playing and I thought the song would be a great piece for us to do that," explained Wendy Young, head of the school's music department and conductor of the band.
"The place just exploded when they formally announced that Orchard Park had placed at the top."
Playing in the band is an extracurricular activity at the Stoney Creek school. Students meet up every Wednesday morning at 7 a.m. to practice and hold rehearsals during lunch and after classes.
But for many, including Oliver Allison who plays the clarinet, it's become much more than an after-school activity.
The Grade 12 students has struggled with anxiety and depression for years but being part of the band gave him something to hold onto through high school.
"Music literally saved my life in many different ways. For four years now I've been part of a huge family that's helped me feel comfortable," he said.
"The one thing that got me through most of my days was the thought of one more band practice, one more song to play, one more chance to see the people that I had grown really close to."
That feeling of family was echoed by bandmates Julia Mickason and Olivia McIsaac.
"The music department at Orchard Park is such a welcoming group of students who are more like a family," said Mickason, who plays the flute and saxophone. "This benefits our playing since it makes us more connected because of the strong bond."
McIsaac said some of the credit for the band's strong relationship can be attributed to Young who gives her all to make her students sound their best.
"For most teachers the day starts when he students come in and it ends when the students leave. But it's never that way in a music department. It's all day, all night, weekends, every moment of every day is spent trying to better the students and program."
[Music] creates a sense of community and it helps students to develop qualities they're going to use for the rest of their lives.- Wendy Young, conductor, Orchard Park band
The band's stirring performance was enough to win a plaque announcing their win and to earn them the $5,000 prize, not to mention a major compliment from renowned orchestra and contest judge Dina Gilbert.
"While listening with my eyes closed, I was transported by the richness of the sound, the gentle phrasing and the perfect blend between all those wonderful musicians," she wrote. "I could tell these musicians were well aware of the meaning of the notes, as well as the meaning 'between the notes,' listening carefully to each other to present this interpretation."
Chills and goosebumps
Alumni of the school's music program have also contacted Young to pass along compliments and to tell her the music left them crying, feeling chills or covered in goosebumps.
Allison said the students poured all of their passion into their playing, but the thing that really brought them together was the fact Hallelujah plays during an emotional scene in the movie Shrek.
"We loved that it was in the movie and we just kept putting more feeling into it," he said.
The winnings will be used by the band to replace a pair of aging kettledrums. The timpani are 52 years old and "well past their best by date," according to Young, but a new drums can cost up to $14,000.
She added the group had already raised $7,000 on their own and the $5,000 winnings will help them get close enough to their goal that the school's principal has promised to help find a way to reach the full amount.
"Music is so much more than a course," the department head added. "It creates a sense of community and it helps students to develop qualities they're going to use for the rest of their lives like self-discipline, time management, patience, team work and leadership."