Long Island Press · Old Bethpage, NY
Plainview-Old Bethpage students rehearse and play with musician
The Plainview-Old Bethpage John F. Kennedy High School Orchestra performed with singer-songwriter Jesse Ruben at a free community concert Oct. 29, capping a week of rehearsals with the artist at the high school. The concert featured a side-by-side performance, in which student musicians played alongside Ruben. Instead of the classical pieces the orchestra typically performs, students worked from chord charts listing a song’s chords and developed their own parts through improvisation. The concert grew out of an experiment over the past year in which the orchestra improvised accompaniments to some of Ruben’s songs. [caption id="attachment_379689" align="alignnone" width="700"] The visit gave the orchestra students the opportunity to play in a different style. Plainview-Old Bethpage Central School District[/caption] “This is completely out of the ordinary for a high school orchestra program,” said Orchestra Director Dustin Bartley.