M-A Orchestra hosted its third annual Halloween Concert, playing a variety of eerie music to raise spooky spirits before Halloween on Tuesday evening. The show blended traditional orchestral music with playful costumes and dramatic narration. Unlike previous years, the event was held in the PAC instead of the PAC Cafe—the dark auditorium added an extra layer of spookiness to the concert.
M-A Music Director William Flaherty introduced the event at the beginning of the night.“I don’t think that the orchestra had their own concert where it was only the orchestra that played,” Flaherty said. “I thought it’d be nice to do something just for the orchestra, since we have such a good orchestra.”
“It’s super that we get to dress up in all the costumes. It just makes it more enjoyable,” sophomore concertmaster—an orchestra’s first chair violinist—Katherine Behnke said. “[It] feels way more chill and less stakes.”
“It’s much more casual and arguably more fun. People don’t have to come in concert attire. They can wear costumes and play more pop culture music rather than just classical,” senior violinist Connor Bae said.
The concert started off with J.S. Bach’s “Toccata and Fugue in D minor,” featuring senior Daniel Strebulaev on piano. Originally written for organ, the Baroque showpiece was transcribed for piano, with thunderous chords and cascading scales designed to show off the performer’s skill.
The concert then moved onto “Funeral March of a Marionette” by Charles Gounod. It’s a delightful piece of musical mischief, initially inspired by a dead puppet after a duel. The music depicts the miniature mourners’ procession that is interrupted by a stop for refreshments. Its militaristic rhythm and cheerful interlude makes the piece a masterclass in musical irony.
The orchestra also performed the third movement of “O Ignee Spiritus” by Barbara Harbach. The piece is structured into three movements, each corresponding to one of Hildegard of Bingen’s original compositions and reflecting a different aspect of her philosophical worldview. It stands out as an energetic tribute to the Holy Spirit. The original hymn is full of allusions to the Spirit’s biblical and theological characteristics.
“Even though violins don’t usually have the melody, I think that [the piece] is just super pretty,” Behnke said.
Next was Han Zimmer’s score for “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.” The piece reflects on the energy of Irish sea shanties, resulting in a complex, richly layered score.
Succeeding the previous piece was “Dance of the Gypsy” by Camille Saint-Saens. It was composed for the 1883 opera Henry VII about the infamously unhinged English monarch. The score is one full of gentle melodies and teasing instrumentation.
The Orchestra followed up with a modern twist centered around “Bones” by Imagine Dragons. Conducted and arranged by Strebulaev, the song is surprisingly upbeat despite being about the grim inevitability of death. This contrasts with the previous, more traditional scores.
“I’m not sure how much of this Daniel had in mind when he was crafting our bespoke version of this song, but he has managed to transform a pop song into a thoughtful and beautiful arrangement for full orchestra,” Flaherty said about the piece.
Finally, the performance concluded with a classic: “In the Hall of the Mountain King” by Edvard Grieg. The piece starts with a gentle tune, but is soon joined by more instruments—gaining speed and volume with each measure. It was the perfect spooky ending for the Halloween Orchestra Concert.
The M-A Orchestra will perform their next concert on Dec. 2.
