The Student News Site of Ripon High School

The Smoke Signal

The Student News Site of Ripon High School

The Smoke Signal

The Student News Site of Ripon High School

The Smoke Signal

    Ripon High Sings at the Concert in the Park

    On Oct. 18, Ripon High students gathered around to show their passion for music at the Concert in the Park.

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    The Dreamcatchers performing on the O’Leary Ampitheater

    Located at Ripon High’s O’Leary Amphitheater, parents and students gathered around as other students in band and choir showed off their musical ability. Started by choir teacher Adam Serpa, the concert was held to showcase these students, and let them get a chance to shine.

    “Well, it all started my first year teaching at Ripon High. What happened was I was just looking for a way for kids to showcase their talent, and also do a preview concert for choir.” stated Serpa.

    The night opened with Rage of Injustice performing two original songs. The band, run by Brandan Gunnarson, Daniel Acosta, and Nathan Gunnarson, took out guitars and drums, and played their handcrafted music in front of the Ripon crowd.

    Up next followed Martin and Deanna Boyce, performing “I Will Rise,” by Chris Tomlin. Before they started their song, they mentioned why the song was important to them. “Our dad recently died, and this was the main religious song that he knew, so it’s really important to both of us,” Deanna Boyce spoke on stage.

    Following the duo came Rebecca Anderson and Jisella Estrada, singing “When We Were Young,” by Adele.

    Afterwards, Sabrina Schmier came on singing “Somewhere Only We Know,” by Keane.

    Maria Soto, Christine Pamplona, and Alycia Eusebio, also known as the Runaway Lillies, came on next.

    Zoey Khron performing Unintended by Muse

    “Well, honestly, I’ve been singing since I was really little. I was in middle school choir, and now I’m in Tribal Tones as a freshman. Christine and Alycia were originally going to do this only by themselves, but they needed an alto for the part […] while they’re both sopranos, so they asked me if I would join them and I have, and I’m happy because I made new friends!” Freshman Maria Soto spoke after the event.

    Madeline Wilkins sang “Something Better,” by Audien, followed by Zoey Krohn, originally from New York City, giving a ukelele and singing cover of “Unintended,” by Muse. Afterwards, Savannah and Madison Clark sang a duo of “San Francisco,” originally by 5 Seconds of Summer.

    Before the choir came on, we were greeted by one last student band, a Barbershop Quartet named 3 ½ Men, run by Brandan Gunnarson, Nathan Rowe, Andres Merlos, and Justin Bright. It is named after how one member, Brandan Gunnarson, is a falsetto, making his voice higher pitched like a woman, making him, “half a man.” The quartet gave their own rendition of “I’m Sitting On Top of the World.”

    Finally, the main stars of the show, The Dreamcatchers, came out. Ripon High’s Advanced Choir sung a total of three songs. The first two were “Alleluia Madrigal,” by Donald Moore and “Ave Verum Corpus,” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Afterwards, Mr. Serpa gave an explanation on their finale. The song doesn’t have any words, but rather a bunch of syllables, to give the feeling of different languages. After finishing the song, Greg Jasperse’s “Voice Dances III,” the concert dispersed.

    The Dreamcatchers aren’t done singing. Two concerts are coming, which are the Ripon Tree-Lighting on Nov. 28 and their annual Fall Concert on Dec. 6.

    Ripon’s schools are filled with many students who wish to show their passion for their interests. This was an event that finally let them shine.

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