Spring Concert confirms ‘Academy’s Got Talent’

Wednesday and Thursday night’s performances in The Braid were sell-outs - a yearly trend that is leading the school to consider increasing the run from next year.

In his introductory address, prior to ‘curtain up’, Academy principal Ronnie Hassard dedicated the Concert to the late Mrs Audrey Reid, a much loved and respected physics teacher at the school, who passed away on March 16.

“She loved this concert...the last thing Audrey would have wanted was to dampen anyone’s enjoyment,” he told the audience.

The Senior Orchestra got the 2012 programme underway with a noteworthy commemoration of possibly the most famous shipping disaster of all time via the rousing ‘Titanic Suite’. - A fitting tribute in this the centenary year of the Titanic’s demise.

The tempo was taken up a notch as the Brass Quintet ‘Struck up the Band’ courtesy of Gershwin and the audience appreciation continued as upbeat percussion ensemble ‘Wazo Batto’ took to the stage and got toes tapping with Oye Como Va and Afro Blue.

In true Spring Concert tradition, the musical mix continued with a move to classical and a superb performance of a popular movement from Vivaldi’s ‘Four Seasons’ by the Senior Strings Ensemble.

And after a traditional march and a tribute to pop group, Queen, by the superb Junior Windband, it was back to classical courtesy of the Senior Strings and their note perfect renditions of the Ashokan Farewell and waltzes from Der Rosenkavalier by Strauss.

The fabulous first half was brought to a close by the excellent Chamber Choir who, in the first of two performances during the evening, delivered ‘I was Glad When They Said To Me’ and ‘Old Hundredth’ with roof-raising volume; a boogie woogie cello solo by Eva Richards which pushed the audience ‘clapometer’ to its limits; and, the ever popular Senior Choir whose 200-strong membership delighted with ‘I Dreamed A Dream’ and Coldplay’s ‘Fix You’.

Variety continued to be key in the second half of the packed concert programme and the entertainment just kept coming in many forms.

The Senior Wind Band opened ‘Out of the Blue’ in Sousa style before performing a special arrangement of the popular ‘Chariots of Fire’ film theme.

And another movie soundtrack followed as Junior Choir took to the stage like greased lightning and proved ‘Grease Is The Word’ with a medley that would have made John and Olivia proud.

Other audience pleasers in Part-Two proved to be Junior Strings’ excellent performances of ‘Anna’s Minuet’ by Bach and Sting’s haunting ‘Fields of Gold’; the newly formed 50-member Boys’ Chorus, featuring soloists Jack Fleming and Jacob Gray, who left everyone ‘Feelin’ Good’; and, the String Quartet with the fourth movement from Dvorak’s ‘The American..’.

Bape (Ballymena Academy Percussion Ensemble) weren’t short on applause when they produced some ‘Sushi Funk’ and the audience feedback increased further when a trio of dancers joined them on stage, providing complementary movement to their ‘Tribal Beat Sound System’.

While The Lion King medley proved a real crowd pleaser for Senior Choir’s concert conclusion, it was the combination of six students with six dustbins that undoubtedly stole the show.

Billed as “The Lady and the Tramps”, this talented half-dozen senior percussionists were a visual and musical treat, battering out Argenziano’s ‘Stinkin Garbage’ on galvanised metal bins with heart-stopping speed and the utmost precision.

Performers aside, from the expert musical direction and slick continuity provided during the programme by teaching staff to the pupils’ who ably took on the role of stage hands, Ballymena Academy’s Spring Concert proved yet again to be an amateur production that was professional in style.