Orchestra students from Chaffin went to Orchestra Assessment on Friday, March 10th, at Fayetteville High School. 

“Honestly, I felt really nervous. The previous year, Orchestra students got all one division (all one score) and I wanted to match up with them and get all ones as well.” Chaffin Orchestra student Christine Lam said. Students have expressed how they were feeling somewhat nervous before and during the assessment.

According to Lam, Orchestra Assessment is a concert that is graded by professional musicians. The students are given 3 pieces of music which they must play, and no schools have the same music. They play their instruments and the professional musicians rate their performance from 1-5. 1 is the best score possible, and 5 is the worst score available. The music (in order) that the students played was Sahara Crossing, Where the River Shannon Flows, and Intensity. These pieces of music have very unique tones from one another. They also had to sight read some music, which means that they played music they never have.

“There was a lot of pressure as the concertmaster, and if people needed help, they could just look at me.” Chaffin student Khang Nguyen stated. Nguyen was the concertmaster, meaning he was first chair first violinist. Nguyen mentioned that he was a bit nervous, but it worked out in the end.

The Chaffin Orchestra had gotten 1’s for their score, meaning they did fantastic. “We got all 1’s so I am happy about the outcome.” Chaffin student Kenzie Haynes mentioned. Congratulations to the Chaffin Orchestra!