[vc_row][vc_column width=”1/1″][vc_column_text]At the end of the fall concert on October 9, Orchestra will perform the first ever jam session at the school. The String Jam will feature the entire Orchestra, including students from feeder schools and elementary schools from the Violin Academy playing fiddle tunes such as “Boil Them Cabbage Down” and “Rubber Dolly Rag”.

After being inspired by the Mark O’Connor Method Camp, Orchestra teacher Dawn Oyedipe created the program in hopes that it will teach her students and all who want to jam, to be a little more creative in their music endeavors.

“[The Jam Session] is fun, it’s silly, sometimes people come up with things you could never think of, it’s spontaneous, it’s all of those things,” Oyedipe said. “It’s really a lot more flexible than classical music when you have to play exactly what’s on the page. There’s no conductor conducting you, like if you want to start the next song, one of the students need to start it and end it and they can make up their own version of the song.”

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/2″][image_with_animation image_url=”5825″ animation=”Fade In” img_link_target=”_self”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][image_with_animation image_url=”5829″ animation=”Fade In” img_link_target=”_self”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/1″][vc_column_text]Though the structure of the String Jam is very loose, students have been learning pieces since the beginning of this year. Even with this preparation, said she to feels a blend of both excitement and apprehensiveness for the upcoming String Jam.

“I mean we’re all kind of hesitant because it’s so new and it’s so different,” sophomore Ankita Padarthy said. “Part of being a musician is understanding different types of music and genres. You have to be flexible, so I think this will definitely help me.”

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/1″][carousel easing=”linear”][item id=”1412275136-1-25″ title=”Item”][image_with_animation image_url=”5831″ animation=”Fade In” img_link_target=”_self”][/item][item id=”1412275136-2-41″ title=”Item”][image_with_animation image_url=”5830″ animation=”Fade In” img_link_target=”_self”][/item][item id=”1412275136-3-40″ title=”Item”][image_with_animation image_url=”5828″ animation=”Fade In” img_link_target=”_self”][/item][item title=”Item” id=”1412275257860-0-1″][image_with_animation image_url=”5827″ animation=”Fade In” img_link_target=”_self”][/item][/carousel][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/1″][vc_column_text]The Jam Session will also feature the Violin Academy, a new program designed by Oyedipe to encourage 4th and 5th graders to pursue music early, rather than wait until middle school. According to a study done by Concordia University, engaging in music study at an early age helps with motor skills and brain development.

“With this program, kids who are interested in the violin can start to learn it earlier, instead of them waiting till 6th grade,” Oyedipe said. “They’re going to be jamming with us, and with all the practice, some of them are really advanced. Everyone will be playing at their own level, so I think it’s going to be an exciting experience.”[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]