As the Festival of Wreaths comes to the end of its auction timeframe, so too do their performances. Nov. 30 marked the last of them and JoAnn Spence’s musical concert was the one to wrap it up.
As the second of three musical events, students from the Kristen Raney Music School bravely performed renditions of popular Christmas tunes at the Humboldt & District Gallery on Nov. 23.
“They did really well. I was very proud of the kids,” said Kristen Raney, the young students’ music teacher. “For some of them, it was their first recital so they sang a little scared, but all in all it went really well.”
Indeed, anyone paying attention could tell that some of the youngsters were a little nervous. Nevertheless, despite a gallery packed with people, photographers with massive lenses, and no peers to stand beside for support, each student went up with a brave face and a ready voice.
According to Raney, they began practicing for their performances back in October, which made things a bit more difficult because of the season switch.
“(The only challenge) was that the concert was a bit early so to get Christmas songs, we had to start practicing before Halloween, which, kids usually don’t want to start then, but it was fine,” said Raney.
All together, 10 kids performed Christmas classics such as “We Wish You a Merry Christmas,” “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus,” and “Let It Snow.” Some performed on the piano while others sang.
Of course, the concert wasn’t just a free cute reprieve on a Sunday afternoon; it was also a way to bring people to the gallery.
“It was at the gallery because we’re trying to promote more entertainment out there,” said Brenda Duerr, the museum and gallery’s supervisor. “We want more people to use the facility and we just want them to come. This is a new crowd coming and they’ve never been to the gallery before. It’s a perfect way to get them there.”
More than that, it’s a way for the Festival of Wreaths to get more exposure. Since it’s one of the museum and gallery’s biggest fundraisers for the year, the more people that bid at the auction, the better it’ll be for them.
In the end though, this concert was just a bit of Christmas cheer for anyone who wanted to come.
“The recital was a way to let the young children experience what it was like to perform in front of an audience,” said Duerr. “It’s like a pre-festival, like a music festival.”
Raney said it was a great day and the turnout was better than expected. The kids were excited to have a chance to perform and put their hard work to the test.
“The best part was seeing the smiles on the kids’ faces and that sense of accomplishment when they were done,” said Raney.
Even better, it seemed as though each concert seemed to bring in more and more people. While there weren’t any empty seats at Raney’s concert, Spence’s subsequent concert the following Sunday was packed with even more people. Not only were seats filled to the back of the gallery, there were also individuals standing at the back.
“(Spence) usually packs the audience in,” said Duerr. “Her kids enjoy coming and the parents enjoy coming to watch them. It’s a chance to get to sit in front of a crowd, so it’s a nice and intimate space.”
Some students even performed more than once song. One student stood out while playing a violin towards the end. According to Spence, many of them had been practicing since just after Halloween.
“It was awesome,” she said. “There were actually five extra kids that showed up ... For me there was no challenge; I just didn’t want to miss any of the kids on the list.”
Spence said she was lucky that all she had to do (aside from training the youths) was be there and keep on top of the list of kids who had to perform. The gallery had everything set up for her.
“The kids do the work of preparing. I just show them off,” she said.
While some kids had obviously been working at their recitals for quite some time, some were only able to start preparing the previous week. Nevertheless, everyone went to the front and did their best. There was even a cute moment when a very young child worked up the courage to step up to the keyboard.
“The best part was the enjoyment and satisfaction the kids have getting up there and being able to perform,” said Spence. “Some have only had eight weeks to practice, but it doesn’t have to be perfect. They hear other kids and it doesn’t make them so nervous.”
