On Thursday, March 12, at 7:30 p.m., Verona High School will host its first A Capella Night, featuring performances by the Verona High School Concert Choir, the Verona High School Vocal Jazz Ensemble, and the H.B. Whitehorne (middle school) Acoustics chorus. The concert features special guest performers Gimme Four, an a cappella group from Caldwell, N.J., and 2014 Barbershop Harmony Society International Quarterfinalist. The concert will be held in the auditorium and admission is free.
This weekend, from March 13-15, the Verona High School Music Department and the Verona Music Parents Association are proud to partner with Joe Bergen and Mantra Percussion to host the Necessary Noise Festival, the largest percussion festival on the East Coast. Through three days of workshops, competitions, showcase concerts and clinics, the festival provides a way for “scholastic, collegiate, and professional musicians to share their talents in a variety of mediums while promoting the art of percussion to the greater community,” according to Mantra Percussion.
The weekend includes a concert on Saturday, March 14, at 7 p.m. featuring festival solo competition winners, Mantra Percussion, the Verona High School Percussion Ensemble, and the festival’s Finale Band. Tickets can be purchased at the door for $10. Last year’s festival featured 14 scholastic and collegiate groups, 20 solo participants, and a sold-out evening concert. For more details on the schedule, see the Mantra Percussion Web site.
Finally, on Tuesday, March 17, Verona High School will be one of the host sites for the 17th Annual Region I High School Concert Band Festival sponsored by The North Jersey School Music Association and the New Jersey Chapter of the National Band Association. The Verona High School Concert Band will perform “Bright Gleams a Beacon” by David Gillingham and “Fairest of the Fair” by John Philip Sousa.
Performances begin at 5:45 p.m. with the West Orange High School Ninth Grade Band and conclude at 9:15 pm with the Verona High School Concert Band, followed by the awards ceremony at 9:40 p.m. The four highest-rated ensembles from Region I will be selected to perform at the State Gala Concert on Sunday, May 3, at Rutgers University. Each band will receive a plaque commemorating its participation with a rating of Gold, Silver, or Bronze or a Participation Award. Awards also will be presented for outstanding woodwind, brass, and percussion sections, as well as outstanding soloist. All performances are open to the public, and tickets are $10.
Verona High School is located at 151 Fairview Avenue; entrance to the parking lot is from Grove Ave.
