A cool and quiet ambiance filled the Fullerton College Campus Theatre on Monday, Nov. 23, as the audience waited for the FC Symphony’s unexpected powerhouse performance.
The symphony performed seven pieces including the popular piano piece, “Claire de Lune,” from Claude Debussy and a rendition of the popular HBO show theme song from “Game of Thrones.”
Alexandre Yo, a violinist who’s originally from Brazil, has been playing classical music for 10 years. This year was his first fall concert performance with the FC Symphony.
“The symphony began practicing in August, and we meet every Monday for our class,” Yo added. “Some of the pieces were suggested by the symphony members and other pieces were chosen by the director. Everything seems to be working great tonight for the show.”
Another audience member, Priscilla DiNaplli, who happens to be the girlfriend of one of the clarinet players, Vince Padilla, stated that she has been attending a lot of concerts this semester and is more familiar with woodwinds, so the fall concert has been a nice change in sound.
“The concert feels pretty intense compared to the way the wind symphony concert was,” DiNaplli also added. “The intensity makes me feel emotional, and it’s pretty cool how moving it is.”
FC student Linette Vooker had a similar feeling towards the performance.
“I think it’s been romantic and powerful. There is a little bit of both. It was smooth in the beginning and it had some powerful moments, so I think it’s a little bit of a mix,” said Vooker.
The concert opened up with a softer, dainty piece from Wolfgang A. Mozart, an overture, “La Clemenza di Tito” and Debussy’s “Claire de Lune” gave the intention that the concert was going to be headed toward romance.
It wasn’t until the the symphony moved into its next couple of pieces when the audience realized that the night’s performance was going to be filled with powerful pieces of music.
The audience’s favorite piece of the night seemed to be Ramin Djawadi’s “Game of Thrones Suite.” This piece happened to be arranged for the symphony by timpani player and FC student Sho Fujieda, who was playing that night with the symphony as well.
The 39-piece symphony was led by Music Director Zun-Hin Woo, who attended the University of Oklahoma and obtained his B.M. in violin performance.
In addition to his B.M., Woo also received his M.M. degree in orchestral conducting at the University of Missouri.
The FC Strings, who are led by Dr. Mira Khomik, performed a small piece prior to the concert’s intermission.
Khomik is an award-winning violinist who has competed in various international competitions and has appeared as a soloist in orchestras in various countries such as Ukraine, U.S. and even Thailand.
With both directors having these achievements under their belt, it’s no wonder the performance was so powerful and enjoyable for the audience.
