We have come to the end of another season of concerts at Alpha. The first major concert was a performance put on by five final year Alpha Vocational Training Centre (AVTC) music students in April. The students demonstrated the skills they’ve learned throughout their time at Alpha by journeying through a history of Jamaica’s popular music. The audience, which was filled with proud parents, teachers and well wishers, applauded, danced and sang along to well known Jamaican hits. Towards the end of the event, attendees were treated to the performance of an original song which was composed by the students themselves.
In May, another final year show was held – this time for the graduating class at the Alpha School of Music (ASOM). The entire event was managed and produced by 6 final year students – from setting up the equipment, to the lighting to the set list and more. This was a huge team effort which was overseen by Joel Wallace (a student drummer and bass player) who took up the mantle of Musical Director for the event.
The night was a success which featured lively performances of Reggae, Dub and even Rock songs, as well as an original medley (composed by final year student Royan Wallace) and guest performances by past and current ASOM students and the Alpha Community Band. Apart from those onstage, two final year Music Technology students, Neon Witter and Josh-Lemar Palmer, were operating the show’s engineering booth to ensure that the sounds of the band were of the highest quality throughout the night. The concert served as the final assessment for final year students to qualify for the Associate’s Degree.
A week later, ASOM put on its annual Upward & Onward concert which functioned as an examination for ASOM’s entire school population. Throughout the evening, students impressively switched around the instruments they played from performance to performance, to show their versatility (i.e. their ability to play instruments outside of their area of specialization). The show featured Jamaican folk music, Jazz, Ska, Rock and Latin American music. AVTC students and the Alpha Community Band also made guest performances.
