Rexburg orchestra students get opportunity of a lifetime performing at iconic venue in New York

REXBURG — A Rexburg orchestra director and her students won’t ever forget the moment they stepped into one of the world’s most famous concert venues and performed on stage in New York.

Madison Junior High School Orchestra Director Ariel Loveland and 140 of her seventh- and eighth-grade orchestra students performed at Carnegie Hall on Monday.

“We submitted an audition last year, and they were invited to perform. They were the youngest and largest group on the stage, making history here in Manhattan Concert Productions,” Loveland said. “I am just really proud of them!”

The idea to perform at Carnegie Hall came from Loveland after she had been impressed with her students and wondered how they would measure up nationally.

“They usually would play big competitions closer to home and we always did really well…I wondered if these students were ready for the national level, and they were!” Loveland said.

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It’s a dream come true.

“I will never forget the day that I told them that we were accepted into Carnegie Hall. One young man just started crying — a cellist — and it hit me how important it was for these students to hear of their success and to increase their confidence,” Loveland said.

Students were able to make the trip to New York a reality, too, through their hard work in fundraising. Last fall, the students had a potato dinner in which they earned $10,000. They also sold raffle tickets for a car generously donated to Madison School District #321, Loveland said.

She and her students, along with the help of over 100 chaperones, left on Friday for New York by plane.

They had an incredible itinerary, including visiting the Museum of Natural History, watching a Broadway show, visiting the 9/11 Memorial, seeing the Statue of Liberty, and much more.

The students also got to participate in a clinic on Sunday, the day before they performed at Carnegie Hall with Kevin Noe, a nationally recognized educator. Noe listened to their pieces and provided feedback. Click here to learn about his background.

“He loved our group so much he worked with us for an extra 20 minutes. It was so neat to see his enthusiasm for our students. It was incredible that he just wanted to give us more time because the students were so eager to learn from him,” Loveland said.

Watch the video above with Noe.

Then, the big performance came the following day. The program called “Symphonic Series for Bands and Orchestras” was presented by Manhattan Concert Productions. There were five other schools that performed, too, from places like Kentucky, Georgia, Florida, Oregon, and New York. All schools were high schools except for Madison.

Madison Junior High was the last to perform. It was a concert open to the public.

“They just started playing from their hearts,” Loveland said through tears. “They were so brave and I think it’s something that they will tell their children’s children about because I will never forget it. It was worth every effort and all the hard work and preparation.”

They played four pieces, including Sinfonia in D by Del Borgo, Allegro from Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 by Bach, Jupiter from The Planets by Holst, and Legends of Glory by Griesinger. Video of the Carnegie Hall performance has not been made available yet.

“The only way to get to Carnegie Hall is to practice, practice, practice,” Loveland said.

Dylan Payne is an eighth-grade student and plays upright bass. It’s his third year in orchestra, and he said playing inside of Carnegie Hall was an amazing experience.

“It’s super nice in there. Everything echoes a lot,” Dylan said. “At first, I was really nervous, but by the time it got to it, I was mostly like, ‘Well, we are here; we are going to do it!'”

Dylan said the highlight of his trip was performing, and he also liked seeing New York.

“The city is a really cool experience for me because nowhere around Idaho is it this big. It’s a very different culture,” he said.

Dylan is grateful to Loveland and said she encourages her students.

“It was a wonderful opportunity to come all this way and we have been practicing for a year now to do this,” Dylan said. “I don’t think I am ever going to forget this. By far probably the greatest moment of my orchestral career.”

Alexis Allred, a seventh grader, said she enjoyed playing the violin at Carnegie Hall, touring the city, and being with friends.

“We were the youngest group there. It was very pretty. It really helped me feel empowered and believe I can get better at playing the violin,” Alexis said.

She credited Loveland as being one of the best teachers.

“She is very thoughtful, kind, funny and sweet. I’m amazed at all she’s done for us in preparing and planning for this,” Alexis said.

Loveland told EastIdahoNews.com it was an honor and a privilege to play in New York. She received an email from Noe that said, “Group sounded terrific, thanks to your leadership and care!”

“I was so grateful for the kindness of my students on tour. They represented Rexburg well!” Loveland added. “They got to perform in the iconic Carnegie Hall, a place where the reverb sings eternal.”