FHS offers a lot of different music opportunities, two of them being orchestra and band. However, orchestra has proven to be the superior of the two because of the skill and dedication displayed by the players. Recently, the orchestra attended District Orchestra and All-County Orchestra. Through harsh competition and judging to get into the groups, FHS had the most students to be accepted of any other school attending, as well as filling most of the first chair slots with its players.
There are only four instruments found in the ensemble: violin, viola, cello and bass, so the exclusivity of how small the group may be starts to show. There are two main orchestras offered here at FHS, String and Chamber. Of them, students have to audition to get into chamber orchestra, and even though it may seem like a small program, people do get rejected. If rejected, they are sent to the String Orchestra. Even at assessment, the equivalent of an SOL for music groups, both of the orchestra’s received a Superior with straight ones. Both groups perform around the community as well, such as at the upcoming Fine Arts Festival. Meanwhile, the band has loads of different groups, so anyone who wants to join can come and just be in the group. None of the bands attended assessment this year either. They also have a lot of different instruments that need to be grouped into percussion. Therefore, students who want to play essentially any instrument are guaranteed a spot in the band.
In orchestra, all players must work as one, while in band there can be so many things going on at once that it becomes hard to keep track of. FHS’ orchestra is generally very well rounded with very notable players, such as Derek Garcia who got into Regional, District and All-County, and also recently auditioned for States. Overall, FHS’ orchestra program is much more notable and successful than the band.
