#music

Apr 3
2 min

On Gaspard de la Nuit and Ravel

A titan of the impressionistic period, Maurice Ravel composed a variety of music combining elements from the late Romantic era and the Modern era. He entered the Paris Conservatoire at the age of 14, and studied under the esteemed Gabriel Fauré. He remained in the Conservatoire until the age of 20, where he composed works such as Pavane pour une infante défunte, Sonatine, Jeux D’eau, and Miroirs. One of the last works he composed at the conservatory was Gaspard de la Nuit (19

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Kevin Zhang

Mar 29
1 min

Notes on the Romantic Era

Spring has finally arrived! Please follow along on our Social Media Manager's, Jerry Zhang's, take on the Romantic Era and how it has influenced classical music today! The Romantic Era was a stylistic movement in art, literature, and most importantly music. Lasting from the 1830’s to the early 1900’s, the Romantic era rejected the enlightenment and emphasized emotion and nature. Compositions became incredibly expressive and started incorporating new techniques such as chromat

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Kevin Zhang

Mar 6
2 min

“Hats Off Gentlemen - A Genius!”

Happy March! As we slowly transition out of the cold, breezy conditions of winter to the delights of spring, we hope you enjoy a take on one of Chopin's many masterpieces by Humphrey Xu, our Application Manager! Chopin - a great romantic composer and arguably the most influential of his time. Some of his great works include the four Ballades, sets of twenty-four Preludes and Etudes, and two piano concerti. However, one work of Chopin’s that has remained relatively obscure is

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Kevin Zhang

Feb 27
2 min

The Texas All-State Experience

Conduced by our Co-Marketing Manager Daniel Ma, the following interview features Ali Khan, a clarinetist from Memorial High School who made All-State Band this year. How would you sum up your experience at All-State? All-State is an incredible experience. It shows your work and dedication as a musician. Here is a brief summary: DAY 1 First woke up Went to school Hopped on bus from Houston to San Antonio Went to hotel Went to a restaurant that I don’t remember the name of Went

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District-Wide Competition Hosts Talented Young Musicians

Kevin Zhang

Feb 21
1 min

District-Wide Competition Hosts Talented Young Musicians

As we prepare to announce the 2022 HIMC Competition, our Co-Marketing Manager, Andrew Yang, shares his Solo & Ensemble experience in preparation for UIL. The work that they put into music can be applied anywhere in life. A Solo and Ensemble Competition was recently held for middle/high schoolers across Spring Branch ISD. To be honest, it was amazing to watch some of the performers perform pieces such as Bruch’s Concerto Number 1 in G Minor 3rd Movement and Vitali’s Chaconne.

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Texas High School String Honor Orchestra's TMEA Performance at Lila Cockrell Theatre in San Antonio

alex36390

Feb 13
2 min

Texas High School String Honor Orchestra's TMEA Performance at Lila Cockrell Theatre in San Antonio

The Memorial High School Sinfonia Orchestra led by Orchestra director Danielle Prontka along with Matthew Chan has recently performed on February 10th at the Lila Cockrell Theater in San Antonio for the yearly Texas Music Educators Association convention. Their concert consisted of pieces from Chinese Folk Songs arr. Zhou Long, Idyll for String Orchestra movement 5. Adagio by Leos Janacek, Visions and Miracles movement 1. All joy wills eternity by Christopher Theofanidis, Fan

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Kevin Zhang

Nov 28, 2021
1 min

My Last Year of Region

We hope everyone enjoyed Thanksgiving! Please enjoy an account of our competition director Kevin Zhang's account of his Region Orchestra experience. Region is not all about rankings; it is where I am able to meet musicians across two school districts and create music together. The audition and re-chair process was stressful and tiring, but the best part of Region was when we finally got to rehearse together last Friday and Saturday. This year, there were three pieces which we

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"Danse" through the history of Camille Saint-Saëns

Kevin Zhang

Oct 31, 2021
1 min

"Danse" through the history of Camille Saint-Saëns

Trick-or-treat, Happy Halloween! Please enjoy a glimpse of Saint-Saëns's musical accomplishments and a recording of his most famous opera by our Social Media Manager, Jerry Zhang. His piano and compositional skills influenced and were admired by the likes of Richard Wagner, Franz Liszt, Gabriel Fauré, and countless others. Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns, better known as Camille Saint-Saëns, was a Romantic French composer born in Paris in 1835. After studying piano throughout his

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Tea and Bets: Shostakovich’s “Tahiti Trot”

Kevin Zhang

Oct 17, 2021
1 min

Tea and Bets: Shostakovich’s “Tahiti Trot”

Hi everyone! Grace, our Co-Marketing Manager, will talk about one of her favorite pieces, “Tahiti Trot” by Dimitri Shostakovich. Shostakovich, a child pianist turned prodigy composer, is recognized as one of the greatest composers of the 20th century for his innovative pieces, many of which were created under the censorship of Stalin. From his ominous and sorrowful String Quartet No. 8 to his satirical and humorous ballet L’age d’or (The Golden Age), Shostakovich’s brilliance

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Kevin Zhang

Oct 2, 2021
2 min

What makes marching band so unique?

Happy October! We hope you enjoy the experiences of marching band shared by the Co-Marketing Manager, Daniel Ma. "Marching band brings a physical aspect to band and teamwork is even more vital in this event." The biggest difference between middle school and high school band is that high school band introduces marching band. Marching band brings a physical aspect to band and teamwork is even more vital in this event. Compared to concert performances, where it may be difficult

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Catherine Wu

Sep 19, 2021
1 min

Why do we play music?

Please enjoy a short essay written by a new addition to our team, Alex Wang. "Playing music shouldn’t feel like a burden." Many students today may believe that playing a musical instrument is onerous and tiresome, almost as if it's something that they force themselves to do every single day with great effort. Playing music shouldn’t feel like a burden. We should play music as a way to relax and enjoy ourselves. Personally, I play the violin as a way to relieve stress and esca

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Interview with Viet Ha, Junior 3rd Prize

Catherine Wu

Sep 9, 2021
2 min

Interview with Viet Ha, Junior 3rd Prize

Happy new school year! Our very own new Competition Manager, Kevin Zhang, has interviewed Viet Ha, 3rd prize of our junior category in HIMC 2021- please enjoy! What instruments do you play, and how long have you played them? I play both the piano and the violin, but I mainly focus on piano which I’ve been playing for 8 years now. I’ve only been doing violin for 4 years a little before I started middle school. What are some of your musical accomplishments? Some of my musical a

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Catherine Wu

Dec 26, 2020
2 min

Interview with Tri Ha

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas! In celebrating this holiday season, we will be featuring Tri Ha, a junior at Memorial High School, in our weekly blog. In this blog post, we will have a conversation with Tri on how COVID-19 has impacted the everyday life and education of a musician. What instruments do you play, and how long have you played them? I have played the piano as my primary instrument for 11 years and the violin for 6 years. What are some of your musical a

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Catherine Wu

Sep 28, 2020
1 min

Welcome to the HIMC Community!

As the first blog post for HIMC, we would like to give you all a warm welcome and introduction to our competition. With our global pandemic

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