【Aiden in English】

        The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia is somewhat of a legendary dream to all young artists. Because I’ve only seen the stage a few times in performance, it feels like an area of performance I’ll never reach.

        However, Pennbrook’s Wind Ensemble, as part of the USBands concert series, has given its members the opportunity to perform on stage at Verizon Hall of the Kimmel, one of the most prestigious concert venues in the nation.

        We were not the only school today. The entire North Penn district sent multiple bands from the middle and high schools. Other bands from all over Pennsylvania and New Jersey came to demonstrate their skills.

        The focus is not on their performance, but it’s on our show. Even as a performer, one still can be awed.

        The Verizon Hall was something I’ve never experienced in the past. Before even mentioning sound quality, the giant organ pipes in the background of the band already stunned me. The balconies stretched up so high, I felt like a mouse in an enormous maze. And the bright lights made me want to crawl into a ball and disappear.

        And then we were playing. I’m not going to dwell much on the songs, as I’m sure they have become repetitive in my drafts. One can’t come to the Verizon Hall and talk about what was prepared beforehand. No! One lives in the moment.

        At the moment, the largest standout to the qualities of the Kimmel would be the acoustics. During the short amount of time on stage, the sound quality made a major impact. To all those experienced to music, you can tell the distinct difference of the ringing tone after each note, especially the extreme accents and fermatas. Other than the beautiful tone quality and the amazing sound changing architecture of the hall, we had a regular performance.

        I think the entire size of the stage itself contributed to the sound perceived. Being cramped in a small band room at school, the sound always bounced back on the walls, making all noise louder than it actually sounded. When the walls expand and the ceiling rises up, you suddenly feel small. However, the grandiose Kimmel happens to have this lessening effect on the performers. Not only do we feel small, we physically sound smaller, and therefore, we are truly smaller.

        This show was the debut of “Pavane” by Gabriel Fauré, a beautiful piece of literature. I bring this up because the slow, slur of the song went well with the ring and echoing of the hall. Also, the trumpet dropped a mute, but it’s the performing arts. Anything is possible.  Pavane illustrates a dance of peacefulness, which is the contrast of our other songs. The swings in mode, I think, highlight the list of songs in our repertoire.

        The Kimmel Center symbolizes much for this band. Because the middle school Wind Ensemble is very, very new, the step to the next level is important to all.

        This band performance here will be the first of many to come.

【紅霞譯文】

        費城金梅爾表演藝術中心可謂所有年輕藝人嚮往的地方，我只來過幾次觀看節目，似乎從未奢求有朝一日到這裡登台獻藝。

        然而，作為美國樂隊系列音樂會參與者，賓溪中學管樂隊有幸在全美最負盛名的藝術聖殿之一威瑞森音樂廳亮相。

        今天我們並不是唯一出場的樂隊，整個北賓州學區四所初高中學校派來了好幾支樂隊，另外還有賓州及新州其它樂隊也紛紛集結於此盡展風采。

        本次演出關鍵在於我們如何表現，而不是別人怎樣發揮。即便身為演員，誰都會被如此壯觀場面所震撼。

        過去我從未有過威瑞森音樂廳演出經歷，暫且不談其音質效果，光是樂隊後面大型風琴管足以叫我瞠目結舌，觀眾席層層疊疊伸向高空，我猶如身陷巨型迷宮的耗子，一見到鎂光燈就巴不得鑽進圓球逃之夭夭。

        接下來我們開始演奏，在此毋庸一一贅述，畢竟我曾連篇累牘報道過相關細節，人們親臨威瑞森音樂廳何必談論事先如何準備，不！活在當下。

        說起金梅爾表演藝術中心，其最為突出的特點應首推聲學效果，短短上場走台過程中，音質好壞起主要作用。對於具有音樂造詣的人來說，一下子就能甄別各個音符的回音，特別是強重音和延音，多虧音樂廳建築構造變換出優美的音色以及絕妙的音調，我們總算發揮了正常水平。

        我認為音樂魅力取決於舞台本身的大小。平常呆在學校空間狹窄的練功房吹吹打打，音樂經牆壁反射，回聲反饋的各種噪音蓋過實際音量。當把牆壁向遠方推移並將天篷往高處伸展，你突然發覺自己渺小起來，而宏大的金梅爾表演藝術中心着實讓演員縮微，我們不僅顯得小，而且看上去更小，無形之中真的變得微乎其微。

        本次演出先以加布里埃爾·佛瑞的華彩作品《帕凡舞曲》拉開序幕，我之所以強調它是因為這首樂曲緩慢平穩兼有鈴聲伴奏及回音效果，其間小號誤失靜音器，有悖表演藝術唯美精神，正所謂世事難料。帕凡是一種音調和諧的舞曲，與本樂隊演奏的其它曲目形成了鮮明對照，我覺得這恰好反映出我們在表演風格上變化多樣。

        在我們看來，金梅爾表演藝術中心意味深遠，畢竟初中管樂隊經驗非常淺薄，外出學習交流對於提高演藝實力非常重要。

        這回金梅爾中心管樂會演將是我們邁向未來的第一步。

Today in History(歷史上的今天):

2014: PSSA Fifth Grade Writing(賓州五年級寫作統考)

Crosslink(相關博文):

Salute to Vienna @ Kimmel Center(費城金梅爾“向維也納致敬”)