Two 8th grade clarinet students, Boaz Lim and Nickolas Koe of JHS 194, were selected to work on the introductory passage of Roumanian Rhapsody No. 1 as arranged for two clarinets. They began the work in January of this year and continued to work on it on their own as the pandemic hit. They are both top students who have an incredible sense of autonomy and work ethic. By accomplishing this performance task, these two students will be demonstrating knowledge of musical elements, such as dynamics, tempo, and articulation through performance. Students will be able to read and perform sophisticated rhythmic phrases, create, analyze, differentiate, and compare performances, repertoire, and experience in the musical piece, “Roumanian Rhapsody”.

Performers: Boaz Lim, Nickolas Koe

Students represented in the video have been in the band program since the end of sixth grade. Many of these students began their music journey at middle school with little to no prior knowledge from elementary. Not only are these students representative of the talent in the music program but they are also some of the brightest students in the entire school. This musical selection piece allowed students to utilize what they have gained throughout their years in the program to learn a new work without teacher intervention.

Performers: Chris Bhoodai, Damian Balgobin, Davika Singh, Alex Singh, Bryan Joseph, Suriya Farrouq, Jessica Lal, Miranda Rambarran, Destiny Rodriguez, Aryana Singh, Christina Shiwpal, Muskaanpreet Kaur, Arianna Singh, Zara Bhuiyan, Manjot Singh, Kaden Narine, Arvinder Singh, Harmanpreet Kaur

Each year nearly 300 students participate in the MS 158 Band program. The MS 158 Symphonic Band participates annually in NYSSMA adjudication festivals and receives gold ratings. The band has been called upon to perform for singer/songwriter Josh Groban as well as former NYC Schools Chancellor Dennis D. Walcott. The students of MS 158 regularly perform in the Queens College Honor Band, Queens Borough and the MEANYC All County Music Festivals. When the door to room B-27 closed in March of 2020, the students of the MS 158 Band continued to rehearse and desired to perform together one last time. This recording is a testament to the passion and determination the Class of 2020! The students learned that although we are apart, music is a powerful force that can still bring us together. The students not only learned their parts to Pomp and Circumstance, but also learned how to record using SoundTrap.

Performers: Selina Chen, Olivia Chu, Grace Gho, Christy Hong, Kaylyn Kim, Dakota Salzberg, Jamie Wu, Da-Eun Kim, Philicia Lin, Edward Son, Paul Um, Joshua Kim, Justin Choi, Tina Jiang, Yann Kermarrec, Nitin Mahadevan, Asher Jiang, David Jiang, Arish Amin, Eliezer Cho, Hee Won Choi, Joseph Jeon, Yusef Ozmen, Jonas Wong, Christopher Gee, Dylan Nguyen, Taksh Pradhan, Joshua Sun, Danica Torres, Jared Hung, Jason Tsesmelis, David Castarcane, Justin Chen, Tae Youn Cho, Nicole Lin

The Renaissance Middle School 192Q Dance Squad Ensemble is comprised of a group of 7th and 8th grade students; excitingly looking forward to showcasing their performance during the Queens Borough Arts Festival 2020.

Most recently, the Ensemble was scheduled to perform in March 2020, for the Principal’s Conference and District 29’s Winter “Her Story” Event; however, due to Covid-19 restrictions, all live in-person performances came to a halt. Prior to Covid-19, learning this piece, and continuing to practice while in quarantine has positively impacted the students, allowing them to be able to showcase and apply their creativity via our “new normal” of online collaboration.

Students applied creativity, collaboration, performance and presentation skills; culminating a 4-week unit study group works themed: “STRENGTH WITHIN SELF".

Performers: Alayna DeSouza, Chloé Szala, Malene McKoy, Alyssa Lewis, Amira-Marie Dixon, Aqkhira Obi-Windley