Alumni are coming back:
Who to look for at the 50th anniversary of East High's Winterfest
by Shumi Liu
Embedded Files
This year marks the the 50th Winterfest concert at Williamsville East and to celebrate, we’ve invited a few amazing alumni back to perform.
Mir Ali
Guitar virtuoso Mir Ali graduated from East in 1980, and since then, he’s gone on to perform around the world for tours and masterclasses in India, Spain, Romania, Italy, and Canada. He has released two albums and composed music for movies, theater, radio, and most recently, the documentary “Roots and Branches," which won the “Award of Excellence” from the prestigious Film Advisory Board in Hollywood.
Currently, Mir serves as Director of the Amherst School of Guitar and has been President of the Buffalo Guitar Society and Artistic Director of the Rantucci International Guitar Festival and Competition for the past 15 years.
John Stevens
While only a junior at East, vocalist John Stevens (Class of 2005) appeared on Season 3 of “American Idol”. His impressive 6th place finish led the way to a great music career. The summer of 2004 saw him touring with the "top 10" from that season, performing in 49 shows across 46 cities in the USA and Canada. After graduating from East, John released his debut solo album “RED” on Maverick Records.
John then went to the Berklee College of Music, graduating Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelors in Music in 2009. Following graduation, he returned to Buffalo, NY, for the release of "Home for Christmas," a holiday album produced with the talents of Queen City musicians.
In 2012, John formed The John Stevens Band with a group of skilled New England musicians. Since then, John has been dedicated to crafting his own songs and has had the privilege of performing across the U.S. with esteemed big bands and orchestras, including The Boston Pops, The Bay Philharmonic, The Cape Cod Symphony, and The CDA Big Band.
Audrey Yu
Staff Sergeant Audrey Yu (Class of 2012) joined The U.S. Army Band “Pershing’s Own” as Principal Oboe in 2022. Before joining the band, Audrey was an avid freelancer and oboe teacher in Dallas, Texas. She has performed with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, and Colorado Mahlerfest Orchestra, among others.
Audrey holds a Performer's Diploma and Master of Music degree from Southern Methodist University, where she studied with Erin Hannigan. Before that, she studied with Richard Killmer at the Eastman School of Music and earned Bachelor of Music degrees in both oboe performance and music education. She also received a minor in biology at the University of Rochester and was inducted into Pi Kappa Lambda, the National Music Honor Society.
Winterfest will take place at Williamsville East High School on Wednesday 12/18 and Thursday 12/19. The program begins at 7:00 PM, and doors to the auditorium will open at 6:30. There will be prelude music and artwork on display in the Commons before seats in the auditorium are available. Large ensembles (all students) will perform both nights, and there will be a wide variety of small group acts.
Winterfest organizers, Mr. Timothy Buckley, Mr. Thomas McCluskey, Mrs. Anneke Ieda, Ms. Cassandra Girzone and Mr. Ellen Raimondo, say that they’re excited about performing with our three guest artists and the world of experience and knowledge they bring back to us at WEHS, and quote “Thank you, as always, for supporting your children in music. We look forward to seeing you!”
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