On February 18, 2025, at 6:30, Tabor produced a wonderful performance with all the members of the co-curricular, Fall Applied Music. The night began with a beautiful harp piece “Impromptu” (Opus 86) by Gabriel Fauré from Sage Ding. Sage did a spectacular job starting the night with a peaceful song that gave me goosebumps! The next performers were Sage Ding and Wilson Wu, who had a powerful piano duet. The song, “The Name of Life” by Joe Hisaishi lifted the room and created a wonderful sound throughout the chapel. The next piece was from Wilson Wu, playing “Moonlight Sonata” (3rd Movement) by Ludwig van Beethoven. His skills are unmatched on the piano and he always plays his pieces to perfection. Following Wilson was Alex Hu with a unique song on the guitar “Like a Star” by Youngso Kim. Alex not only strummed the guitar beautifully, but he used it as a drum as well! This touch brought a special surprise in the middle of the song which I thoroughly enjoyed! His guitar skills are seriously amazing, and he continued his talent in a song at the end of the show, which I will write about later. Next was Leo Somma, performing “Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major” (Prelude) by Johann Sebastian Bach. Another amazing guitarist created a wonderful piece that added greatness to the concert. Johann Sebastian Bach wrote music both beautiful and complex; however Leo executed the piece very well. Matthew Levesque, another pianist played “Pirates of the Caribbean Medley” written by Jarrod Radnich. Wowza, was this a performance! If I closed my eyes, I imagined Captain Jack Sparrow lying on the beach. This was a powerful performance, and he made the chapel move with his excellent piano skills. The following performance was from Finn Ladue playing the banjo and Leo Somma who played the guitar. They played “Foggy Mountain Special” by Earl Scruggs which was a fun song with a beautiful melody. The next singer and guitarist was Merrick Brannigan with an original song named “Traveler.” Merrick wrote this stunning song, and he mentioned how he wrote it from the perspective of another person, which is unique to his writing. This song had a country twist with a smooth chorus, including his soothing voice was a great experience for us all. Merrick came back on stage for the following song with Ashley Byrnes who is another singer and guitarist. They sang “If We Were Vampires” by Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit, their voices work so well together, and they both have the talent of playing the guitar and singing at the same time creating a wonderful melody. Merrick and Ashley perform regularly together and always make an awesome show. Merrick and Ashley appear again in the following song with Alex, Finn, and Yasha Chumak. This was Yasha’s first appearance that night while playing the drums to “Wildflowers” by Tom Petty. This song was one of the many hits for that night bringing multiple artists together. Finally, Matthew, Leo, Yasha, Ashley, and Merrick ended the night with a thrilling and upbeat song, “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen. The music shook the room and was a terrific way to end the night!
