All City Orchestra Concert

I've said this before, but every year about this time, I am completely impressed with our school district's instrumental music program.  They put on all-city band and orchestra concerts.  They are at the Lloyd Noble Center--you know, where OU plays its games.  In the picture above, that's the entire floor of the LNC filled with all of the city's orchestra students, grades 5-12.  Not a great picture, but you get the idea.

The cool thing about the concert is you get to see how far your kids have come from the 5th grade.  Each grade plays one song apiece, so it doesn't drag on foooooorrrrrever.  We paid especial attention to the 5th graders, who actually get to play 3 very short pieces, and the 7th graders.  Wow!  What a difference 3 years will make in orchestra performance.  Am I a bad mom, though, to admit that it was really the 8th graders rendition of the Pink Panther that made my whole evening?

Then, at the end, all of the orchestra students perform a specially arranged piece.  This year, it was called Songs of America, and featured and unfurled American flag, complete with a few streamers.  It really was pretty awesome.

Meanwhile, one of my daughters was not too pleased to have her picture taken:

But at least she didn't hide like our friend Cheyenne did (she's the waving folder behind Lizziy in the following picture):

And in the end Lizziy gave up battling and let me take a favorite picture (anything to make your pregnant mom happy, right?):