A soothing breath of Ireland wafted through the halls of the music building where the guitar ensemble rehearses. The sweet sound of Londonderry Air, a popular Irish tune, floated from the guitars and filled the room with a warm and welcoming presence.
Santa Ana College’s guitar ensemble graciously allowed me to sit in on their rehearsal before their upcoming in-person concert. This will be their first time performing in front of an audience since the pandemic forced the group to rehearse and perform solely online.
Syncing up all of the musicians on Zoom for their rehearsals or performances was not an easy task. Audio and video delays, as well as quality limitations, hindered the experience for the students and audience.
“A class like this needs momentum,” said the guitar ensemble conductor, David Adele, “It’s like one semester leads into another and we slowly get more and more students and it builds up into a nice core group. But, COVID kind of took the wind out of our sails a bit.”
Pieces by Beethoven, Bach, Houghton, and a few others will be performed at the concert. SAC’s guitar ensemble will also be featuring a special guest, the Mount San Antonio College guitar ensemble.
Both groups are led by Adele, who teaches music both at SAC and Mt. SAC, which they will be performing together.
The concert will be held from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Phillips Hall Theatre on Saturday, May 21. Tickets may be purchased online from the Fine and Performing Arts event page on SAC’s website or at the door.
