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South Side Middle School seventh-graders perform spring concert; students recognized for NYSSMA solos
Summary
Seventh-grade musicians from South Side Middle School performed a spring concert in Rockville Centre, with staff recognizing students who prepared solos for the New York State School Music Association adjudication and urging continued participation in school music programs.
Good evening, seventh-grade families, Antoinette Morgan, assistant principal at South Side Middle School, said as she opened the school's seventh-grade spring concert in the auditorium.
The concert featured the seventh-grade band, orchestra and choral groups and included recognition of students who prepared solos for adjudication at the New York State School Music Association (NYSSMA) festival. Katie Mark, director of the arts for the Rockville Centre Union Free School District, thanked Superintendent Matt Gavin and the district Board of Education for support of arts education and highlighted the role music plays in students’ transition to high school.
"We're here to shape incredible humans," Mark said, urging families to consider sustaining students' involvement in music through high school. She described a ninth-grade parent’s report that band membership had eased a student's anxiety about moving to high school by creating a peer support network in the arts.
The concert program included guest percussionists and student soloists. Band director Christina Tomek acknowledged two soloists, Andrew Veil on flute and Rachel Dryden on alto saxophone. Orchestra staff noted that seventh-grade cellist Henry Grama stepped in for a percussion part after breaking his arm; Hudson Farish also performed as a guest percussionist and is listed in the printed program.
Staff and students who participated in NYSSMA were asked to stand and were recognized during the program. The arts team encouraged families to view and follow the district arts Instagram account (linked in the concert program QR code) for posts and recordings. The district also arranged for student videographers—Leila Donlon from the video club and Wilke McNas—to record the performance so families could view it later on YouTube.
The Rockwell Center Sponsors of the Arts, the district’s parent organization for arts fundraising, sold concessions in the lobby; Mark said their fundraising supports scholarships and other student opportunities. Organizers asked audience members to remain for a full reception of each ensemble so every student would have a full audience.
Staff noted this concert was the district’s first spring concert kick-off and announced there will be additional grade-level concerts later in the month; specific dates were announced at the event. No policy changes, votes or formal district actions were taken at the concert.
For parents and community members, the concert served as both a showcase of student progress and a reminder of the district’s broader arts programs and volunteer fundraising that support them.
