Orchestra’s annual Bach to School Bash on Saturday saw a switch from previous years as
Frisco Commons Park was this year’s location rather than the school.
“I think it stands out because it is one of our few events that takes place off campus,” associate orchestra director Brandon Lucio said. “Students get to enjoy two-and-a-half hours of fun outside at Frisco Commons Park. I think everyone enjoys being with students from all orchestras—not just the one they are in.”
Previously held on a school day, the move to Saturday was designed to help ensure as many students as possible could attend.
“[Having the social on Saturday] works out better, especially for people that have sports on weeknights,” senior Sarah Mills said. “I can speak from experience because the past three years, I wasn’t able to attend because the social was on Friday nights, which were game nights for volleyball.”
Despite schedule conflicts, the social has the largest turnout each year and is the first opportunity for students to earn ‘pod points’ for the year-long competition for the most points.
“The Bach to School Bash is arguably the most well-attended social of the year,” Lucio said. “I like to think of it as a kickoff to the new school year. The entire social is planned by our student officers who lead games and activities for the rest of the students in orchestra.
Some of the activities include red light, green light, a water game, grade vs. grade tug-of-war, and an icy brawl at the end of the night.
“We have a lot of special events, such as our annual snowball fight with real snow,” orchestra secretary, junior Karthika Menon said. “[My favorite part of the social is] participating in red light, green light, as it’s really chaotic and fun.”
Whether students attend these events as freshmen looking to get more plugged into the new program, or as seniors savoring their last year in it, the orchestra socials are an opportunity to bring the whole program together.
“[The] social is an orchestra event that brings orchestra students together to socialize and participate in activities together,” senior Madeline Sanders said. “I attended because I did not attend any orchestra socials last school year, and this is my last opportunity to participate since I’m a senior.”
But at the end of the day, building lasting connections within the orchestra program is the main goal of the social.
“I love getting to see our students begin to form friendships together,” Lucio said. “We have socials like this so students have a place they belong to and can make memories with each other.”
