Jaycee Jones
Staff Writer
Webster Groves High School and Hixson Middle School jazz bands performed at the St. Louis Pageant on Thursday, Feb. 3.
“It went really well. I think the crowd was mostly parents and students, but it was cool,” sophomore Alex Ward said.
The Pageant was rated number four in the top 100 venues in the world for ticket sales in 2010 selling 186,342 tickets. Professional bands who performed at the Pageant recently are Interpol on Feb. 11, Kesha on Feb. 22, and Cage the Elephant on Feb. 24.
Both Jazz I and II from the high school and Hixson’s seventh and eighth grade bands played. The band was supposed to play on Wednesday, Feb. 2, but because of the snow, the concert got pushed to the next day.
“It was different than playing in the auditorium at school because it is a professional venue. It also sounded really good because we had actual sound guys working,” said Ward.
Senior Michael Neu played solos in three out of the four songs performed with Jazz I, including “Con Elma,” “Hullabaloo,” and “Inside Out.”
“You work hard to play at the Pageant. It’s a really big deal, and it makes you feel like a professional,” said Neu.
Jazz Bands next concert was at 7:30pm on Feb. 23, in the Jerry R. Knight Auditorium, and from March 17, through March 23, Jazz Band is going on a trip to New York City.
