On Tuesday November 7, Fraser Hall on the University of Northern Colorado campus was infested with teachers, students, family, and friends as the Campus String Orchestra performed their first concert as a group. The ensemble is comprised of 32 musicians, five of which are current Greeley West students.

As the first semester came to an end, the ensemble put together a repertoire of pieces ranging from a Tchaikovsky symphony to a more modern suite by Francis Feese titled Red Rocks Suite.

The group kicked off the night by the “Prelude and Fugue in D Minor” originally composed by Bach, and arrangement by Robert Frost. Another arrangement by Frost of “Symphony No. 6 in B Minor, II” by Pyotr Tchaikovsky followed the opener.

Red Rocks Suite, a three movement piece by Francis Feese, continued the energy, and led up to the finale of the night. The ensemble left the audience with a “Symphony No. 88, Finale- Abridged”, an arrangement of a classic composition by Franz Joseph Haydn.

For a group that meets only two hours a week, senior violist Saul Mercado commented, “It ended out really well; we managed to get a lot done in a little bit of time.” The students were able to join and contribute to a collegiate level ensemble with only nine rehearsals as a complete group.

“It’s cool to see them pursuing music on their own outside of West,” said West orchestra director, Mr. Tom Nugent, “Anything that strengthens string culture in Greeley, I’m a fan of.”