Some 1200 strong, the audience that packed the new gym for the elementary Christmas concert on December 22 was perhaps one of the largest assembled in Cleveland, at least in modern times.
But fifth grader Bella Baker, who soloed “Here Comes Santa Claus” while playing keyboards in a trio with her two cousins, fifth-grader Logan Baker on the bass guitar and his third-grade brother Liam Baker on the drums, wasn’t nervous in front of the huge crowd at all.
“I sing in the talent show at the school too. I sing a lot, so it doesn’t bother me.”
Mom Tammy Baker was grateful that the school’s elementary music program and music teacher Lacee Johnson (as well as Johnson’s husband Kevin, who provides private music lessons) gave her daughter and nephews the opportunity to perform.
“It has been a joy watching the Christmas concerts for the past few years. Our children were very excited for the opportunity to have their first performance and look forward to more opportunities in the future.”
“The “Baker Trio,” as Johnson labeled the group, entertained after the fourth graders left the stage. Each grade, K-6, performed several songs. All told, more than 350 kids were in the lineup.
Several grades used instruments as accompaniment, some simple like bells or sticks or rattles to keep a rhythm, others requiring more practice, like xylophones and recorders for playing a melody.
While bolstering self-confidence and poise and gaining the satisfaction of achieving a goal are huge takeaways that come from performing in front of a crowd, research shows the many benefits of music education for children, Johnson said. These benefits include improving basic skills, like language development, hand-eye coordination, memorization, pattern recognition, creative thinking, perseverance, and teamwork.
“Some students struggle in their regular classroom but can come to music class and flourish. A music program in schools helps to give students a well-rounded education.”
Preparing for the concert and pulling it off come performance day is a lot of work for the students and Johnson too, but, knowing how popular it is with adults and how much it benefits the kids, she wouldn’t trade the experience for any other.
“It’s my favorite day of the year.”
Look for our elementary students, including the Baker Trio, back on stage for their annual spring concert May 17. And make plans to get there early.