Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Day 6: NOCCA Day!

It saddens me that we have almost reached the end of the trip, but I have never felt more fulfilled and energized. It truly has been a wonderful trip and after individually expressing our reflections from the day, I realized how thankful I am to be able to share music with such a generous and hospitable community.

Before reaching NOCCA (The New Orleans Center for Creative Arts) for our performance and workshops, we drove through the ninth ward; the neighborhood that was most affected by Hurricane Katrina. The returning members of the group were shocked by the number of houses that have surfaced over the past year, which only enhanced the impact of working with Habitat for Humanity on building the foundation of a house. This greatly encourages me to continue volunteering to help rebuild the neighborhoods that still haven't been fully restored.

March 10: "Juilliard Day at NOCCA"




We were greeted with a delicious home-cooked meal consisting of jambalaya and bread pudding. We can't get enough of this cajun cuisine! Following lunch, we were taken on a tour around the beautiful facilities and referred to our respective divisions for workshops. Being the only trombonist in the group, I was conveniently placed with the only jazz trombonist at the school. Naturally, it became a private lesson and a jam; something we both had a lot of fun with.

After our various workshops, we reported to the school's main performance space for an afternoon show. The students were so engaged and responsive to every piece performed by each group member. We even had a few screaming fans in the audience! Overall, it was an extremely successful performance and I think for all of us, it was the most fun we've had performing in a really long time.

For dinner we were invited by Mr. and Mrs. Schrenk for a night of more authentic New Orleans food and spontaneous performances. Red beans and rice is traditionally known as a Monday night staple, so it was served in a plentiful amount. After dinner, everyone congregated in the living room for solos and duets performed by the musicians, then brought to the backyard where John and Victoria performed the balcony scene from Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet,"Jasminn presented an original monologue, and the dancers improvised to a Bach cello piece arranged and played by Stephanie. It turned out to be one of the most unique and intimate performances we've experienced all week. A big thank you to Mr. and Mrs. Schrenk for hosting us, as well as Mr. and Mrs. Shreves and Mr. and Mrs. Guarisco for your support.

It has been an incredibly inspiring week and I look forward to a full day of performances and workshops tomorrow!

-Kalia

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