First Orchestra Concert

It's so fun having a baby, as there are so many things that we get to watch him do for the first time. Today I took Jules to his first orchestra concert. The Auckland Philharmonic Orchestra did a children's concert, with the theme "Planes, Trains and Automobiles". He really enjoyed it; he bounced along on my knee to the music, looked in amazement around the hall, and banged his rattle loudly (nearly) in time to the music! A lot of the chairs had been cleared out of the main floor of the Town Hall, and so we sat on the floor right up near the stage.

It was an excellent concert, and I was really impressed by the presentation. The presenter was a professional actor, and was fantastic. The pieces were short and mostly programmatic music to do with travelling, with some themes from popular kids shows, like Thomas the Tank Engine. There were movements to do with the songs, and each kid was given a straw to use as a baton as well as a sticker showing an instrument of the orchestra. The instruments on the stickers were featured individually in a solo in the concert, and each represented a different section of the orchestra. The kids could recognise the different sections because they were wearing different coloured shirts - black for the strings, yellow for brass, red for woodwinds, etc. It was clear someone with knowledge of early childhood education had had a hand in planning the concert! I will definitely go again with Jules.

Attending this type of event here, I continue to be thrilled with the variety of opportunities on offer in Auckland, and the high quality of events I attend.