Saratoga Strings has been selected to perform as part of a prestigious conference at McCormick Place in Chicago during the week of Dec. 15, which also happens to be finals week first semester..

Midwest Clinic is an annual international band and orchestra conference attended by over 17,000 from all over the globe.

Saratoga Strings is the school’s highest level audition-only orchestra, including 42 high school students who play string instruments at a collegiate level.

According to senior Max Chang, a member of Saratoga Strings, it is a privilege for the orchestra to have the chance to perform such engaging pieces of work at the conference.

The group will be the third orchestra from California to attend the conference in the past 68 years.

“Every year, 17,000 people from all 50 states and 40 different countries attend the clinic,” Chang said. “The fact that our playing reaches out to and may benefit so many people of such different backgrounds is chilling.”

According to Chang, because Saratoga Strings will be playing for an audience of music professionals who educate musicians from the elementary school level to the collegiate level, their repertoire consists of a whole spectrum of pieces of different difficulties and styles.

Two years ago, Saratoga Strings applied to attend this convention, but wasn’t accepted. According to music department head Michael Boitz, the students worked hard on their application this year and gained admittance.

“The process [to get accepted] is pretty tough,” Boitz said. You make two to three recordings including an audio recording, a video recording and a resume that warrants you to go.”

In the days leading up to the performance, members of Saratoga Strings will participate in many music-related activities and watch other prestigious performances in Chicago for the week that they are there.

However, Saratoga Strings members will be forced to complete their finals the Saturday and Sunday prior to their departure. According to junior Nicole Chiou, who plays the cello, the event is worth missing finals over.

“It’s another thing I need to add to my busy schedule, but I think the trip is definitely rewarding enough to reschedule my finals,” Chiou said. “It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity, so I don’t really mind missing a few classes.”

When the members of the orchestra reach Chicago, they will be working with renowned music professionals such as Dr. Mallory Thompson of Northwestern and Dr. Lawrence Sutherland, both of whom will be guest conducting the students. Mike Pakaluk, Instrumental Music Director at Lynbrook High School, will play trumpet on one piece with the students.

The orchestra’s musical selection for the event ranges from Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings in C to music written specifically for the group by world renowned composer Timothy Mahr and the music department’s own percussion director Vince Oliver.

Besides rehearsing for the show, they will watch the Chicago Symphony and other music groups. On a non-musical note, the students will also take a tour of Chicago’s historical sites and will visit the Second City Comedy Theatre, where many famous Hollywood comedians such as Will Ferrell and Tina Fey have emerged from.

“When we travel somewhere, we really want to make sure that the students can experience the city and the culture,” Boitz said.

Saratoga Strings will perform on the final day of the conference, Friday morning of finals week. Boitz, the band’s director, associate directors Jonathan Pwu and Anthony Lanzino, Performing Arts Administrative Assistant Takako Hasegawa, Instrumental Music Director Vince Oliver, the superintendent Bob Mistle, a school board member and principal Paul Robinson will be coming to watch the performance along with a large number of parents and other family members.

“[The members of Saratoga Strings] play at a very high level, and if you come to watch a rehearsal of that group, you see that it’s a constant collaborative process,” Boitz said. “As a conductor and teacher, I’m leading and guiding them through. But ultimately, the students are at a proficiency level where they’re making a lot of technical decisions as we prepare the group.”