By: Dara Edwards

April 22nd, 2022: This week the Thiel College Marching Tomcats became the Concert Tomcats, showing off their musical talent to the entire campus! The program featured songs by British composers, with the rock band also having their chance to shine.

The night started off with the rock band featuring tomcat Sylvia Patterson on vocals. Her free spirit and musical talent stunned both her peers and the rest of the audience. She did not hold back once during their set, making the performance even better for everyone involved. The last song, You Really Got Me by The Kinks, featured solos from every member of the rock band with the last, and arguably the best solo, coming from the drummer of the rock band. This portion of the concert gave every person a chance to bask in the spotlight and show the campus how talented they truly are.

After the intermission, the concert band was set to begin. The band opened up with a song called Flourish for Wind Band, under the direction of Thiel’s very own Nicholas Samson. After the basic introductions, Samson welcomed everyone to the concert, mentioning how much time and effort all the students had put into the program stating that these pieces were some of the harder ones that the students have rehearsed since his start at Thiel back in 2020. Samson then paid homage to his assistant band director, John Jerasa, who also had his opportunity to conduct the band for two pieces. Both Samson and Jerasa had their chance to play in the band as well, both of them playing the trumpet along with some other community members.

Due to the band being smaller than most, not all spots had been filled and not all instruments were originally featured. This is when Samson had the idea to bring some members of the Greenville community to ply with the students and cover some of the parts that students hadn’t been able to fill. It was obvious that the band had put in the time and effort toward making this the concert of the year. Finally, before the last song of the night, Samson gave the spotlight to some of the seniors of the band, acknowledging his memories with them as individuals and the accomplishments they’ve made since him starting at Thiel. These very special seniors include Brittany Moon, Jacob Orczech, Jayda DiGregorio, Katie Miller, and Kevin Hawn. Overall, these seniors and their peers made this concert one worth remembering and talking about.

Image Credits: Thiel College Press Releases