ECC Faculty shows off musical talent
March 30, 2016
Elgin Community College’s music faculty shared their musical talent on March 8. The program offered five live performances with a total of eight musicians. Although there were 150 tickets sold, there were a few empty seats scattered throughout the Second Space Theatre located in building H.
ECC instructor for six years and flute player since grade school, Scott Metlicka provided a performance that proved to be entertaining and delightful for those in attendance Monday evening.
It wasn’t Metlicka’s first time performing Allegro, Flute Concerto by Jacques Ibert. Metlicka’s first listening was in high school, where he fell in love with it.
If Metlicka had the opportunity to perform alongside anyone it would be Yo-Yo Ma, the famous cellist, and the composition would be Saint Saens’ Carnival of the Animals.
Metlicka believes in the music department at ECC.
“It is growing,” said Metlicka. “I love my colleagues in the music department. My only complaint is we need more space. We are often fighting for rooms.”
A live performance captivates a certain feeling and tantalizes the senses. In Metlicka’s words, it is sometimes therapeutic and transcending.
“I like the idea of helping people relax and get their mind off of things when I play,” said Metlicka. “I want music to transport people to another place.”
Metlicka performs on campus at the end of every semester, where he features some of his students in an end-of-semester recital. He accompanies them on piano.
Sharon Jones, ECC music instructor and member of several chamber orchestras, began her musical journey playing the piano 40 years ago. She then transitioned to trumpet and now French horn.
It is Jones’s second year at ECC. She has also taught at Benedictine University as well as Wheaton-Warrenville High School and Geneva High School.
It came as a surprise to Jones that the attendance was so high Monday evening. The box office reported selling close to 150 tickets.
“Oh I’m delighted, every table was filled,” said Jones. “You know I wasn’t expecting that. This was my first one I had no idea what to expect.”
Jones and Metlicka are colleagues and they also accompany each other in the Elgin Symphony Orchestra. The duo also performs with each other at freelance gigs in the Chicagoland area.
“I like it when we can really pull something together and make it sound good,”said Jones. “You know we didn’t have a whole ton of rehearsal time on this but I thought we pulled it together very well and I thought it sounded pretty good.”
The ECC faculty weren’t the only musicians in attendance Monday evening. Nolan Sinnott and Brendan Itter, attendees, are in a band together. Itter’s mother, Constance Hughes, was one of two the pianists Monday evening. Sinnott will be taking private piano lessons from Hughes in the near future.
Sinnott’s favorite performance of the evening was Allegro, performed by Scott Metlicka and Constance Hughes. Itter was very entertained and pleased to have watched a medley of wind-powered instruments in conjunction with the elegance of pianist Hughes during the quintet performance.
“You don’t see all of those instruments play together very often,” said Itter.
Both Itter and Sinnott have frequented ECC for live performances, even though they aren’t students. They both enjoy live performances and appreciate its subtle nuances.
“It captures personality, you can really see everything come to life,” said Itter. “Definitely the feel and the vibe of seeing the expressions and the actual physical act of creating the sound,” said Sinnott.
Music lovers like Itter and Sinnott may very well find themselves surprised when discovering the arts at ECC. Music is everywhere and easy to find. Great music needs to be revealed and uncovered.
