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By EMILY REED | Special to the Reporter

ALABASTER – Roughly 1,000 Alabaster City School students were recently treated to a live audience school concert by the Alabama Symphony Orchestra for the first time in more than two years.

“The response from the students and their teachers was incredibly positive,” said Alabama Symphony Orchestra Conductor Chris Confessore. “It was likely the first field trip in a long time for the students as well. It was a thrill to perform for them. They laughed and applauded throughout the concert. Not only did it educate and entertain the students, but I think their response was a huge shot in the arm to all of us on stage.”

Second grade students from Meadow View Elementary, third graders from Creek View Elementary and fourth graders from Thompson Intermediate School participated in “When Instruments Roamed the Earth,” which was presented by the Alabama Symphony Orchestra in the Thompson High School Performing Arts Center.

Confessore said the concert was specially designed to appeal to elementary school students as a fun introduction to the instruments of the orchestra.

“The students were attentive, responsive and engaged throughout the concert,” Confessore said. “They were a fabulous audience.”

A highlight of the event included a T-Rex dinosaur coming on stage to help conduct the orchestra.

“The students responded very positively to the music, the illustrations and to the narrator,” Confessore said. “Having the arts as part of a young person’s regular curriculum makes them a more inquisitive student and a more thoughtful and sensitive person.”

Individuals who helped make the program successful included ACS general music teachers Ann Coe, Bonnie Herenu and Dennis Jones. THS Theatre Director Hannah Sizemore also played the part of paleo-musicologist and Sir Humphrey Treble-Clef and narrated the show.

The event was a partnership between ACS, the Alabama Symphony Orchestra and the Shelby County Commission.

“We were thrilled to have the opportunity to share this program with these wonderful student audiences,” Confessore said. “Special thanks to their teachers for preparing them so well for the experience. Thanks to all of our friends at Thompson High School for welcoming us back to their auditorium. It is a beautiful venue that we look forward to performing in regularly.”