It all started last year when Patrick Fogarty Catholic Secondary School’s senior concert band won “top concert band” at MusicFest’s regional competition in Collingwood. During a particularly difficult rendition of the song Redemption the competition’s adjudicator was brought to tears. “That’s always the highest form of compliment,” said James Hilts, teacher/conductor. “We brought tears to his eyes . . . mission accomplished.”
Next, the band was off to MusicFest Canada in Toronto where they won a gold medal which, in and of itself, is a tremendous honour. But, the heartfelt and near flawless performance of this senior band earned them something even greater than gold . . . a rare invitation to perform at Carnegie Hall in New York City.
And then the practice and preparation began in earnest. Fifty students honed their trade, perfected their art and worked their magic all in great anticipation of a performance and opportunity like no other. Only three Canadian schools graced the stage at Carnegie this year and what musician doesn’t dream of walking in the footsteps of industry greats like Aretha Franklin, the Beatles and Judy Garland?
As with any good fairy tale, the journey on the way to a happy ending is always the most interesting. What would a Cinderella story be without a stagecoach turning into a pumpkin, or, in the case of Patrick Fogarty, a broken-down “coach” bus stranded on the side of a highway? Enter the white knights (aka firefighters) of Warsaw County, USA who quickly came to the rescue of our young “damsels in distress” and “bachelors in a bind.” In our very own version of Come From Away, these students were welcomed into the community with open arms. They were treated to pizza and the Spotlight Theatre even opened their doors to provide them with movie entertainment, while waiting for their bus repair.
As sad as they were to leave Warsaw behind, the yellow (or should we say gold) brick road ahead was beckoning the Patrick Fogarty crew. Next stop: Carnegie Hall! After all of the hard work and anticipation, the big day finally arrived and in true fairy tale fashion there is a happy ending for this small town’s senior band. After yet another stunning performance the senior band had another gold medal performance. The smiles and cheers from the students would bring a tear to any adjudicator's eye. Mission accomplished!