ABC Orchestra inspires students with real-world gigs

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Committed to mastering a cohesive sound that captures iconic popular music from across the decades, the students in ABC Orchestra will play The Intersection’s Stache, opening for electric violinist Mia Asano.

‘Everyone Here is Having Fun’: Members of the ABC Orchestra at East Kentwood High School. (Photo/Noah Snyder)

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In the early morning hours on a frigid Monday, the furnace rattles while it warms the cavernous halls of East Kentwood High School, which are mostly desolate.

Before the ding of the first hour bell or the shuffle of shoes along the tiled floor, the scene is mostly quiet. A few teachers can be seen relishing the serenity before the chaos of the classroom. They top off coffee. Organize stacks of graded assignments. Straighten up tables and chairs.

Music teacher Ryan Wallace makes his way through the empty building at a steady pace. He is dressed casually in a green sweater and camouflage cargo pants. His shoulder-length hair sways with each step and his glasses reflect the lights hanging above.

In the distance –- beyond those empty classrooms, past rows of idling lockers –- a few muted melodies are heard, bending their way around the maze of halls. With each step further into the building, the sound intensifies.

Beyond the closed doors of the band room, ABC Orchestra is prepping for its daily rehearsal. There’s a flock of stringed instruments emerging from their cases: violins, violas, cellos, upright basses. Strings are plucked. Tuning pegs twisted ever so slightly. Rosin gets applied to wooden bows.

Orchestra Director: Ryan Wallace (Photo/Noah Snyder)

“I am not a morning person at all. But I’m here because it’s so much fun. And everyone here is having fun,” says violinist and senior Skye Reynhout.

“I think I’ve learned the majority of my music theory knowledge from ABC Orchestra, or at least it inspired me to learn more about it. I kind of have an understanding of how music works now. I know what major and minor scales are. I learned how to arrange songs from my peers. I absolutely love arranging music now. It’s probably one of my favorite things that I know how to do.”

An acronym for “Anything But Classical,” the student band focuses on reinterpreting popular and alternative music with an orchestral approach. Made up of 30 East Kentwood middle school and high school students, the band’s instrumentation also includes two electric bassists, a drummer and electric guitarist to complement the orchestral strings.

An important and milestone performance looms on the horizon: ABC Orchestra will open for electric violinist and metal/rock/Celtic musician Mia Asano at The Stache located inside The Intersection in Grand Rapids on March 18. Tickets are $41 in advance, available online here. Doors open at 6 p.m. while the show begins at 7 p.m.

“As a music teacher, whenever I tell people what I do, everyone always says they wish they would have kept playing. I’ve never had anyone say that they are glad they quit their school band or put down their instrument. This was kind of my answer to that.

“To get kids playing their instrument beyond the classroom. To give them real world experience where they are treated as professional musicians in a professional setting. And they’re excited about it. You don’t wake up at six in the morning if you’re not into it,” says Wallace.

CLASSICALLY TRAINED BUT UNLEASHING JAZZ, ROCK, FOLK & MORE

Functioning more like a touring band than a traditional orchestra, the group was started in 2007 at Pinewood Middle School as a way to equip music students with the performance and gigging skills necessary to participate in the non-classical world. While the students are classically trained, ABC Orchestra’s repertoire ranges from jazz to rock to folk music and beyond.

The ever-evolving collective has released two albums, titled “Unpacked” and “Moving On.” Over the years, the group and its many iterations has performed both locally and abroad, making voyages to tour Ireland in 2013 and Scotland in 2017.

“ABC Orchestra was the first music extra-curricular that I joined back in middle school when I first started playing the cello. I definitely wasn’t as passionate as I am now,” says cellist and junior Annabell Kowalski, who has been a part of ABC Orchestra for the last five years.

Headliner: ABC Orchestra will open for rock violinist Mia Asano.

Kowalski was also responsible for creating the artwork for the upcoming March show poster, which was shared by Asano across social media. It’s this type of multifaceted, hands-on approach that extends beyond the stage or even the classroom.

“This band has really helped kickstart this idea that music can be so much more than just playing on a stage for old people. I think ABC has taught me so much more than a classical orchestra could. And on top of that, Mr. Wallace, he describes this band as a gig ready program. So it’s also taught me so much about what goes into the setup, the technology and how to get gigs. Those are skills that I can take past high school and into making music.”

Rehearsal is winding down but the positive energy is palpable. Students joke around with one another and with Wallace while packing up their instruments.

A few students plead with Wallace to play “Swamp Thing” before the clock runs out. An uproar grows. There’s a unanimous outcry for the ’80s punk song ensues. Wallace counters with a promise: They’ll play the song before the end of the week – and if not, it’s bagels on him.

Wallace walks back through the halls that are now buzzing with students. He gets stopped a few times with questions about the set list and the upcoming performance. He takes time to answer each student thoughtfully.

Halfway through the school year, Wallace is primarily focused on delivering a polished opening set for Asano. He hopes the show can be a springboard for future opportunities such as opening for other touring artists. Eventually, he’d like to record an album. But for now, the plan is to simply “keep things moving,” Wallace says.

“Right now, my biggest stressor is that the past couple of years have been big, and we keep growing. My fear is not matching that next year,” says Wallace.

“You know, we did the Grand Rapid Symphony thing, and I thought that was really cool — that it was this pinnacle. And then I saw Mia was coming to town, and thought I’ll just shoot my shot, send her an email. And she was so open and receptive to the idea. So that’s honestly my biggest point of stress — not the early rehearsals or wondering if the kids will be prepared. It’s more a question of ‘What are we going to do next to top it?’”

PHOTO GALLERY: ABC Orchestra
Photos by Noah Snyder