It was unquestionably an exciting and intriguing day on November 7th, 2024 for various students from the music department of East Islip High School when they were prepping for their average school day up until fifth period, of course. Because when everyone who had been waiting for this fateful day finally arrived at ENS Room 1 (or the band room if you’re feeling simple), those individuals’ minds were racing with joy and anticipation for the looming field trip…
THE OVERVIEW
The excitement what was bustling within all of the students that arrived in ENS Room 1 was none other than the second annual 2024 Concert Band New Jersey Performing Arts Center/American Dream Mall field trip. This field trip definitely was not your average East Islip High School field trip for a plethora of reasons. First of all, the locations selected for this place were uniquely dynamic, exotic, and exciting in every aspect for high school students. Furthermore, the vehicle of transportation both the students and chaperones received were luxury coach buses that definitely added an extra layer of personality and memory to the field trip. The amenities involved within the coach bus were interesting and comforting, as they allowed more body space and easier socialization with friends. It was amazing and we haven’t even reached our main destinations yet…
The New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark is one of the largest performing-art-centers within the USA surrounded with an urban undertone by Newark’s streets and buildings. Once we got off our coach bus, we were each handed a ticket from the supplied chaperones, in my case, the teacher of our school’s breathtaking band, Mr. James Tucker. We were then checked by PAC security just to be sure there were no delinquents entering the premises, followed by being escorted by the polite PAC employees to the auditorium. The auditorium itself was a massive, professionally established space that featured elevated balconies above the walls (we actually sat on the second floor in one of those), to witness a Latin American inspired concert with main conductor Carlos Miguel Prieto accompanied by iconic musical artist Paquito D’Rivera, soprano vocalist Amber Monroe, and the New Jersey Symphony. All of the students and chaperones were also given a booklet providing key information regarding the concert. This booklet also contained a Bingo board for certain aspects an individual hears within the concert (I didn’t have a pencil/pen, so I couldn’t do it, but I heard the prize for completing the board was only a sticker). There was about four pieces total played with the first piece being divided into 5 parts and lasted around 20 minutes! Personally, I found the Spanish-influenced concert to be absolutely incredible with a lot of dynamics, tempo and energy shifts, and practically everything that makes a classic musical piece good. However, this was still not the end of all the students and chaperones’ long day…
After the estimated 90 minute symphonic concert at the P.A.C. concluded, the students returned to their appropriate seats within the same coach bus. It was roughly an half-hour voyage north of Newark to the massive white building along the I-95 known as the iconic American Dream Mall. One might consider the Dream Mall just their daily average South Haven Mall in Bayshore; however, while the American Dream Mall is considerably larger in terms of size as well as shopping and meal options, they also have some additional roller-coasters, various game activities, and a Ferris Wheel that overlooks the central New Jersey/New York City area. There were multiple groups of ecstatic students scrambling throughout the mall in order to utilize the vast potential for shopping and fun offered to them through the American Dream Mall. I attempted to explore every corner of this Mall with determination to explore all the opportunities provided by this extravagant mall, such as obtaining dinner from a Jollibee’s for the first time in my life, as well as observing and purchasing a plethora of diverse merchandise and participating in different activities (with an hourly check in with my assigned chaperone, Mr. Tucker). We concluded our field trip and started our estimated 2 1/2 hour coach bus return ride at 7:30 PM, and although everyone including myself felt slightly disappointed that it was over, this field trip certainly created many new and fun memories for all of us.
“It was me and Mr. Neske that planned this trip”, states Mr. Tucker, the Concert Band teacher. He said that they booked performance tickets to the New Jersey Performing Arts Center “to give the students a cultural experience because a lot of students have never been to a full-on concert, and this gives them an opportunity to experience one firsthand”.
(My) Final Thoughts and Opinions
Personally, I was highly excited and intrigued by the freshness of the field trip considering I traversed this same trip last year in 2023. Despite that I had a relatively equal amount of excitement and enjoyment from last year’s field trip as I did this year, the overall experience definitely felt slightly different due to a plethora of factors. This included the content of the NJ Performing Arts Center concert, which was heavily Latin American inspired. It definitely gave many students a fun, enjoyable, and memorable experience involved within the educational field of music to demonstrate that East Islip High School still provides new, exciting opportunities to help student at EIHS flourish.
All in all, I rate the New Jersey Performing Arts Center/American Dream Mall field trip a 9.3 out of 10!
