Hillcrest Drummers Rock the State House
.jpg) Photos by Patrick Ronan
The Hillcrest Drummers perform in front of the Grand Staircase on Tuesday afternoon in Boston.
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"An older woman came up to me and she said 'That was so beautiful,'" said Aimee Gelinas, the cultural educator and drum instructor at Hillcrest. "She came up to me with tears in her eyes. She had never heard anything like it before."
A group of six students from Hillcrest Educational Center of Lenox, along with Gelinas and clinician Phyllis Ragusa, performed six selections in front of the Grand Staircase. The students had been invited to the State House by Senate President Therese Murray, who was impressed by their skills during the Hillcrest St. Patrick's Day fundraiser this past March.
On Tuesday morning, Murray and Sen. Benjamin B. Downing, D-Pittsfield, welcomed the group of musicians and treated them to a pizza party. The drummers then put its rhythm on display with a 1 p.m. performance.
The kids were brimming with confidence as they hit every beat and break with well-versed technique. A crowd, consisting mostly of state employees and tourists, swelled to almost 50 people by the end of the concert.
Gelinas was particularly pleased with the sound, which created an echo that radiated through the second and third floors of the State House.
"It was big, it was powerful," she said.
Following the staircase performance, which received a standing ovation, the students were given a tour of the State House and then performed a second set, this time in a private session in the Senate Chambers.
 State House employees and other spectators gave the Hillcrest Drummers a standing ovation. |
The Hillcrest drumming class, which meets once a week, is the "hot ticket" on campus, according to Ragusa. Of the 43 kids enrolled at Hillcrest Center, which specializes in providing educational services for children with behavioral disorders, only 10 are allowed in the drumming group.
The class, which has existed for almost two years, has already garnered quite the gig list. The students have performed at the Third Thursday street festivals in Pittsfield the last two years, and earlier this month they were featured in the city's Fourth of July parade. Recently, National Public Radio (NPR) broadcast a story on the Hillcrest Drummers.
"This group has stepped it up this year," Gelinas said. "I am watching their spirits change with every performance. They are realizing that 'music is a part of me.' Maybe they get overlooked in other areas, but they shine in music."
Performing West African, Afro-Caribbean and Latino rhythms — using instruments such as the djembe, djun djun and conga — students are able to explore various cultures while learning the importance of concentration and collaboration.
"I love the way it sounds," said Tichanda, 14, who is one of the student drummers. "It sounds so cultural. I love learning how people from different places and different cultures express themselves through music."
For most of the students, Tuesday’s trip was their first visit to Boston.
"There are some big buildings," Kevin, 15, said.
Chris, 14, said he liked the city but he admitted that — as a New York Yankee fan — it was difficult being around so many Red Sox fans.
Adrain, 16, said performing was, by far, her favorite part of the trip.
"When I heard that sound bouncing off the wall, it gave me so much energy," she said.
Gelinas said orchestrating the shows is a lot of fun, but she’s more impressed by the students’ discipline under pressure. Drumming as a group, unlike a solo performance, requires a trust in others.
"If one person is not there, it's not the same," Gelinas said. "It's like a community."
