The Francis Howell North Jazz Band concert was last night at 6:30 p.m. The students have been preparing their music pieces for a couple of months now, and finally had the chance to show off all their hard work. Family and friends were invited to attend the concert that was held in the Auditorium.

“This years group is much different than last years,” band director Jeff Moorman said. “There is more people, which allows for more combos to be performed.”

A combo is a smaller group of players of different instruments that perform a song by themselves, rather than the whole band playing. Junior Sean Rhomberg plays trombone in the Jazz band. Rhomberg prefers Jazz over other types of music.

“It’s pretty much a free art form,” Rhomberg said. “It’s loosely structured, so you really have the chance to make it your own.”

The songs they played were called Count Bubba, Satin Doll and The Woogie. Also, some of the many combos that were performed were Jordu, No Greater Love, Sunny Side of the Street, Sugar, St. James Infirmary, and Sister Sadie. Sophomore Emily Hardin joined Jazz band this year, and plays Alto Saxophone.

“I like the different styles that go into it and how different it is from all other types of music I play,” Hardin said. “It’s super challenging, but it makes other music classes easier.”

Jazz band is much different than other band classes. Most of the songs that were played required the students to use improv and come up with melodies that fit the song off the top of their head.

“Even though improv and solos are challenging, it’s fun to hear what you come up with musically, and to be able to hear your personal strengths and weaknesses,” Hardin said. “The concert went really well, and I’m excited to see what more practice will do to the band for the next concert.”