Being involved in performing arts for over seven years has brought me to many different performance settings playing many different styles of music.

The jazz concert I performed in Friday, A Tribute to the War Years, was not the first I had performed in, but it was much different than what I was used to.

We played our music in the band room, which was decorated and set up by the performers and some volunteer students from the commercial music department.

I’ve played in band rooms before as venues, though the American River College band room is much larger than the average high school band room.

Coupled with hard floors, the room size gives the room unique acoustics which were accented when the band was on microphones.

It was also interesting to see, as a performer, people actually getting up and dancing to the music being played. Experiencing this was honestly a shock to me.

Music major Eli Aksenko, who performed in this event last year, enjoyed learning new styles of music and having people appreciate his hard work.

“We played [in the band room] before, but it was a lot more exciting this year,” Aksenko said.

I’ve always performed in more formal or competitive settings, so playing music in a relatively informal environment was a new experience for me.

Every time I go up on stage, every time I’m sitting or standing there with my peers attaining the same goal, I feel completely at peace and in my element, which is quite rare for me.

“I like that feeling of having all eyes on me, to have a chance to be proud of what I worked for,” said music major Louie Goodenough.

After every concert, I’m full of adrenaline and ready for the next one, but this last concert of the semester meant much more than just a concert.