My alarm goes off at 6:30 am.  I roll out of bed, yawning and groaning at the dark bleakness outside.  I have half an hour to eat breakfast, get dressed and drive to school.  Better put on sweat pants — it’s 40 degrees outside, at most.  When I finally get to school, I’m greeted by several other sluggish faces and drooping eyes.  And so my day begins by busting out my lungs into the trombone.

Orchestra is one of the most worth while classes at Regina.  It has provided me with the opportunity to join the Tri-M, pit orchestra, and even starting the very first piano accompaniment class.  Best of all, we get to listen to Mr. Hiett’s spontaneous storytelling and sample Mrs. Hiett’s heavenly baked goods.  But why does it have to be so early?

I’ve been going to Orchestra almost every day before school for the past three years.  The ladies that I see there amaze me.  Talent oozes from them as they play their instruments, and some even go in during their studies or after school to practice.  Not to mention, we all go outside of school to attend recitals, concerts, and musicals that we can write about for our quarterly concert papers.  Since it is before school, there is no doubt that everyone in Orchestra is motivated to be there and work hard.  So why then, are we scrutinized to early morning rehearsals?  No other class at Regina (besides occasionally our dear friends in AP Chemistry) meet before school.  Frankly, the reason we have heard that the class is offered in the morning is because if it is offered during the typical school day than it might be hard for students to take the class seriously because it isn’t seen as a true class.

I shouldn’t even complain too much about waking up early.  Su Hee Jeong ’16 gets up at 5 o’clock every morning and commutes from Evanston via train and bus.  Many other girls face the same situation.  How can we be expected to put forth our best efforts when we’re still weary from the hours we’ve spent up the night before doing homework?  All teenagers are known for being tired, but this is pushing it.

Not to be biased, but Orchestra students and music students in general tend to be some of the highest achievers in school.  A 2007 study by Christopher Johnson, a professor at the University of Kansas, found that students who attended schools with advanced music programs scored 22 percent higher in English and 20 percent higher in math than schools with lower quality programs.

If our goal is to raise test scores and improve academic standings, shouldn’t more students be encouraged to participate in the music program?  Choir is a possibility, but the class has limited spots, and for some people (especially me) singing just isn’t our thing.  If Orchestra was a class during the school day, more students who play instruments would be interested.  The early morning commitment drives many away from what is really a valuable class and experience.

Orchestra is a team.  When we all sit in our seats ready to play at 7 in the morning, we know that we need each other to laugh and shake off the urges to fall asleep upright.  Whether or not anyone else knows about it, we are working very hard and we reap the benefits through our overall achievement in school, winter and spring concerts, and getting to spend our mornings with the one and only, Mr. Hiett.  Give us a little credit.  I know my mom would appreciate me getting some more sleep because, if it’s not too obvious, I am not a morning person.