On Sept. 20, from 7-8 p.m., the Tri-M Music Honor Society held its induction concert and ceremony in the Aragon theater. Student members of Aragon’s charter chapter No. 3534 were inducted as their family and friends attended to watch in support.
A majority of the event consisted of formalities, like the welcome address from the society’s advisors and Aragon music directors, John Chen and Kevin Gallagher. Then, five senior officers of the society for this school year officially accepted their positions, followed by four junior officers.
“[The officers] have to recite certain mandated laws and bylaws that they’re going to abide by when they’re a board member of the Tri-M Honor Society,” Gallagher said. “Then all the members have to recite our motto … [it’s what] we promise we’re going to do as Tri-M Honor Society members.”
All other student inductees then stood up to share the Tri-M Pledge. Once the pledge was over, members of the society were handed their certificates as they walked across the stage.
There were multiple performances between these formalities. Saurab Gulati and Mina Hwang on voice and piano, respectively, performed a duet titled “The Sea” by Edward MacDowell. They were followed by Dom Kudzia, Gwen Johnson, Matthew Wang, Hudson Atkinson and Natasha Efron, who together formed a jazz group that played “Just Friends” by John Klenner and Sam Lewis. Akilan Paramasivam ended performances for the night with a viola solo, playing Bach Cello Suite No. 1.
“I thought [the performances were] awesome,” said principal Dr. Michael Jones. “It was tremendous to get a chance to see the students also showcase their talents and gifts.”
Tri-M is a part of the National Association for Music Education, which is the largest arts education association in the world. The society supports music education and recognizes students individually for their achievements in and out of music.
Within the program, Tri-M’s main goal is to focus on performance, service and leadership: the three main parts of the program come together to form a society that hopes to strengthen Aragon’s music community.
“[The] number one goal of [Aragon’s music program] was to bridge collaboration amongst the whole music program,” Chen said. “Now with Tri-M, we have the whole music department working together … that really strengthens the music program where we’re now one cohesive music program, instead of five different sections of a music program.”
For service, Tri-M often collaborates with DOROT, a nonprofit organization that provides assistance to the elderly. The society also volunteers at the College of San Mateo’s concerts, helping to hand out programs and take donations.
“Tri-M is always looking to be more involved in the community,” Chen said. “Our goal is to spread music and service from within our department … Tri-M definitely enhances our [music] program with outreach, [and] with service and with collaboration.”
Within the concert, the leadership portion of Tri-M was showcased through a large amount of the student-driven ceremony. Each name called for induction was read aloud by student officers, as opposed to being read out by the advisers.
“I love the leadership of the students,” Jones said. “[The concert] was not full of the voices of the directors … I love the fact that the students own the night.”
Being a Tri-M member also provides a satisfactory experience, as one is allowed the ability to grow and change throughout their time in the program.
“The overall experience [of being in Tri-M] is incredibly fulfilling,” said Jonathan Wong, a senior officer and historian of the Tri-M Honor Society. “Starting in freshman year, I really had no idea what I was going to do, especially with music … and then I joined Tri-M … [Now] I get to be so much more immersed [in] all the music we have here.”
For the coming school year, students wanting to join the Tri-M Music Honor Society at Aragon must have at least one year of high school experience in the music program. They then must be nominated by an officer or adviser to secure their spot as a member.
“[Members] should expect a kind of an environment that is a good balance of seriousness and excitement,” Wong said. “When you hear ‘Honor Society,’ you are kind of like … ‘follow by these sets of rules.’ We try to deviate from that. We want to see us together as more of a community.”
The Tri-M Induction Concert was the first of many more musical events to come this school year. The next will be the Potluck Concert on Oct. 17, starting at 7 p.m. in the South Gym.
