{shortcode-a1b5b0535a28bee6a3418067e7c63bdf6e4fc406}
This year, the Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra has performed orchestral masterpieces, from Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 11 to excerpts from Gustav Holst’s “The Planets.”
Now, the ensemble can add the viral Russian meme song “Sigma Sigma Boy” to its repertoire.
Six HRO members performed a specially curated concert on Friday for the elementary students at Kennedy-Longfellow, a public elementary school in Cambridge set to close at the end of the school year. The event was, in part, planned to be an uplifting celebration of the more than 200 students who are nearing the permanent closure of their school.
The Cambridge School Committee closed the elementary school because of its persistent under enrollment and low test scores — despite many parents’ praise for staff and teachers. Now, as CPS transitions K-Lo students to surrounding elementary schools, parent Claire Yu said Friday’s event helped celebrate students’ final days at their elementary school.
“We’re really grateful that HRO came out to do this outreach and celebrate our children with amazing music right before they have to go their separate ways to pursue their education,” said Yu, who organized the concert.
Yu added that as an “underserved, underfunded, under-resourced” school, she wanted K-Lo students to have the same “access to music” as their peers.
“Music is the ultimate equalizer, especially in children’s educational career,” she said.
K-Lo students gathered in their school’s auditorium to listen to a variety of songs, from familiar favorites like Disney’s “Let It Go” to the more classical “Pomp and Circumstance.” Students clapped along to the songs, cheering and raising their hands throughout the performance.
The clear favorite, however, was TikTok famous “Sigma Sigma Boy” — which was such a hit that students asked the ensemble to play it twice.
Ben L. Fortuin ’27, the Creative Director of the HRO, said the ensemble works “to partner with as many local schools as we can.” He added that when the group learned about K-Lo’s closure, they made it a priority to send the students off with music.
The performance also included interactive elements with the students, with ensemble members explaining how their instruments worked and answering questions about playing music.
“I’m glad that we could find something that would be a positive thing for them to remember,” Fortuin said. “I hope that students just give a little bit more consideration to the things they’re listening to and think a little bit more about music.”
Rahffety Maxwell, a music teacher at K-Lo, said she thought Friday’s concert “was a really wonderful performance.”
“I think it was great for the students to connect with their learning in music class, and to see everything live,” she added. “It was really engaging for the kids, very fun.”
As K-Lo students and staff prepare to leave the school for the last time, Maxwell said Friday’s performance was a high note to end on.
“It was a nice send-off concert,” she said. “It’s a nice way to bring our community together, one of the last times.”
Read more in News
News Flash: Memory Shop and Anime Zakka to Open in Harvard Square