At last month’s upper school winter choral concert, women’s vocal group Cantilena was joined by three Harker alumnae who are now faculty members. Upper school journalism teacher Whitney Huang ’08, upper school English teacher Bridget Nixon ’12 and middle school science teacher Kathy Peng ’05 – all former Cantilena members – gathered onstage with the current Cantilena lineup to perform Norwegian composer Frode Fjellheim’s “Eatnemen Vuelie.” They also sang “Truth” by Andrea Ramsay as a trio.
The collaboration was the idea of music teacher Susan Nace, who reached out to the three alumnae at the beginning of the school year. They began rehearsing once a week in October, and even though they were all from different graduating classes, greatly enjoyed the experience of working on music together. “Although I didn’t necessarily know all the other alumni at the time while I was at Harker, because I’m a lifer I’ve crossed paths with many Cantilena alums,” said Huang, who was involved with performing arts throughout her student life at Harker and currently sings with two local choral groups. “Being back in the same classroom … really brings back memories of what Cantilena used to be like.”
The concert presented Nixon with an opportunity to perform again, which she had not done much of in recent years due to being focused on her teaching career. “I like getting to sing again, and we all have this shared experience of being part of Cantilena, which is pretty unique,” said Nixon, who started singing as a middle school student. “Susan has been generous with her time and expertise, and I’m grateful that she has given us this opportunity to sing together.”
Peng, who became a member of Cantilena the same year Nace formed the group and sang for several years after graduating from Harker, described the experience of being directed by her former teacher as “kind of surreal,” adding that she was honored to have been asked to be part of the concert. “It is a testament to the impact that Ms. Nace had on me and her other students that we would feel drawn to sing together again, after all these years, and under the circumstances of the pandemic,” she said.
In November, chess enthusiast Kyle Chang, grade 11, took first place at a chess tournament run by the US Chess Federation and held at Sacred Heart Preparatory in San Francisco, going undefeated at the event. Congratulations!
The girls soccer team remains undefeated after yesterday’s tie against Mercy High School and is still ranked first in the WBAL-Skyline division with a record of 14-0-0. They will be at home against Eastside College Prep for this Friday’s Kicks Against Cancer game, which starts at 4:30 p.m.
After wins on Friday and Monday, boys soccer holds an impressive 12-1-1 overall record, and is in action against Priory today. They will face Sacred Heart Prep this Friday for their Kicks Against Cancer game, set to start at 7 p.m.
At 21-1, girls basketball’s hold on first in the WBAL-Skyline division remains strong. They will face Castilleja on Thursday, which is also their Senior Night. A special ceremony will be held to honor the graduating seniors at 6:15 p.m., 15 minutes before the tipoff.
Boys basketball traveled to Sacramento on Saturday for a game against Priory at the Golden 1 Center (home of the Sacramento Kings), losing 31-52. They are 10-12 following yesterday’s loss against Menlo.
Emerald Brass Quintet’s clever and loving renditions of many of its favorite works were well received by the audience at the Patil Theater at the second event of the 2021-22 Harker Concert Series season.
For the first portion of the show, the group performed the entirety of its 2020 album, “Danzon,” which featured the works of a wide range of composers reimagined and rearranged for brass instruments. Several pieces featured the accompaniment of drummer and percussionist Jim Kassis, including Argentinian composer Astor Piazzolla’s lively and dramatic “Libertango,” the concert’s leadoff number.
Other pre-intermission highlights were the quintet’s rendition of Arturo Marquez’s “Danzon No. 2,” which fused styles from Mexico, Cuba and Argentina, and Maurice Ravel’s “Le Tombeau de Couperin,” which was arranged by Emerald Brass trombonist Chris Van Hof from Ravel’s original piano composition.
Following the intermission, the group capped off its official evening repertoire by returning to Piazzolla with its version of “Meditango,” which prominently featured the talents of each member of the group. They then offered a preview of what’s in store for their next recording, which will feature sounds from – and those inspired by – the German region of Bavaria. One of these was the popular drinking song, “Ein Prosit,” which led with the group singing the tune’s refrain.
For a brief encore, Emerald Brass performed a medley it put together as a fun experiment, which wove in melodies from famous pop songs, concluding with the hook from the Britney Spears hit “Toxic.”
The latest article by Jacob Bongers ’07, “Assembling the Dead,” was recently published in the archaeological journal “Antiquity.” The subject of the article is the 192 human spines recently uncovered in Peru’s Chincha Valley, which represent a method of treating the deceased previously unknown to the area.
The vertebrae were found attached to posts in indigenous graves called “chullpas,” and date back to the period during which colonizers from Europe had been in the region, which coincided with disease and famine killing much of the local population, said Bongers, a senior research associate at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, United Kingdom. Previously, he documented the looting of graves in the Chincha Valley, which was also rampant in the colonial period due to the gold and silver contained within them, as well as the colonial practice of wiping out indigenous religious practices and customs. As such, the method of placing the spines on posts, the research suggests, may have been a means to repair the damage caused to the remains by the looting.
Bongers’ research has so far garnered coverage from CNN, The Guardian, Science, Nature, India Today and dozens more outlets. He was also interviewed for the Feb. 3 episode of NPR’s “The World.” His interview starts at 39 minutes and 40 seconds.
Yesterday, juniors Deeya Viradia and Nidhya Shivakumar and sophomore Ella Lan were named winners of an Award for Aspirations in Computing by the National Center for Women and Information Technology. They were among 360 nationwide honorable mentions (the second-highest tier in the competition) selected from this year’s 3,500 applicants, who were judged on their activities, experience, leadership and how they planned to continue their careers after high school.
In early January, the Class of 2020 gathered at the Hayes Mansion in San Jose for a special celebration that brought together hundreds of alumni and their loved ones to reflect on and honor their time as Harker students.
Safety concerns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the cancellation of the 2020 graduation exercises, a heartbreaking end to a tumultuous year.
“It’s fun to see everyone again,” said 2020 graduate Anthony Shing. “I was bummed out that we didn’t have graduation and I’m happy that we were able to meet again. It was a great event.”
During the event, attendees viewed each graduate’s class collages, watched a special recap video of their years at Harker and heard speeches by their classmates. “It felt like I was still in high school. It was nice seeing everyone,” said Simren Gupta ’20.
The event was also a chance for the families of the graduates to celebrate and reminisce. “The Class of 2020 deserved such a nice sendoff, even one-and-a-half years later,” said Julie Buckly, mother of 2020 graduate Jeffrey Fung. “I think the students truly enjoyed seeing each other and it was fun to reconnect with parents as well.”
This week, national competitive fencer Ishani Sood, grade 10, is traveling to Paris to represent the United States at the cadet-level fencing World Cup. A competitive fencer for several years, Sood channeled her love of the sport into service last year, co-founding Fun With Fencing, a nonprofit that brings instructional programs to local Boys and Girls Clubs. Best of luck in Paris!
In December, sophomore Miki Mitarai, who was a second place winner in the fall 2020 American Protégé International Music Talent Competition, gave a performance at New York City’s Carnegie Hall, singing “Voi Che Sapete” from Mozart’s “The Marriage of Figaro.”
Each year, American Protégé invites young musicians from around the world to submit video auditions for the competition. Mitarai’s invitation to perform at Carnegie Hall was extended after her placement in the competition, but was postponed for nearly two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Mitarai, who is a member of the upper school vocal group Cantilena, said the opportunity was “well worth” the long wait.
Prior to her performance, she encountered a group of singers in Central Park, and was greatly inspired “by the emotion and passion in their voices,” determined to carry that inspiration with her into that evening’s performance. “Singing always makes me happy, and that night, the feeling was just amplified,” she recalled. “The concert went super smoothly and I was so proud of how much time, practice and hard work I had put in to get to where I was.”
From Jan. 7-9 the Harker DECA chapter participated in the Silicon Valley Career Development Conference (SVCDC), the first competitive conference of the year. The transition back to the in-person environment sparked excitement in the community, as the event garnered over 120 signups. The weekend consisted of written and roleplay presentations in front of professional judges, networking opportunities and motivational speeches from California DECA’s State Officer Team.
On the first day of the conference, each student took exams in their respective clusters: Marketing, Business Management and Administration, Finance, Hospitality and Tourism, or Business Administration Core. Later that evening, SVCDC kicked off with the opening session in the Grand Ballroom. California DECA’s vice president of Silicon Valley, Tim Jing, announced the theme of the year, “Maximize Your Momentum,” and encouraged all Silicon Valley DECA members to do so while at the conference. The opening session closed with a talent show featuring two acts from the Harker DECA chapter. Sophomores Chloe Lee and Kaitlyn Wang and junior Anika Muddu performed an acoustic version of “Gone” by Rosé, while sophomore Shreeya Merchia sang a powerful rendition of “Red” by Taylor Swift.
The next morning, roleplay events began, which primarily consist of team decision-making, individual series, principles and personal financial literacy roleplays. Soon after, members competed in their written events where they gave 15-minute presentations in entrepreneurship, integrated marketing campaign, professional selling or business operations research categories. For the remainder of the afternoon, students socialized with friends and explored restaurants nearby.
On Sunday, the mini awards ceremony recognized competitors who performed exceptionally well in the testing, roleplay or presentation subcategories of their events.
“I honestly was so shocked when I received the awards, but I was extremely happy that my hard work paid off and I was able to perform well in my events. In the end it was a great and thrilling experience,” said Saahira Dayal, grade 9, who placed second overall in Principles of Business Management and Administration.
Later, during the grand awards ceremony, a total of 20 Harker teams placed in the top three overall for their events, while many more earned spots in the top 10 awards.
Overall, despite the effects of COVID-19, the conference was a huge success. It provided attendees with a fantastic experience that provided valuable insights into their competitive events and a special chance to forge new friendships.
“I’m incredibly proud of all the officers and attendees for adapting to the new restrictions and environment at this conference. It was great to see how much dedication everyone put into their competitive events, and I can’t wait to maximize our momentum at the State and International conferences this year!” said Juston Glass, Harker DECA’s chapter advisor.
Members placing in the top three are as follows:
First Place:
Shreeya Merchia, grade 10, and Anika Muddu, grade 11: Sports and Entertainment Operations Research
Marcus Blennemann, grade 9: Principles of Finance
Second Place:
Chloe Lee and Kaitlyn Wang, both grade 10: Marketing Team Decision Making
Bowen Xia, grade 9: Principles of Finance
Tanisha Singh, grade 10: Entrepreneurship Series
Medha Yarlagadda, grade 10: Restaurant and Food Service Management Series
Claire Luo, grade 10: Sports and Entertainment Marketing Series
Saahira Dayal, grade 9: Principles of Business Management
Third Place:
Chloe Lee, Kaitlyn Wang and Cynthia Wang, all grade 10: Integrated Marketing Campaign- Event
Marcus Blennemann and Nelson Gou, both grade 9: Entrepreneurship Innovation Plan
Catherine He, grade 12: International Business Plan
Saahira Dayal, grade 9: Franchise Business Plan
Jonathan Wang, grade 9: Principles of Finance
Valerie Li, grade 9: Hospitality and Tourism Operations Research
Ashwin Kuppahally and Adrian Liu, both grade 10: Buying and Merchandising Team Decision Making
Bowen Xia, Caleb Tang and Jonathan Wang, both grade 9: Finance Operations Research
Sanaa Bhorkar, grade 9: Principles of Business Management
Justin Chen, grade 10: Business Finance Series
Meishin Yen, grade 10: Hotel and Lodging Management Series
Catherine He, grade 12: Restaurant and Food Service Management Series