The Oak Park High School Music Department presented Music at the Movies, the first concert of the 2023 school year, on Oct. 4 and Oct. 5.

Five musical groups performed over the course of the two nights, playing music from movies like “Titanic,” “Avengers,” “Ratatouille,” “Turning Red” and “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” among many other popular films.

“My experience at Music at the Movies was great and I liked the bands. They were really talented and I recognized most of the songs from movies I’ve watched,” senior Neerav Purohit said.

The groups started preparing at the beginning of the year, but they had to learn more than their specific music pieces. In order to simulate a live studio, the students had to learn how to use special headsets while playing.

“We had to work with these headsets beforehand to get used to them, but it added an extra sense of authenticity and fun,” junior Navya Sreeraj said.

The five groups that performed were Wind Symphony, Concert Band, Wind Ensemble, Strings and Choir. The first two groups performed on the first night, and the last three performed on the second night. Regardless of their performance night, each ensemble performed pieces that were unique to them and spent months practicing.

“For a lot of the band members, we all enjoyed getting to showcase our instruments through musical pieces that were familiar to us and everyone watching. It just added an extra layer of fun and satisfaction for when we finally got to perform,” Sreeraj said.

The event was live streamed and can be accessed through the Oak Park Music Archives YouTube account.