Plainview-Old Bethpage students rehearse and play with musician
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Community Events Plainview-Old Bethpage students rehearse and play with musician … Comments Posted on November 12, 2026 The Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK High School orchestra rehearsed with visiting singer-songwriter Jesse Ruben. Plainview-Old Bethpage Central School District The Plainview-Old Bethpage John F. Kennedy High School Orchestra performed with singer-songwriter Jesse Ruben at a free community concert Oct. 29, capping a week of rehearsals with the artist at the high school. The concert featured a side-by-side performance, in which student musicians played alongside Ruben. Instead of the classical pieces the orchestra typically performs, students worked from chord charts listing a song’s chords and developed their own parts through improvisation. The concert grew out of an experiment over the past year in which the orchestra improvised accompaniments to some of Ruben’s songs. “This is completely out of the ordinary for a high school orchestra program,” said Orchestra Director Dustin Bartley. “They actually get to make creative choices on their own on the fly. It is terrifying, and it is invigorating and exciting, and it engages a whole different side of their musicianship.” “We usually do only classical pieces with classical composers, but now we are able to work with chord charts, change around our parts and improvise, which is really exciting,” said student Alexa Milana. “Many of my classmates have never played anything like this, so it is a really great experience to see it all come together, with everyone trying new things and showing that to the community.” Ruben, a Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter whose work has been featured on “The Today Show,” MTV and NPR, has visited the district for years to perform for students and lead workshops. For more scene & seen event photos, click here. About the Author All comments are subject to our Community Guidelines . Schneps Media does not endorse the views shared by readers in our comment sections.