A surprisingly large crowd turned out for the second “Open Stage” event . And on a cold winter evening, the program warmed everyone up: there were solo instrumentalists performing contemporary and classical music, powerful vocalists, and jazz ensembles playing well-loved standards.

The youngest musicians, Ben Luis Peters and Nina Simmer (both in 5b), performed “Kleiner Länder,” a catchy four-hand piano piece by the well-known German music educator Anne Terzibatschitsch.

For her solo piece, Nina Simmer also chose a work by a contemporary composer: “Nuvole bianche” by Ludovico Einaudi.

Anna Steinfeld (6b) displayed remarkable confidence at the piano as she performed “Amelie” by Yann Thiersen.

The three musicians from grades 5 and 6 thus ensure a successful start.

During the last musical events of the school year, it had already become clear that Steinmühle once again has outstanding singers who can captivate an audience. Jolene Junge (Class 11a) performed “Back to Black” by Amy Winehouse—a challenging song—with astonishing ease.

Johanna Sodmann (12d) wowed the audience with Pink’s “Just Give Me a Reason.” Sonja Mecke (11a) sang “Closer” by The Chainsmokers, accompanied by Arthur Laux (11a), who was in high spirits. The progressive house track performed by the two 11th-grade students was met with enthusiastic applause from the audience.

Frank Wemme (SL) and Tom Herfert (9c) demonstrated with “Round Midnight” by jazz pianist Thelonious Monk that a piano piece can also be perfectly suited for a performance with guitar and saxophone. Together with Samuel Ruff (9b) on trombone and Marit Winterstein (7c) on euphonium, the two performed “Lullaby of Birdland,” a mainstream jazz classic, with remarkable confidence.

Fynn Konnertz (9b) amazed the audience not only with his guitar playing but also with his technical skills. He played several“improvisations” with remarkable richness of sound by using his looper as a real-time overdubber—that is, he was able to add his previously played solo part as an accompaniment to his performance.

The Classical Music section was kicked off by “guest student” Alexander Despa. The eighth-grader impressed the audience with Chopin’s ever-popular “Nocturne, Op. 9, No. 2.”

Bodam Lee (10b), a successful participant in many music competitions, had once again set her sights on something special with her violin . She performed the second movement, “Romance,” from Henryk Wieniawski’s “Violin Concerto No. 2 .” The audience was impressed.

For several months now, Jieni Zhang (10b) has been a valuable addition to our school’s classical music department. Her performance of the “Marche Funèbre” (Funeral March) was the second Chopin highlight of the evening. Jieni’s piano playing perfectly captured the solemnity of the piece throughout.

Nelly Endres (8b) brought the evening to a successful close with a modern classic on the piano. She played Gershwin’s “I Got Rhythm” at a tempo that had everyone moving along …