Stuart High School musicians charm shoppers a Barnes & Noble

The Stuart Jazz Band.

Shoppers at the Barnes & Noble bookstore in Seven Corners got a special treat Dec. 5: Live music by JEB Stuart High School jazz band and orchestra members.

The performance was part of a fundraiser, a portion of the receipts that evening supporting Stuart’s Music Department. You can continue to support Stuart until Dec. 10 if you buy items on the Barnes & Noble website and use the special code 11173630 at checkout.

The Stuart Jazz Band, under the direction of Brian Thomas, performed several jazz standards, including “Yardbird Suite,” “Harlem Nocturne,” “Little Liza Jane,” It Ain’t Necessarily So,” and Satin Doll.” Thomas himself joined in on a few tunes with his tuba.

Two seniors, Kenny Venskus and Gavin Scott also performed a piece together, “Blue Bossa,” with some help from an alum, Jaime Alvarez (class of 2012) on keyboards.

The Stuart Orchestra, under the direction of guest director Drew Lisowski, the orchestra director at Falls Church High School, charmed shoppers with holiday tunes. “Pachelbel’s Canon” was performed by juniors Linda Vu and Tinh Son on violin, Evan Kean on cello, Adam Thomas and Brady Itkin on second violin, and Vincent Guevara on viola.

Tug Enkhtaivan (viola) and Jack Hillkirk (bass) played “Angels We Have Heard on High, “Silent Night,” and “Lo How a Rose Ere Blooming.” A sophomore group performed “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” with Kayla Morrison and Emma Wiley on violin, Christine Tran and Lauren Twomey on viola, and Teresa Do on cello.

A duet, with Sasha Wilson on violin and Maddie Erskine on cello, played “Lover’s Waltz.” The final piece was an entrancing solo by violinist Sasha Wilson. The audience was truly entertained, and staff members  were seen dancing in the background.

The public is invited to Stuart’s winter concerts. The Stuart bands will perform on Dec. 11, the choirs  will perform Dec. 12, and the orchestra concert is Dec. 16. All the shows are 7 p.m. at the school.