Symphonic, Wind Ensemble, Wind Symphony, Jazz Band I - Curricular Ensembles
The bands at Mira Costa High School provide opportunities for musicians at many stages of musical development.  From the educational level repertoire of the Symphonic band, to the professional-level repertoire of the Wind symphony, all the students pursue a high degree of musical integrity when approaching any piece of music.
 
In the process of recreating art through performance, ensemble members learn about the composers and their compositional purpose, seeking the original intent of the music.  The focus across all the bands is the development of the students’ musical maturity to the point where they are able to receive the greatest benefits of music education. Every member is a vital component of the ensemble and is important to both the process as well as the product.

Located in the Los Angeles suburb of Manhattan Beach, the orchestra program at Mira Costa High School began in the Fall of 2002 with a string orchestra of 19 students. Two years later, founding director Christopher Schwabe expanded the program to include a full orchestra. Under the guidance of current director Peter Park, the Mira Costa Orchestra Program has grown to involve over 140 student musicians. In recent years, the orchestras have presented numerous times at All-Southern California music conferences, and performed at world class venues including Beijing Concert Hall, the Shanghai Oriental Arts Center, twice at Carnegie Hall, and twice at Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Peter Park is the director of orchestras at Mira Costa High School. Mr. Park graduated from UCLA with high honors with a dual emphasis in music education and percussion performance. He earned his M.Ed. from UCLA’s School of Education & Information Studies while re-pursuing studies on his first instrument, the violin. During this time, Mr. Park earned top prizes in the Grancell Foundation Solo Competition and the Atwater Kent Solo Competition. As both a violinist and a percussionist, he has had the pleasure of performing with several outstanding orchestras, including the San Francisco Symphony, and the Tanglewood Festival Orchestra. Collaborations with internationally renowned conductors include Herbert Blomstedt, Zubin Mehta, Seiji Ozawa, Robert Spano, and Peter Oundjian.

Outside of teaching, Mr. Park has served as clinician, adjudicator, and guest conductor for several organizations and school districts throughout California, the Western States, the Midwest, and the South. He has been recognized twice by the PTA for outstanding teacher service, and was honored as Educator of the Year in Santa Monica as well as Music Teacher of the Year by the California chapter of ASTA. Mr. Park has a notable history of championing wide areas of music education, including the founding of Elemental Strings, a developmental youth orchestra program, the organization of the inaugural Violafest Los Angeles, currently held at the Colburn School of Performing Arts, and the mentoring of several apprentice teachers from CSULA, UCLA, and USC.

Joel Carlson is the Instrumental Music Teacher for the Bands at Mira Costa High School, a 2014 GRAMMY Signature Schools Gold Award winning school and one of three awardees to be recognized by the GRAMMY Foundation in 2014 as having one of the best comprehensive music programs in the nation. During his tenure at Mira Costa, the bands have grown in size, scope and excellence. From the Wind Ensembles to the Jazz Bands and the Marching Band, the Mira Costa Bands are consistently rated at the highest levels of musicality for their outstanding performances. A native Californian, Joel is a proud graduate of Thousand Oaks High School and the University of California, Los Angeles (BA, Music Education & Music Performance, oboe, 2003; MA, Conducting & Music Performance, oboe, 2005), and is a proud alumni of the Pacific Crest Drum and Bugle Corps (2000-2002) where he was honored to be named as the 2002 Brass Player of the Year. Mr. Carlson enjoys the daily pursuit of helping each student to realize the fullest cognitive, collaborative, and creative benefits that music education has to offer. Mr. Carlson directs the three Wind Ensembles, the two Jazz Ensembles and the Marching Band.