Since 2016, teacher and librarian Joel Levin and music teacher Kevin Downey have worked together along with students to record and produce songs for Buena High School’s “Not-So-Silent Night” album, an annual tradition. The project started in Buena’s library, where Levin used to hold concerts for students and staff. There, they could come to learn songs to carol, sing or play to add a bit of holiday cheer to the school day.
When Downey decided to make a holiday album featuring students and teachers, he recruited Levin to help record and direct the process.
“This is something we can do… We have all this great technology. Let’s use this and let’s make real music that we can release across the world, [so that anyone] anywhere in the world with an internet connection can listen to our music,” Downey said.
The two-month process begins in October when they announce the album’s release. Next, Levin and Downey hold auditions.
Downey mainly directs the conduction and recording of music, and then it’s sent off to an audio engineer who prepares it for digital release. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, a popular swing band from Ventura, donated most of the money they raised from benefit concerts for Ventura Education Partnership to Ventura Unified School District (VUSD). This donation, along with other grants and nonprofit funds raised by the community, has made it possible for Downey and Levin to purchase instruments and equipment that help with the creation of this album.
Last year, the album had 15 songs, all of which were covers. This year, volume nine will include original songs– Two written by students and one written by Levin to be performed by Buena’s choir.
“I think the most exciting piece is we have students appointed who are writing original music and it’s going to be recorded and released everywhere in the world,” Downey said.
One of these students is Junior Lily Beck, who is writing her own original song for the album, and a second one using the combined efforts of her two friends.
“I think this CD is a fun opportunity… This is just such a cool project that we have here, to be able to record my own music and music with my friends,” Beck said.
On the album last year, Beck performed Elvis Presley’s “Blue Christmas”. This year, writing her own song, she has taken inspiration from some of her favorite artists, a few being: The Smiths, Bob Dylan, The Beatles and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.
“A lot of these [songs] take their time [and] sink into you, old fashioned kind of romantic songs. That’s the kind of stuff that I like to listen to, and that’s the stuff I like to put out there,” Beck said. “I think music is such a profoundly human form of communication. I think it can span language and time.”
In the McConnell Auditorium on Friday, Dec. 12 from 5:30 to 9 p.m., Buena choir will perform songs from this year’s album, which will also be a joint concert with Buena’s music ensembles. The album will be available for streaming on Apple Music and Spotify, as well as for digital download on Amazon. CDs of the album will also be sold. You can show your support for Downey, Levin, participating students and the choir by going to the Not-So-Silent Night concert, streaming their album or purchasing a CD!
