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After bidding farewell to Euclid at the closing of Tuesday’s class, students on the California High School Great Books Program gathered the St. Joseph Commons to receive their bus assignments and groupings for the day's much-anticipated trip: The Getty Center and a classical concert at The Hollywood Bowl! 

Executive Director of Admissions Jon Daly read off everyone’s bus assignments, and the programmers boarded three buses to begin the drive down to Los Angeles. The students laughed and chatted excitedly about the art they were about to see and the music they couldn’t wait to hear.

Upon arrival at the Getty Center, students got off the buses, gathered into their pre-assigned groups, each assigned to a prefect, and embarked onto the Getty tram for the scenic ride up to the museum. From there, students began exploring the Getty’s different floors and exhibits. It was a beautiful, sunny day with a cool breeze, and many students enjoued the the city views from the balconies and wandered through the Getty’s stunning gardens. “The gardens were my favorite part!” shared Clare A. 

The was a big hit, with many students wowed by originals by Van Gogh and Monet. Joe B. reported that his favorite piece was , a painting mentioned in Mr. Nieto’s talk on Monday: “I thought that painting, and the huge size of some of the other paintings, were really cool!” 

After two and a half hours of contemplating beautiful art, sipping sodas and iced lattes from the cafeteria, and perusing the Getty’s gift shop, students reconvened and loaded back onto the buses for their next destination: Highland Camrose Park, near the entrance of the Hollywood Bowl. There, they enjoyed an energizing dinner of sub sandwiches, chips, and Gatorades. Yesterday was also Lucy S.’s 17th birthday, so the prefects surprised her with a cake and candles, and the whole program serenaded her. 

Then it was off to the night’s main event: a concert in the Hollywood Bowl by the Many students treated themselves to soft-serve ice cream and popcorn before taking their seats to enjoy the live music, and some excitedly pointed out glimpses of the Hollywood Sign visible from their seats.

The first half of the concert was a performance of Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35 featuring violinist . At the end of the third movement, the instrumentalists met with thunderous applause and a standing ovation from the enraptured audience.

The closing half of the concert followed after a brief intermission, consisting of a beautiful performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92. This four-movement piece brought listeners to their feet once again.

After the music and applause died down, students made their way back to the buses, their souls refreshed from a wonderful day of art and music. Passengers on each bus prayed the Rosary at the beginning of the drive home, then many students slept, chatted, or listened to music to pass the time. As the buses rolled back onto Ojai Road, the tired programmers greeted the now very familiar campus with relief, and all piled into their respective residence halls, excited for a good night’s rest. 

This morning is free of classes and will feature a few hours of social time in the coffee shop, followed by a swing-dance practice before students attend their only class of the day at 1:00 p.m. Come back to the Summer Program Blog this afternoon to hear all about it!

More photos from the High School Summer Program

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