The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila

The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila

The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila

Harshini Chaturvedula (11) plays the viola with Orchestra during the Winter Instrumental Concert. Held on Jan. 13, the concert invited audiences to watch multiple upper school instrumental groups and soloists perform various musical styles, ranging from upbeat Latin jazz to slow ballads.

Annual Winter Instrumental Concert showcases diverse musical styles and performances

by Ariana Goetting and Young Min February 2, 2023

Warm orange lights illuminate the stage as Lab Band settles into their chairs, carefully preparing their instruments. With the flick of the conductor’s wrist, music flows and reverberates throughout...

Ellen Bass is the author of four poetry collections, including most recently, “Indigo,” published in 2020. Bass spoke with Harker Aquila about her experiences reading, writing, and teaching poetry, making a home and a life out of this art.

The Poet’s Project: ‘The magic and mystery of it’

by Felix Chen and Sarah Mohammed January 24, 2023

Ellen Bass is the author of four poetry collections, including most recently, “Indigo” (Copper Canyon Press 2020). Her poems have been published in the New Yorker and the American Poetry Review and...

Performers unveil work in the arts during Student Directed Showcase productions

by Sidak Sanghari, Hima Thota, Alison Yang, and Sally Zhu January 18, 2023

A misshapen blob of students, dressed in costumes ranging from floral shirts to ski boots to construction vests, gather onstage. Wrapping their arms around each other, they squat down, heads bowed in anticipation....

Performers gather on stage to close out the Big Assembly Day show. Upper school students watched Harker’s annual holiday concert Big Assembly Day (BAD) on Dec. 9, where ensembles from the lower, middle and upper schools performed various acts across all campuses.

Annual Big Assembly Day performing arts concert kindles festive spirit at all campuses

by Alison Yang, Vika Gautham, and Alena Suleiman December 23, 2022

As the audience settles into the plush velvet of the Patil Theater seats, the orchestra crowded on stage awaits eagerly. A sea of middle and high school students — some in glittering gold dresses, others...

Downbeat members Alan Jiang (12) and Shareen Chahal (11) pose as they perform “Deck the Halls.  Upper school groups Harker Dance Company, Kinetic Krew and Downbeat as well as several middle school groups performed at Santana Rows Spirit of the Row on Dec. 6.

Harker performing arts groups light up night at ‘Spirit of The Row’

by Alison Yang and Alena Suleiman December 14, 2022

Though the chill of the night intensifies, the crowd packed tightly around the small stage only continues to grow. Small ornaments and string lights strewn across the set highlight the massive tree in...

Stripe Club stripes up masterpiece with Artist in Residence

by Alison Yang and Selina Xu November 28, 2022

It began with a yolk-yellow wall.  Nearly four weeks later, the Dickinson Visual Arts Endowment Artist in Residence, Leah Rosenberg, perches on a ladder in the Rothschild Performing Arts Center (RPAC),...

An illustration of the debate between subtitles and dubs for foreign language film, represented by Japanese anime characters Tanjiro Kamado and Zenitsu Agatsuma from Demon Slayer. Often, fans of foreign shows take a strong stance on one or the other for their optimal viewing experience.

Subtitles vs. dubbing: Lost in translation?

by Ella Yee, Co-News Editor November 9, 2022

Harker Aquila · Aquila Audible of "Subtitles vs. dubbing: Lost in translation?" When Netflix released “Squid Game” last September, viewers immediately raved about the Korean television show’s...

An illustration of the K-pop group NewJeans. Fans have expressed concern at the age of the members, which range from 14 to 18 years old, especially after dissecting the lyrics of their hit song “Cookie.”

Don’t bite the cookie: Concerning sexualization of minors in K-pop

by Alena Suleiman and Shareen Chahal November 3, 2022

“Looking at my cookie, do you ever smell it different? What’s with a bite, isn’t enough?” These lyrics, recently prompting backlash in the Korean popular music or K-pop industry, is one of the...

Instrumental music teacher and artistic director of the Harker Concert Series Jaco Wong speaks at Fridays performance. Jaco introduced his own piece the “Whampoa Overture, which was then performed by the orchestra.

San Jose Chamber Orchestra performs for Harker community

by Felix Chen, Reporter October 5, 2022

The musicians of the San Jose Chamber Orchestra took the stage in the Rothschild Performing Arts Center at 7 p.m. on Friday to perform in front of an audience consisting of students, parents and administration...

An illustration of the album cover of Taylor Swifts Midnights album, set to release on Oct. 21. Swift announced this new album during her acceptance speech for Video of the Year at the Video Music Awards in August.

Taylor Swift announces new “Midnights” album, set to release in October

by Chayce Milheim and Lavanya Subramanian September 18, 2022

Popular artist Taylor Swift announced her tenth studio album “Midnights,” set to release on Oct. 21, at the MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) on Aug. 28.  Swift won the VMAs’ prestigious award, Video...

This is the third installment of “Working Title,” a podcast where staff member Rachel Ning shares her thoughts on select films and the film industry. In this episode, Rachel discusses the hidden gem The Double, a 2013 film, and its connection with the duality of man. 

Working Title: ‘Elvis’ and why it falls flat

by Rachel Ning, TALON Business & PDA Manager September 2, 2022

This is the fifth installment of “Working Title,” a podcast where staff member Rachel Ning shares her thoughts on select films and the film industry. In this episode, Rachel discusses the recent film...

Upper school composer Paul Woodruff sits at the piano, playing notes of a song. Woodruff joined Harker 12 years ago, and has since been composing for music for upper school musical groups.

Composing cadence: Upper school melodist writes music through time

by Vika Gautham, Shareen Chahal, and Olivia Xu May 30, 2022

Euphonic voices fill the air with joyful tunes as upper school composer Paul Woodruff sits at the piano, observing the students implementing his modified arrangement of the classic, “Walking on Sunshine.”...

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