Ruthie Collett ’24 and Louis Leone ’24 sing and play guitar at the Fall Coffeehouse.
The audience turned on their flashlights and sang along during a slow song.
Paresky Commons was jam-packed last Friday night with the gathering of enthusiastic students, the aroma of apple cider donuts, and the sounds of live music. The annual Fall Coffeehouse featured student performances—ranging from improvised jazz jam sessions to the alternative rock pieces of Radiohead.
The Fall Coffeehouse offered students an open stage to showcase their musical talents without any kind of limitations, according to performer Jacob Kaiser ’24
“There wasn’t really any preparation. It was very spontaneous… I didn’t know a lot of the people singing, but a lot of people just got up and applauded for them anyway, which I thought was great,” said Kaiser
Throughout the evening, the audience was treated with a diverse array of musical styles and a constant rotation of student performers, keeping the event engaging and unpredictable. For instance, Micheal Kawooya ’26 performed his original pop song “Static,” which was well-received by the audience. Sofia Lin ’26, a new Lower, noted how uniquely positive the space felt, both for performers and spectators.
“The people here performing were really good, so that was really cool to see how much of a music community there is at Andover, because I didn’t really have one at my old school… The performances were pretty expressive, you could tell that the performers were enjoying themselves. It got the audience to really enjoy it as well, because when the performer is having fun, then usually the audience does too,” said Lin.
The casual environment helped many students break out of their shell and take the stage. The quick, back-to-back performances also meant that the audience environment was constantly changing. ND Nwaneri ’24, a performer and event coordinator, further commented on this sentiment.
“I’m really glad I got to [run] it; it was really fun… I feel like the atmosphere kind of changed with each song. Some of the songs were a lot more chill and solemn, some of the songs were kind of upbeat, [but] I feel like everyone matched the energy of the performers, so that was pretty great,” said Nwaneri.
The event continued for about two hours until the audience gradually dwindled. Reflecting on the event in hindsight, Kaiser expressed content with its successes and outlined his ambitions for the event’s future.
“I would’ve liked to see maybe a few more people participating… Maybe we could expand Coffeehouse into more of a bigger thing. Get a drum set out here, bass player. If we have a rhythm section always up here who can just play songs, that’d be cool,” said Kaiser.
