Smithtown's Summer Nights Program - Everybody Wins!

Smithtown’s Youth Bureau ended its “Summer Nights”  2012 program with a concert by a local band named Rendition. To earn the opportunity to play their music on closing night, Rendition had to win the Youth Bureau’s Battle of The Band competition which was held throughout the summer. 

This is the Youth Bureau’s third summer in operation at Hoyt Farm and the first year for the “Battle of the Bands” competition. The Summer Nights Program was created by Youth Bureau Director Patsy Hirschhorn with the support of the Smithtown Town Board and the help of the Departments of Public Safety and Parks. The program, which began in 2010, has grown every year with more participants and more activities for the teens to enjoy.  The goal of the program is to provide activities for people in their teens in a safe environment.  “We started with  two programs in 2010 that included basketball, volleyball, bocce and arts and crafts. In 2011 we added Karaoke and this year we added the Battle of the Bands competition.”stated Patsy Hirshhorn. 

The Summer Nights program is a cooperative effort involving town departments and also the young people who have been appointed to the Town’s Youth Board. The members of the board decided that a Battle of The Bands competition would be fun and would also provide an opportunity for local bands to showcase their work.  “The idea came from one of our teen members.  It was challenging putting it together, but we did it!  We are pleased with the response from the kids and grateful to the volunteers who chaperoned our events” stated Patsy.

The closing event drew a crowd of over 100 teens who Listened to music, played basketball and just enjoyed the evening out.  The members of Rendition couldn’t be happier with the night. All the members in Rendition are high school students (five seniors and one junior).  Three are cousins. Three attend Commack HS, two attend Saint Anthony’s HS and one attends Connetquot HS.  While they are all passionate about their music they are diverse in their interests and talent.  

Jonathan O’Kane is the lead vocalist and one of the three cousins who started the group. He will be starting his senior year at Commack HS in September.  He loves sports and music, but plans to get into business marketing as a career.

JJ Hickey is Rendition’s lead guitarist. He attends St. Anthony’s HS where he will begin his senior year in September. He has a unique ability to learn music by ear in seconds.  He plays hockey and is leaning towards a career in criminal justice or the Navy. He is also one of the three cousins and a founder of Rendition.

Gino Leocadi is the drummer and the third cousin in the group.  Gino attends Connetquot HS where he will be entering his senior year in September.  In addition to drums, Gino plays the piano which he taught himself. He also plays by ear. He plays varsity baseball at Connetquot.  He plans to pursue a career in business but continue with his music as well.

Jimmy Orsetti is a rhythm guitarist. He attends Saint Anthony and is entering his senior year. He is a “masterful ” performer who brings a lot of energy to the performances. He hope to peruse a career in aviation.

Alex Blanc is the bassist for Rendition.  He attends Commack HS where he will be a senior in September. Alex is skilled in writing music. He plans to continue with music, but hopes to have a career in medicine.

Joe Noto is the fill in bassist. Joe is not a regular in the group, but helps out when needed. He will be starting his junior year at Commack HS in September. Joe currently performs with a high school band “10 feet Under”. Joe plays many instruments including cello, guitar and drums. 

The band members reported that they had a great time participating in the competition and winning was fun too! Watching the crowd you could tell they were not the only ones who enjoyed themselves.