NOTE TO EDITORS:
To identify students selected for the WSMA High School State Honors Music Project in your circulation area, please refer to the student roster (pdf). Schools and cities are listed in zip code order for easy reference.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Kevin Thays
Phone: 608-850-3566
Web: wsmamusic.org
WAUNAKEE, Wis. (June 8, 2017) – Some of Wisconsin’s finest young musicians are about to meet up for what could be the most rewarding musical experience of their lifetime – Wisconsin School Music Association’s (WSMA) 2017 High School State Honors Music Project.
The High School State Honors Music Project is designed to provide musically talented students with the opportunity to rehearse and perform with the nation’s finest conductors in a professional and highly disciplined setting. Students are challenged to perform at their musical best throughout the rehearsal period, which culminates with an inspired performance, celebrating the reach of music education statewide.
“When students are challenged beyond what is possible in a classroom, the results are often inspiring and even magical. Honors students learn that hard work, commitment, responsibility and working together for the good of the ensemble are the keys to success in music and in life,” said Victoria Donahue, WSMA program director.
Auditions were held in seven sites across the state this past February. Of the more than 1,300 auditions, 424 students in grades 9, 10 and 11 were invited to be part of the WSMA High School State Honors Music Project ensembles.
Students selected to participate in the WSMA High School State Honors Music Project will meet for the first time at an intensive four-day summer camp at UW-Green Bay. The WSMA High School Honors Summer Camp is a unique and essential component to the High School Honors Project experience as it is the first opportunity the selected students have to see their music, meet the conductor and rehearse as a newly formed ensemble. Camp dates are as follows: June 17-20, Orchestra, Treble Choir and Jazz Ensemble; June 21-24, Band and Mixed Choir. All Honors students reconvene in Madison in late October to perform at the annual Wisconsin State Music Conference. The Honors concerts celebrate the remarkable achievements of Wisconsin’s finest young musicians and are open to the public.
The 2017 WSMA High School State Honors Project conductors (links to full bios) are:
| Band | Jack Stamp, professor of music, UW-River Falls |
| Orchestra | Steven Amundson, professor of music, St. Olaf College, MN |
| Jazz Ensemble | Laura Caviani, educator/director, Carleton College and St. Olaf College, MN |
| Mixed Choir | Allen Hightower, director of choral studies, University of North Texas |
| Treble Choir | Judith Willoughby, professor of conducting and choral music education, Wanda L. Bass School of Music, Oklahoma City University |
For more information about WSMA or its programs, go to wsmamusic.org
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WSMA is a service organization with more than 1,000 member public and private schools. Each year, more than 100,000 students take the initiative to become involved in WSMA activities, including District and State Music Festivals, Concert Festivals, State Honors Music Project, Student Composition Project and State Marching Band Championships. WSMA, headquartered in the Wisconsin Center for Music Education, is governed by a board of directors made up of superintendents, principals and other officers from all over the state. WSMA believes music is a basic human need, and that all children have the right to experience all that music offers them.
