NOTE TO EDITORS:
To identify students selected for the WSMA Middle Level 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, Email
Phone: 608-850-3566
Web: wsmamusic.org
WAUNAKEE, Wis., (October 9, 2019) — Many of Wisconsin’s most accomplished junior high and middle school music students (band, choir and orchestra) will perform in Waunakee on Saturday, October 26, at the Wisconsin School Music Association (WSMA) Middle Level State Honors Music Project concerts.
Throughout the state, 311 students in grades 6-8 were selected from over 1,000 who auditioned for the program in April. Auditions, included individual student performances and an ensemble class, taught by an Honors adjudicator. Selection was based on several elements of music performance.
WSMA State Honors Music Project brings Wisconsin’s finest school musicians together to work with nationally known conductors in a professional setting. The 2019 WSMA Middle Level State Honors conductors are:
Band: Laura Sindberg, Minneapolis, MN
Orchestra: Tobin Stewart, Bozeman, MT
Choir: Trey Davis, Baton Rouge, LA
“Learning, interacting and performing with other inspiring musicians from across the state under the direction of a nationally recognized conductor and some of Wisconsin’s finest music educators, offers students an incredible enrichment opportunity,” said Erica Ruppert, WSMA program director.
The Saturday, October 26 concerts mark 25 years of the Middle Level State Honors Music Project performances. Students will perform for an audience of more than 1,200 at Waunakee High School Performing Arts Center. The concerts (1 p.m. – Band; 2 p.m. – Orchestra; 3 p.m. – Choir) celebrate the extraordinary accomplishments of Wisconsin’s finest young musicians. Tickets for the concerts may be purchased at the door for $16 and each ticket provides admission to all three concerts.
Students in grades 6-8 who attend a WSMA member school and participate in the school’s music program will be eligible to audition for the 2020 WSMA Middle Level State Honors Project. Auditions will be held in April at six locations throughout Wisconsin. For more information on Middle Level State Honors and other WSMA programs, visit wsmamusic.org.
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Founded in 1932, Wisconsin School Music Association (WSMA) is a non-profit service organization with more than 1,000 member public and private schools. Students from member schools are eligible to participate in WSMA programs, such as District and State Music Festivals, Concert Festivals, State Honors Music Project, State Marching Band Championships and Student Composition Project. WSMA 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.
