The Greene County High School Jazz Band played host for a second consecutive year for a state event. 

Greene County and four other high school jazz bands performed at the Iowa High School Music Association State Jazz Festival this past Monday. Band Director Wes Anderson says this event is always a great opportunity for his students to be exposed to how other high schools approach jazz music.

“The kids got to hear a lot of jazz. That top group from Denison was very, very impressive, a lot of great improv going on there, and the kids got to kind of expand their listening palate a little bit. So they got some great ideas.”

Anderson points out each school was competing for a rating, which he adds only one jazz band received the top Division I-rating with Denison I, and Greene County earned a Division II-rating. He shares his thoughts on the night. 

“We were pretty pleased with our rating, you always hope for that (Division) I(-rating). But there’s about 40 points on the ballot and you can miss four out of those 40 if you still want to get a one. It’s a big challenge. A lot of great feedback from the judges and this one (the state festival) has no effect on our bid for the Iowa Jazz Championships. So it really is just about getting that feedback.”   

The high schools that performed included Roland-Story, two bands from Denison and Southeast Valley.