The Greene County High School Music Department is preparing several students for an audition to be part of a prestigious event.
This Saturday is the Iowa High School Music Association All-State Festival auditions where selected few individuals perform as a band, choir and orchestra. Band Director Wes Anderson has eight students that are trying out this year, including five freshmen. He points out that the All-State Festival is an opportunity for students to push themselves above what they do in a normal high school band setting. Anderson talks about having these students approach Saturday’s auditions with a team mentality leading up to it.
“The band audition can feel lonely because you’re going to have to be in your room with your oboe, practicing your scales a lot (and) by yourself. That experience can feel lonely sometimes but when you’ve got friends at school who are going through the same thing it’s very helpful to have a group of friends that you can kind of lean on and (say), ‘Hey, I’m struggling with this part of my etude. Can you listen to me try it and tell me what you think?’ It’ll be fun for me, it’ll be fun for them.”
Vocal Director David Heupel has seven students, with six of them having auditioned for All-State before. He tells Raccoon Valley Radio that having been through the audition process previously will be helpful on Saturday because they know what to expect. Neither department has any returning All-State performers from last year. Anderson adds Trysten Naylor made it to recalls on clarinet last year, but was not selected for All-State.
Greene County will be heading to Atlantic High School for the auditions and a full list of the students participating can be found below. The All-State Festival will be November 21st-23rd.
Vocal
Daniele Madsen
William Graham
Karlee Fagerlind
Carter Petterson
Hailey Carman
Lucy Vander Linden
Jadyn Weber
Band
9th Maelee Schmidt, flute
11th Trysten Naylor, clarinet
9th Rylee Mowrer, clarinet
10th Rodney Oyres, bass clarinet
9th Cora Powers, bass clarinet
9th Jaxon Hunter, trumpet
9th Kristany Schmidt, euphonium
12th Darian Davis, tuba