High School Students Selected for Prestigious Honors Music Project
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Kevin Thays
Phone: 608-850-3566
Email: kthays@wmea.com
Web: www.wsmamusic.org
WAUNAKEE, Wis. (June 9, 2005) – Some of the finest young musicians in the state are about to meet up for what could be the most rewarding musical experience of their lifetime – the Wisconsin School Music Association’s (WSMA) 2005 High School State Honors Music Project!
The WSMA State Honors Music Project brings Wisconsin’s best young musicians to work together with nationally known conductors in a highly disciplined, professional setting. More than 2,180 students in grades 9, 10 and 11 auditioned for 421 positions in the WSMA High School State Honors Music Project Ensembles. Auditions were held in six sites across the state this past February.
“Honors students are among the best and brightest students in our state. While their career ideas may differ greatly, their passion for music unites them. The results of their hard work through the WSMA State Honors Music Project are often magical, and students earn a lifelong memory of accomplishment along with a new set of friends,” said Linda Petersen, WSMA director of programs.
The 421 students from across Wisconsin who have been selected to participate in the WSMA High School State Honors Music Project will meet for the first time at a summer camp at UW-Green Bay. The High School State Honors Orchestra, Treble Choir and Jazz Ensemble will meet from June 18 – 21, and the High School State Honors Band and Mixed Choir will meet from June 22 – 25. All Honors students will 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 2005 WSMA High School State Honors Project conductors are:
| Orchestra | Nobu Yasuda, Orchestra Director at UW-Eau Claire, Eau Claire, WI |
| Treble Choir | Brad Holmes, Director of Choir Programs at University of Decatur, IL |
| Jazz Ensemble | Ellen Rowe, Associate Professor of Jazz Studies at University of Michigan, MI |
| Band | Robert L. Spradling, Music Professor at Western Michigan University, MI |
| Mixed Choir | James Rodde, Louise Men Endowed Chair in Music and Director of Choral Activities at Iowa State University, IA |
For more information about WSMA, go to www.wsmamusic.org
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Wisconsin School Music Association (WSMA) is a service organization with more than 1,000 member public and private schools. Last year, over 225,000 students took the initiative to become involved in WSMA activities, including District and State Music Festivals, State Honors Projects, State Marching Band Championships and Concert Festivals. The Association is governed by a Board of Directors made up of superintendents, principals and other officers from all over our state. WSMA believes music is a basic human need and that all children have the right to experience all that music offers them.