Houlton High music students gain awards at New York City Music Festival

A fun-filled weekend of sightseeing and travel took place for 150 students and chaperones as part of the Houlton High School Band and Chorus Heritage Music Festival trip this past weekend.
    While participating in the music festival, every opportunity was taken to give the students cultural and musical experiences they may never have had before. It was impossible to see everything New York had to offer in one trip, but the students were certainly kept busy. The students and adults were treated to a Broadway show, a trip up the Empire State Building, a sunset dinner/dance cruise around the waters of Manhattan and a visit to the Statue of Liberty. They also explored historic Grand Central Station, shopped on 5th Avenue and were awed by the lights and sounds of Times Square. Students enjoyed seeing places they had only before seen in movies.
The itinerary was packed from their departure at 7:15 a.m. on May 7 to their return at 1 a.m. on May 11. A stopping point at the University of Southern Maine for clinics and workshops with music faculty and students was very helpful in the final musical preparations. The students were also able eat and enjoy some free time at Dave & Busters found in Providence, R.I., which is a national chain restaurant that has a large video and arcade game selection.
The entire music festival is a two-day process held at the historic Riverside Church on the upper west side of Manhattan. Five Houlton groups performed in competition on Friday in various divisions. The students were excellent in their efforts and enjoyed the personalized feedback at the end of each performance from the hired adjudicators.
On day two of the festival, while Houlton students explored the heart of the shopping and midtown districts, other schools were competing. The only time the students were able to see how many groups were at the festival was at the awards ceremony that evening, where hundreds of students gathered to hear their school name called for special awards.
The Houlton groups did not go empty handed as they received the following accolades: The Symphonic Band was competing in a larger school division and received a silver rating and third place. Concert band received a gold award and first place in their division. The “Off Beat” Percussion Ensemble did not have any other groups to compete against, but received gold rating and a special adjudicators award for an outstanding performance.
Anna Caron, was one of six students out of the entire festival to receive a judges “Maestro Award” for excellence in flute playing in Symphonic Band.
The Concert Choir received a gold rating and the Chamber Choir placed first in their division while also receiving a gold rating. With the success of both vocal ensembles, they were awarded a Festival Sweepstakes Award, which is for two vocal groups from one school scoring close to a combined total of 200 points. The Chamber Choir was also invited back to participate in a special festival for top scoring groups from all of the various Heritage Festivals.
SAD 29 music directors, Rebecca DeWan and Joe Fagnant would like to thank the students for their excellence in representing their school and community this entire weekend.
Special thanks goes out to the music boosters for their hard work and dedication to raise the money for a trip of this magnitude and to the community that always is supportive of the efforts of the music department.