Jazz band tunes up for festival
PRESQUE ISLE — The Presque Isle High School Jazz Band, under the direction of Dan Schneider, is preparing for the All State Jazz Festival being held this Friday and Saturday at Houlton High School.
Photos courtesy of Athena Hallowell
RHYTHM SECTION — Rehearsing for this Friday and Saturday’s All State Jazz Festival are members of the Presque Isle High School Jazz Band’s rhythm section, clockwise, from left: Jordan Cummings, rhythm guitar; Brady Sullivan, bass guitar; Adam Cyr, drums; and Angela Hallowell, piano.
THE PRESQUE ISLE HIGH SCHOOL Jazz Band has been busy preparing for the All State Jazz Festival, which will be held this Friday and Saturday at Houlton High School. Pictured rehearsing are, from left, front row: Adam Cyr, drums; Olivia Goulet, alto sax; Michaela Dubé, tenor sax, and Alyssa Trombley, baritone sax. Back row: Brady Sullivan, bass guitar; Joel Tewksbury, trombone; Kyle Goupille, trumpet; Rachel Hobbs, trumpet; and Jordan Humphrey, trombone. Absent when the photo was taken were Gabe Player, trumpet; Brenden Goulet, trombone; Rachel Scott, alto sax; and Sedona Lucas, tenor sax.
The group has been practicing two afternoons or evenings a week since the fall. Over 26 schools from the state of Maine will be participating in the two-day event.
This year marks the beginning of a new addition to the festival as WHOU radio, part of Northern Maine Media, Inc, will be offering the entire festival through live streaming at whoufm.com. This will be a great opportunity to promote high school jazz throughout the state and beyond.
The festival begins Friday, March 15 at 11 a.m. with several different jazz combos and divisions competing and runs through the awards ceremony at 9 p.m. Saturday’s groups begin at 9 a.m. PIHS will perform at 10:30 a.m. Saturday and spend much of the day listening to the many other schools perform. The awards ceremony on Saturday will take place at 5:45 p.m., where the groups will await the results to see who takes the top honors in the state.
Cost to attend the festival is $5 for adults, $3 for students and seniors, with a max of $15 per family/day. Breakfast, lunch and dinner will be available for purchase at Houlton High School.
