VWHS musicians do well at state contest

Van Wert independent/contributor content

GAHANNA — Following an outstanding district contest showing in early March, the Van Wert High School Music Department traveled to state contest on Friday, with two groups earning “superior” ratings and the third an “excellent” rating.

The VWHS Concert Choir started off the evening by singing for a difficult panel of judges in the Gahanna Middle School West Auditorium. The choir opened with a beautiful piece entitled, “If Music be the Food of Love,” continued with a spiritual called “Good News!” and ended with a touching rendition of “The Awakening.”

The outstanding performance was applauded by a large crowd made up of band members, parents, students from other schools and choir lovers.

The judges agreed with the audience in giving the Concert Choir a I (superior) rating — the highest possible. This is the second time in three years the Concert Choir has received a superior rating at state contest. The choir is under the direction of Tonia Gamble, with accompaniment by Marilyn Alessandrini.

Next, the Concert Band, under the direction of Karen Kelly, performed in the Gahanna Lincoln High School gymnasium for another difficult panel of judges. The band opened with a march by John Edmonson called “Kentucky Pride,” gave a wonderful performance of “Joy Revisited” by Frank Ticheli and brought their performance to a moving conclusion with “Images of Ireland” by Brian Balmages. The large audience responded and so did the judges, who awarded the band a superior rating — the fourth consecutive superior at state contest.

The Symphony Band gave the final performance of the day for Van Wert, also in Gahanna Lincoln High School’s gymnasium, opening with a classic multi-movement work called “Prelude, Siciliano and Rondo” by Malcolm Arnold, followed that with “Southern Hymn” by Samuel Hazo ad closed with a student and crowd favorite, “Undertow” by John Mackey.

The judges awarded the Symphony Band a II (excellent) rating for its performance, the third consecutive such rating for the group, which is directed by Bob Sloan.

“The Music Department would like to express their gratitude to the many parents, relatives, alumni, and friends who made the trip to Gahanna for the performances,” said Sloan, who extended congratulations to the members of all three ensembles for their outstanding efforts on a job well done.

Several other spring performances are upcoming for the Music Department, including spring concerts, graduate and the Peony Parade in May and early June.

For more information on any of these events, visit the Van Wert Band website at www.vanwertbands.org, “like” the band on Facebook at Van Wert Bands Information or call the Music Department at 419.238.3722.