North High Band Students Prepare to Get One Ratings at Solo and Ensemble Festival
With their instruments warmed up and in tune, Parkway North band students are ready to show the judges of this year’s Solo and Ensemble Festival what they have been preparing for months. Solo and Ensemble Festival takes place on Friday, March 4 at Parkway Central from 3-9 p.m. and will decide who will go to the state festival.
The festival, that is mandatory for Symphonic band students and optional for Concert band, has musicians playing either a solo or in a small group ranging from three to nine musicians. Once this has
![Clarinetists Brie Ottenwess and Gina Cracchiola practice their piece before it is time for them to play in front of Mr. LaRose during pre-festival. “The point of [pre-festival] really is to help them [the musicians] relieve all of the anxiety that they may have about their performance, about all of the unknown things, and just focus on the music,” said LaRose.](http://parkwaynews.net/norsestar/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/GinaandBriejpg.jpg)
They are then “given ratings based on a rubric [one to five] and if they do really well and get a one, they can move on and do their performance again at a higher level at the state festival in April,” said concert band director Andrew LaRose.
While the festival isn’t necessarily considered to be a competition against other musicians in the area, it is “really a competition against yourself [the musician],” said LaRose because it assesses the musician and how high of a level they can perform.
During the time leading up to the festival, the musicians have been practicing individually or in their groups anytime that they can.
Sophomore flautist Anthony Kandilaroff, who is doing a solo and a woodwind trio, practices with his group during school and Ac Lab. They also practice their individual parts at home and then “come back the following Ac Lab and try to make it better.”
The musicians participating in the festival are also heavily advised by LaRose and Mark Linn, the Symphonic band director.
“Sometimes if Linn decides to pull us out [of class during band], we practice with him,” said freshman clarinetist Brie Ottenwess, who is in a group with Kandilaroff along with junior flautist Destiny McCallister. She is also one fourth of a clarinet quartet along with sophomore Eric Covington and juniors Katie Richmann and Gina Cracchiola.
“I take on more of a coaching role, where I kind of just spot check the groups and make sure that they are on target with meeting their goals and are prepared for the performance,” said LaRose. He also helps to facilitate the registration process for the festival and help soloists and groups select the piece that they will perform.
One of the last forms of festival preparations comes in the form of pre-festival, which took place on Feb. 25 at North. The event is a simulation of what the musicians are to expect during the actual festival.
It is considered to be a “final checkpoint before the event in which we’re just making sure that they are prepared in every way before their performance, down to how are they going to dress, how are they going to introduce themselves, and how are they going to perform their music,” said LaRose.
“All the feedback that they give us after hearing us is really helpful,” said Ottenwess.
With the big event days away, some have their eyes set on the magic number: one. “I do Solo and Ensemble just to go to state,” said Kandilaroff. But for others, the self improvement is what they are focused on.
“My goal isn’t really just to go to state; it’s more of just to see how I do,” said Ottenwess.
by Roshae Hemmings, staff writer and Marketing Genius