More than 70 students from Downers Grove North High School performed Solos and Ensembles that earned a Division I rating of SUPERIOR.
North High student musicians participated in the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) State Solo and Ensemble Contest on March 3, 2018, at Joliet Central Catholic High School.
Students prepare solos and ensembles and play for an expert adjudicator, receiving both a score and a rating, and, formative feedback for improvement. Additionally, students performing solos must play scales from memory, demonstrating technical mastery on their instruments outside of their prepared solo work.
More than 70 students from Downers Grove North High School performed Solos and Ensembles that earned a Division I rating of SUPERIOR. A Division I score is categorized as “A Superior Performance – outstanding in nearly every detail.” In addition, 30 students from Downers Grove North High School performed Solos and Ensembles that garnered a Division II rating of OUTSTANDING. A Division II score is categorized as “An excellent performance – only minor defects.”
“Preparing for a Solo and Ensemble contest is a great opportunity for our students to express their individualism as soloists and to develop teamwork skills with small ensembles,” said Brayer Teague, Fine Arts Department Chair at North High. “We’re very proud of all our students who entered the state contest this year. They did a terrific job representing North High with their musicianship.”
Twelve North High student musicians received perfect scores at the State Contest. Jennifer Casey, Amelia Korbitz, Brian Monk, and Katherine Ramsey earned perfect marks from the judges for their solo work. The DGN String Quartet (Aleena Albert, Katherine Lyda, Brady Moore, Jesse Wei), as well as the DGN Low Brass Quartet (Jeremy Blumka, Jennifer Casey, Ryan Knezevich, Brian Perillo – Low Brass Quartet) also received perfect scores.
Two North High events received a “Best in Room Citation” for garnering the highest achievement score in their event room. Percussion soloist Bilal Khurshid and Cello Soloist Brady Moore were each recognized by judges to be the most outstanding performers of the day in their performance venues.
The following North High Music Events received a “Division I—Superior” rating:
- Aleena Albert – French Horn
- Jozie Arenz – Euphonium
- Nick Atonson – Violin
- Daniel Atwater – Trumpet
- Eva Bednard – Violin
- Emily Blanchard – Flute
- Emily Blanchard – Piccolo
- Carissa Blumka – Flute
- Jeremy Blumka – Trombone
- Lucie Boyd – Viola
- Jennifer Casey – Euphonium – Perfect Score
- Grace Chalberg – Trumpet
- Luc Collo – Alto Saxophone
- Ellie Cremer – Violin
- Alison Dry – Trombone
- Rebecca Edmundson – Violin
- Emma Fodor – Clarinet
- Jamie Gamonez – Female Voice
- Jamie Gamonez – Flute
- Marissa Gonzalez – Flute
- Jeannie Hansen – Bassoon
- Gavin Harker – Trumpet
- Rachel Jeske – Oboe
- Amelia Korbitz – Violin – Perfect Score
- Bilal Khurshid – Snare Drum – Best in Room Citation
- Ryan Knezevich – Trombone
- Helen Kosowski – Flute
- Emma Krause – Flute
- Megan Krause – Violin
- Hannah Kutchek – Flute
- Jack Langan – Male Voice
- Katherine Lyda – Violin
- Margaret Lyons – Flute
- Lucas Marra – French Horn
- Kaylee McCarthy – Trombone
- Zachary McDermott – French Horn
- Parker Jo McGuire – Violin
- Ish Mistry – Trombone
- Brian Monk – Violin – Perfect Score
- Brady Moore – Cello – Best in Room Citation
- Raegan Novak – Flute
- Noah Pardue – Viola
- Brian Perillo – Euphonium
- Brendan Quealy – Male Voice
- Chloe Mason – Oboe
- Catherine Ramsey – Harp – Perfect Score
- Tressa Rapach – Trumpet
- Andrew Swenson – Trumpet
- Miles Teague – French Horn
- Jesse Wei – Viola
- Aleena Albert, Katherine Lyda, Brady Moore, Jesse Wei – String Quartet – Perfect Score
- Daniel Atwater, Nya Mason, Ish Mistry, Jonathan Orjala, Rebecca Waden – Brass Quintet
- Jeremy Blumka, Jennifer Casey, Ryan Knezevich, Brian Perillo – Low Brass Quartet – Perfect Score
- Lucie Boyd, Amelia Korbitz – String Duet
- Allison Burke, Luc Collo, Andrew Jackson, Marz Tingzon – Sax Quartet
- Jeannie Hansen, Ava Sanchez, Maya Schumpert – Woodwind Trio
- Sotis Gouriotis, Amanda Janusz, Katherine Tokash – String Trio
- Justin Berghorst, Noah Pardue, Paige Sadler, Julia Szostak – String Quartet
The following North High Music Events received a “Division II—Excellent” rating:
- Justin Berghorst – Violin
- Abigail Bowers – Flute
- Michelle Cotton – Bassoon
- Kate Crisp – Female Voice
- Patrick Doyle – Trumpet
- Emily Ennis – Flute
- Abbie Folkening – Flute
- Mariah Godar – Trumpet
- Aaron Heppner – Flute
- Emilija Irvin – Bassoon
- Arden Jachim – Trumpet
- Angelica Kowara – Trombone
- Maggie Miller – Violin
- Jonathan Orjala – Trumpet
- Caroline Pleune – Flute
- Matt Rios – Trumpet
- Ava Sanchez – Flute
- Mia Scott – Violin
- Olga Sretenovic – Violin
- Sam Stein – Trumpet
- Claire Tarvin – Tuba
- Julianna Tuohy – Trombone
- Rebecca Waden – French Horn
- Alexis Morman, Julia Rhodes – Woodwind Duet
- Emilija Irvin, Emma Krause, Chloe Mason, Aidan Purcell, Miles Teague – Woodwind Quintet