Brownwood Middle School choir and band students recently competed in all-region auditions and excelled. “All-Region Band is the ‘All-Star Team’ of the band world,” said Ethan Yeats, one of the BMS Band Directors. “This is the students’ chance to be competitive among themselves and students from other schools. Those who enjoy competition get a chance to experience the competitive side of the band world. The auditions are also a good chance for students to grow as musicians as they prepare music that is above normal difficulty for their age.” Both band students and choir students have been practicing their audition music since the 2023-24 school year began. Choir students learned three songs, and during the audition were required to sing a thirty-note sight-reading passage. Band students prepared a set of etudes (short songs) and scales. While class time offered an opportunity for students to practice with their directors, many students spent extensive time preparing outside of the classroom.
“It is important for sixth through eighth graders to compete in the competition to prepare for the All-State Choir competition in high school,” said Kristi Wied, BMS Choir Director. “The middle school All-Region audition is identical to the first round of auditions that high school students participate in when they are competing for a spot in the All-State Choir. Students gain confidence and familiarity with the process when they compete numerous times before high school. It is also a great way for the students to meet other students from our region with similar interests.” For the choir auditions, 160 students competed for the fifty-four choir spots from middle schools throughout central Texas. These students were from Brownwood, Mineral Wells, Stephenville, Burkburnett, Iowa Park, and Wichita Falls. Thirteen BMS students performed on November 4th during the All-Region Concert in Wichita Falls. Brownwood Middle School took seventeen band students who auditioned, and eleven who earned a spot on the Symphonic and Concert All-Region Bands. Band students competed from Brownwood, Mineral Wells, Stephenville, Dublin, Early, Goldthwaite, Eastland, Breckenridge, Cisco, Ranger, and Coleman.
Band students will return to Stephenville on Saturday, January 20th, 2024, for a clinic and concert at Tarleton State University. Choir students will begin learning music for their upcoming UIL Solo and Ensemble competition in February, and UIL Concert and Sight-Reading competition in March.
“We have been steadily increasing our All-Region participation over the past few years,” Yeats said. “It is something that you have to build into the culture of the band program, and garnering interest is something we think of every year. This year we knew we would have excellent players in both seventh and eighth grade, so it was important that we ‘lit the fire,’ so to speak, to instill that drive and excitement for musical excellence. The idea is that next year the participation and success will grow even more as other students latch on to the excitement surrounding it. The more that happens, the more musical excellence is achieved.” BMS band and choir students receive a unique opportunity to learn the nature of healthy competition as they prepare for auditions. They learn not only musical skills but also the competence involved in performing a piece of music before judges and maintaining confidence in their performance. This is a difficult task for any student, especially younger ones who are still learning the foundational skills involved in musical proficiency. “The All-Region process is beneficial as it helps students with sight reading, confidence, and self-motivated musicianship,” said Wied. Musical excellence involves all these elements, cohesively blended within a memorable experience for all students who participated in the All-Region auditions. “I am very happy with all of our students who auditioned this year,” Yeats said. “I am also very thankful for the members of our band staff, Juan Hernandez, Nathan Lacy, and Laurel Lacy, who have worked with these students over the last few weeks in preparation. Congratulations to these awesome students!”
BMS All-Region Band:
Ian Cervantes – French Horn, Symphonic Band
Madeleine Musgrove – Percussion, Symphonic Band
James Ongteco – Clarinet, Symphonic Band
Jeremiah Benson – Percussion, Concert Band
Jose Contreras – Tuba, Concert Band
Alex Gomez – Trombone, Concert Band
Kiera McNeely – Bass Clarinet, Concert Band
Daniel Perez – Euphonium, Concert Band
Karissa Raines – French Horn, Concert Band
Gabriel Rivas – Tenor Saxophone, Concert Band
Eli Waldrop – Percussion, Concert Band
BMS All-Region Choir:
Stone Bishop
Willow Camp
Gabriela Castaneda
Lane Constancio
Eduardo Hernandez
Lillieana Lara
Ezequiel Ramirez
Dakota Ramsey
Braylee Reeves
Paulo Moreno Salazar
Jordyn Salazar
Mykia’ Wesley
Cyndea Wilson