Iola High School students Bethany Miller and Ari Ramirez are preparing to audition for the Kansas Music Educators Association (KMEA) All-State Ensemble, which will be held Saturday in Salina.
Miller plays trombone and Ramirez the clarinet. Both students participated in a mock audition, conducted by Iola High School band teacher Brandi Holt, for the Iola USD 257 board of education during Monday evening’s meeting.
Holt explained that the audition simulation was designed to mirror the real experience as closely as possible.
“This is to get their adrenaline pumping,” she said, noting that nerves are an unavoidable and necessary part of the experience.
According to Holt, Miller and Ramirez have had access to most of their audition materials since August. However, students do not learn which specific excerpts they will be required to perform until the day of the audition. In addition to prepared excerpts and scales, students must complete a sight-reading portion after 30 seconds of review.
“The judges, they have a rubric,” Holt said, explaining that adjudicators evaluate note and rhythm accuracy, style, phrasing, breathing, dynamics, and musical expressivity before “selecting only the top of the top, or the best of the best.”
Those selected earn the opportunity to perform at the KMEA in-service workshop in February in Wichita, where students from across Kansas rehearse for several days with a guest clinician, often a renowned composer or collegiate conductor.
The audition process is fully anonymous. Judges are positioned behind a screen and identify performers only by number. “This whole process is 100% blind,” Holt noted, explaining that even speaking during the audition could result in disqualification.
HOLT ALSO provided an update on the band program, noting that the marching band performed music from “How to Train Your Dragon” this past season and that approximately 60% of the ensemble consisted of eighth graders.
She described the program as being in a period of transition, noting that there are challenges related to student retention as academic and career-focused course demands increase at the high school level.
“As seniors who are leaving, I think it’s a very interesting year to leave off on,” Miller said, adding that the band program is at a pivotal moment in its development.
Ramirez said she appreciated being challenged musically and believed the experience benefitted younger students.
When asked about continuing music after high school, Miller said she plans to continue playing, though her college plans are still unclear.
Ramirez said that regardless of where she attends school, music will remain part of her life through church and personal performance.
BOARD MEMBER John Masterson asked what the district could do to support long-term growth in music programs. Both students pointed to the connection between elementary and secondary music instruction, pointing specifically to the role of elementary music teacher Addy Prather.
“Mrs. Prather fosters a love for it, and Mrs. Holt can foster the skill,” Miller said.
