Over President’s Day weekend, Cass High Band sent six students to Ringgold, GA to participate in the District VII GMEA Honor Band. These students included senior Logan Hall on flute, senior Emily Tracy on clarinet, junior Ethan Etheridge on french horn, sophomore Caleb Doolittle on trumpet, freshman Kyla Jenkins on clarinet, and freshman Trinity Hatfield on trombone.

To be selected for District Honor Band, students had to pass an audition in January consisting of scales, a prepared etude, and sight-reading. They compete for a set number of chairs in the honor band against students all throughout district seven, and the chosen students travel to Ringgold High School for one weekend in February.

Students participating in the honor band attend work for three days, Thursday evening through Saturday morning, to put on a concert on Saturday afternoon. Over the weekend’s five rehearsals, they play as an ensemble for a total of about 12 hours before performing for friends, family, and the general public in the Ringgold High School theater.

“It was very challenging, but in a good way,” says Caleb Doolittle. “It pushed us to aspire to be better musicians and helped us realize our potential.”

The ninth and tenth grade band was conducted by the Director of Athletic Bands at Western Carolina University, Mr. David Starnes, and the eleventh and twelfth grade band was conducted by the Director of Bands at the University of Georgia, Dr. Cynthia Johnson Turner. The bands played a wide variety of music, including “Der Traum des Oenghus” by Rolf Rudin, “Allelujah! Laudamus Te” by Alfred Reed, and an emotional rendition of “Sheltering Sky” by John Mackey.

“My favorite part of the whole weekend was when we dedicated ‘Sheltering Sky’ to the families in the Florida shooting,” says Trinity Hatfield. “It was super moving, and it really made us feel the emotion in the music.”

It was also an emotional weekend for seniors Logan Hall and Emily Tracy, who were attending the last of three and four years of district, respectively.

“At the end of the concert, they asked the seniors to stand,” says Tracy. “I saw Logan across the band and immediately started crying. The last year is really bittersweet.”

Overall, the students put on a phenomenal concert at the end of the weekend, and their participation in the district band is a great accomplishment.