Oconto United School District students perform with All-State Band

OCONTO – In an effort to bring together students from different schools, the Wisconsin Concert Band Association (WCBA) accepts applications across the state for their All-State Senior Band and All-State Junior Band. This year, four students from Oconto Unified School District (OUSD) were selected for the honor and performed at University of Wisconsin Whitewater on Saturday, Jan. 18.

Adeline Whitman and Elyse Finger were accepted into the Junior Band for middle school while Jaelin Kumhala and Reidar Veley joined the Senior Band for high school students.

The application process was based on nominations made by OUSD music teacher McKenna Hayes who shared that the WCBA looks at “skill level, maturity, ability to represent [their school] well and be able to handle pressure.”

Only two students from each school in Wisconsin are selected for this honor.
After these students were selected from those that Hayes nominated, their hard work preparing for the WCBA began.

Each group of students was sent sheet music ahead of time that was practiced during lessons before the performance.

While the group put in a lot of work, Hayes added “you can only do so much with single lessons and not being there with the entire band, it’s really a whole different beast once [they] get sat in that ensemble and begin playing with everybody.”

When the four students departed to UW-Whitewater for the WCBA they not only played new music with nearly 100 different students, but they also gained insight from the experienced guest directors.

Alex Kaminsky, Director of Bands and Associate Professor of Music at VanderCook and National Band Association’s Citation of Excellence awardee, conducted the All-State Senior Band. Kati Seiter, music educator at Oregon Middle School and orchestral performer, conducted the All-State Junior Band.

Hayes noted the impact that opportunities like the All-State Senior Band and All-State Junior Band have on students from rural school districts, “we’re a small program, we only get to play so much and we only get to play with so many people. They go from playing in a 25 person band to playing in an 85 person band, they just can’t get that kind of experience anywhere else.”

The opportunity to learn new musical approaches from the conductors and performers was a favored memory of Senior Band member Reidar Veley, a junior who began playing the trombone in fifth grade. He added that playing with the WCBA “was a great experience for someone who is passionate about music and wants to learn more about it.”

His passion was echoed by fellow junior Jaelin Kumhala, a clarinet and bass clarinet player, who said “the music was amazing and it was great to collaborate with people from all over the state.”

Student musicians joined in from far away as well as local schools, such as Natalie P. and Amber C. from Marinette High School, Maddie Kushner and Sophia Pirlot from Lena High School and AJ and Scott from the Coleman High School.

Local students also played on the All-State Junior Band, including Evan A. and Adrian R. from Marinette Middle School, Raina Croley and Leah Gerschke from Lena Middle School and Mara and Lilly from Coleman Middle School.

The All-State Junior Band members from OUSD shared advice for their fellow young musicians.

Elyse Finger, a seventh grader who has been in band for three years and plays the trumpet, urged students to “practice a lot” while her classmate, Adeline Whitman, a flute player, added “keep trying new things.”