Mission, Texas- 45 members of the Veterans Memorial High School (VMHS) band recently participated in the UIL Solo and Ensemble regional competition. All 45 students earned a division 1 rating with 23 of them earning the added honor of advancing to the State Solo and Ensemble Competition. This requires the division 1 rating on a class 1 memorized solo or ensemble performance.
The students advancing to the State Solo and Ensemble are: Jacob Garza, Alexa Rocha, Ivan Salinas (1 ensemble and 1 solo performance), Aylin DeLeon, Alysha Perez, Audrey Vela, Reynaldo Calderon, Christine Zayas, Daniel Castillo, Rodrigo Flores, Nicolas Ochoa (2 ensemble performances), Brandon Piña, Sarah Martinez, Zoe Ascencio, Alexa Beas, Manuel Flores, Cecilia Garcia, Laura Barba (2 ensemble performances), Luz Luna Delgado, Grecia Mayorga, Aaron Villarreal, Katelyn Adkins, Christian Peña.
The state event will be a virtual event, with each student performing live from the VMHS band hall. The UIL state judge will adjudicate them through the virtual meet. Students will also have the option of pre-recording their performance that would be judged on the designated date.
The students who earned a division 1 rating on their regional performance but did not qualify for state are: Daniel Martinez, Khalil El-Jirby, Kendra Salazar, Samantha Tagle, Karyme Lozano, Erica DeLeon, Zamira Galvan, Sarah Resendez, Rebecca Alejos, Andres Alejos, Adamary Gonzalez, Noema Treviño, Dylan Wise, Jenna Garcia, Valeria Escamilla, Gabriel Sanchez, Alexis Sandoval, Javier Solis, Leo Lopez, Adolfo Sandoval, Omar Nuñez-Zurita, Audrey Vela, Billy Mandes, Andre Garcia.
Students have shown true resiliency and determination with the challenges of this year in preparing for the regional competition that went beyond the COVID pandemic, but also included as much as a week without electricity.
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