Members of the Veterans Memorial High School Band recently competed in the UIL Solo and Ensemble Contest in Mission, Texas, where 35 students qualified for the state contest.
During a Solo and Ensemble competition, students perform their prepared compositions either on their own or with a group. The performances are evaluated by a judge and scored against a rating system, in which those who earn a Division One Rating at the region competition are eligible to advance to the UIL State Solo and Ensemble Contest.
Upon competing in the Region Solo and Ensemble Contest, VMHS earned 69 Division One Solo ratings and 10 Division One Ensemble ratings. Included in the aforementioned ratings, 12 students qualified for State in the Solo category and five qualified for the State in the Ensemble category, totaling 35 State Qualifiers.
Following the competition, VMHS Head Band Director Guillermo De la Cruz shared how proud he was of his students for putting on their best performances and representing the campus in a positive light.
“The VMHS band is incredibly proud of how our students performed and for representing both our campus and Mission CISD at such a high level,” De la Cruz said.
For clarinet player Karyme Lozano, who was among those who advanced to State, being able to do what she loves among her fellow musicians is one of her favorite aspects of playing in an ensemble.
“I enjoy playing my parts, but I especially love hearing the final product once it’s combined with the pieces of music from the rest of my team,” said Lozano, who’s been with the band for four years. “When I found out my team was advancing to state, I couldn’t help but cry tears of joy. I am beyond proud of our team.”
Junior saxophone player Adamary Gonzalez shared that pulling off both a Division One and advancement to the state competition with her team means all their hard work paid off.
“I got so much relief after the competition after the restless morning and afternoon practices the band had,” Gonzalez said. “I am now able to relax and know that all my hard work was worth it at the end. Many band members got emotional after they released the scores because a Division 1 tells you that as a whole, the team did an outstanding job.”
Congratulations to the following students for advancing to the state contest:
- Karl Schmidt
- David Leal
- Noema Trevino
- Karyme Lozano
- Erica De Leon
- Jeremiah Gonzalez
- Marcos Garcia
- Fernando Barsenas
- Ivan Salinas
- Alexa Rocha
- Jacob Garza
- Alysha Perez
- Aylin De Leon
- Noe Vargas
- Manuel Flores
- Cecilia Garcia
- Zamira Galvan
- Jewlisa Gonzalez
- Eli Lopez
- Adamary Gonzalez- Montemayor
- Adriana Lerma
- Albert Lopez
- Rebecca Alejos
- Jackie Gonzalez
- Jenna Garcia
- Christine Zayas
- Rey Calderon
- Andrea Coronado
- Alejandro Hinojosa
- Samantha Yañez
- Aaron Villarreal
- Grecia Mayorga
- Janelle Corona
- Luz Luna
- Kendra Salazar
Congratulations and best of luck to those who will compete at the State Solo and Ensemble Contest in Austin, Texas on May 28-30!