Five Arundel Musicians Headed to State Festival

By Steve Barrett

Arundel High Instrumental Music Association

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Five musicians from Arundel High School have earned a chance to perform at the 2011 Maryland High School State Solo and Ensemble Festivals to be conducted May 7 in Baltimore and May 14 at Towson University.

Their selections were based on the superior ratings they received at the recent Anne Arundel County Public Schools solo and ensemble festival, held March 19 at Magothy River and Severn River Middle Schools in Arnold.

Earning the opportunity to perform at the Maryland chorus solo and ensemble are senior Victoria Brown, junior Zachary Fadler and sophomore Kathryn MacLeod. Brown earned two “superior” ratings from county judges for her soprano performances of Grieg’s “Solvejg’s Song” and Gilbert and Sullivan’s “Poor Wand’ring One.” She earned a third superior rating with Fadler, as they combined talents to sing Lucy Simon’s “How Could I Ever Know?” MacLeod also earned a superior rating in her soprano solo, “Se Tu M’ami Sospiri” by Giovanni Pergolesi. The choral festival is slated for May 7 at Dumbarton Middle School in Baltimore.

That same day, Dumbarton Middle School will also host the state orchestra solo and ensemble festival. Arundel will have one musician performing in the orchestra festival – junior violist Olivia Ryan. Ryan earned a superior rating at the county festival for her performance of Veracini’s “Gigue.”

Finally, Falder and sophomore Amanda Hautmann both earned superior ratings in flute performance and will represent Arundel at the Maryland state band solo and ensemble festival May 14 at Towson University’s Fine Arts Center. Fadler earned his superior rating in performing “Duo for Flute and Piano” by Aaron Copland, while Hautmann performed “Three Preludes, op 18” by Robert Muczynski.

In addition to the superior ratings at the Anne Arundel County festival, two other Arundel musicians earned excellent ratings. Sophomore vocalist LaShawn Williams received an excellent rating for her performance of Harry Thacker Burleigh’s arrangement of “Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child,” while the flute duet of Hautmann and sophomore Rebecca Debus earned an excellent score in the performance of Francois Devienne’s “Sonata No. 3.”

Two other Arundel vocalists–sophomore Catherine Platt and Junior Taylor Bromante–earned “good” ratings for their performances.