Schools
WHS Music Students to Perform on National Stages
Major events in New York City, Chicago and Hartford are all in store.
Windham High School’s Music Department has had many exciting initiatives taking place this year, according to Dean of Arts Jared Cassedy.
Selected students recently performed in the N.H. Music Education Association’s All Chamber Music Festival at Timberlane Regional High School Saturday, Jan. 5.
Participating were Melanie Fenton, Christine Carpenter, Alessandro Fabiano, Patrick Fitzgerald, Cassandra Cole, Danielle Fitzgerald, Dan Khabbaz, and Cathryn Sansoucie.
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Students selected for this event are among the top scorers from NHMEA Classical and Jazz All State Auditions, which took place in the fall. The festival focuses on small ensemble playing where students rehearse and perform in brass and woodwind choirs, chamber winds, and jazz combos.
Out of the 11 WHS students selected for NHMEA All State this year, eight of them participated in the All Chamber Festival.
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Selected students are also gearing up for their participation on the American High School Honors Performance Series at Carnegie Hall, in New York City in February.
“Students will work with esteemed directors and high school musicians from across the nation culminating in a performance at prestigious Carnegie Hall in New York City,” Cassedy said. “After the great success of our Winter Band Concert, our students are also preparing for their participation in two large festivals.”
The first is The Heritage Festival of Gold in Chicago, Ill., where the students will perform at Orchestra Hall, home to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. This festival will take place from March 22 - March 26.
The students have been selected to perform in the National Association of Music Eastern Division Conference in Hartford, Conn., April 5.
“This is a prestigious honor allowing our students to perform in front of some of the nation's most renowned music educators, conductors, musicians, and composers,” Cassedy said.
In preparation for both festivals, Dr. Andrew Boysen Jr. of the University of New Hampshire will be working with band students during a clinic in mid-March.
This is Cassedy’s third year at the high school. In 2011 Cassedy was named N.H. Young Band Director of the Year by the N.H. Band Directors Association.
