East View High School’s Percussion Ensemble was one of nine groups in the country that earned an invite to the 2023 Music For All national showcase.
The group of 20 students, under the direction of Andrew Blezinger, will travel to Indianapolis in March to participate in the national festival.
However, the journey there has only just started, as students prepare for the event. Booster Club President Marsha Sray said they will now be attempting to raise $70,000 so that no financial burden falls on the families of the group.
Details of the festival
At the festival, the Percussion Ensemble will take master classes from renowned music professors from colleges across the country and showcase their skills with a prepared program. The ensemble has commissioned a new piece of music by Molly Joyce to perform at the festival and are also bringing a world renowned marimba player and former president of the Percussive Arts Society, Dr. Brian Zator, as a guest.
Competition to make the festival is fierce. Mr. Blezinger said he has applied three previous times with no success.
“To say this is a once in a lifetime experience for our students is an understatement,” Mr. Blezinger said. “Being accepted to attend the Music for All National Festival as a percussion ensemble is a huge honor for our students at EVHS.”
Once the group makes it into the festival, however, the competitive journey ends and the learning begins.
“The competition was getting the invite,” Ms. Sray said. “Once they get there, it’s a non-competitive environment. They’ll have the opportunity to take master classes with renowned instructors from around the county, working with some of the best in the nation. They also get to be showcased on a national stage.”
This is particularly important to the students who wish to pursue music in college — a highly competitive field. The chance to meet with music professors is a helpful leg up in the process.
Some of the ensemble are even seeking to be first-generation college students in their families. Ms. Sray said the experience could be eye opening for them.
“I would like to become a music educator myself when I'm older,” said Angel Dominguez, an EVHS senior who is part of the ensemble. “Getting the chance to go on this trip will allow me to get very good tips from professional artists to help me succeed in my future.”
Fundraising
In order to attend the festival, the group must raise close to $70,000 to cover food, travel, lodging expenses and payments to the festival itself.
“These festivals are limited because affluent schools are the ones that can afford to go to them,” Ms. Sray said.
However, she said she thinks this shouldn’t be the reason they don’t attend.
“These kids earned the honor to be there. If we can send them, they have the right to be there.”
She said the goal for the booster club is to raise enough money that no financial burden falls on the families of the group.
To jumpstart fundraising efforts, the Percussion Ensemble will be scheduling appearances at local fests and farmers markets around Central Texas in the coming months. Ms. Sray said they hope to have raised the money by the end of the year. The booster club has started a donation website, and hopes the community will come together to support the band reach their dream.
“They have worked really hard, but these opportunities cost money, so many miss out on them,” she said. “If we can make it happen for this small group in our community, that's a big deal.”
“This is a group of people that I am so very proud of and lucky to be with,” said Leah Colbert, another ensemble student. “This is something that I believe we all earned. I am only a sophomore and this really opens my eyes to what EV percussion can do and I cannot wait to see what we give to the world at this festival.”
The donation website to send EVHS Percussion Ensemble to the Music For All festival can be found at www.eastviewband.org
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Andrew Blezinger,
EVHS Percussion Ensemble Director