Madison Musicians Named To State Groups

Seventeen musicians were named to three all-state performing groups this spring -- a record for the school's instrumental and vocal programs.

Eight vocalists, four string players and five wind players from Madison were named to the 2012 Virginia All-State Chorus and Virginia All-Strings and All-Winds and Percussion groups.

Sixty-eight students across the county were named to the chorus this year. Four of Madison's students are regular members, while four are alternates, Choral Director Claire Rowan said.

"We‘ve gained momentum," Rowan said. "The kids are starting to see the harder you work, the more opportunities you have."

On the vocal side, the journey to the All-State group starts in October, Rowan said, when students compete against students from 13 other schools for District Chorus spots.

A spot in the district chorus makes a student eligible to audition for the state group, Rowan said.

In the instrumental selections, players go through a blind audition at a neutral location each year; the top players in each section are named to the band.

To encourage her students, Rowan said she made the all-state audition piece a required midterm for all of her singers.

"I think they gain confidence when they sing it enough times and they own it and can do something musical with it and not just sing the notes," Rowan said.

The confidence paid off: Leslea Wight, Tess Ottinger and Paul Hogan, who sing soprano I, soprano II and bass II, respectively, earned the highest scores for those parts among students across the state.

After this year's success, Rowan suspects students next fall will be even more eager to audition and reach even higher milestones.

"They’re working hard and it's paying off and it's encouraging kids to go farther," Rowan said.

All-State Chorus:

Leslea Wight, soprano 1

Tess Ottinger, soprano 2

Sergei Vandalov, tenor 1

Paul Hogan, bass 2

Susannah McClanahan, soprano 2 alternate

Bethany Hartt, alto 1 alternate

Kate Fowler, alto 1 alternate

David Eaton, tenor 1 alternate

All-Strings

Grace Ahn (12^th grade)-violin

Katja Yeager(11^th grade)-viola

Matt Norman(12^th grade)-viola

James Peterson(10^th grade)-bass

All Winds and Percussion

Olivia Staton, Flute

Gwen Geong, Bassoon

Daniel Smisko, Bass Clarinet

Tim Sheridan, Alto Saxophone

Max Levowitz, Trumpet

All-State Chorus performs April 28 at EC Glass High School in Lynchburg, Va. The instrumental groups will perform April 14 at James River High School in Richmond Va.