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NEWPORT — Nine Newport High and eight Sadie Halstead Middle School students were selected to perform in the annual Northeast-B Honor Band and Choir concert.
Organized by the Northeast- B Music Educators Association, the Northeast- B Honor Band and Choir represents over a dozen 1B and 2B schools in Northeast Washington. The association has hosted the concert for at least 40 years, but this year is the first the Newport School District has been able to participate in it.
“I don’t know the last time that Newport schools participated in honor groups,” said Steven Munson, Newport School District band and choir director. “So, to have the opportunity to do some kind of an honor group is a big deal.”
The Newport High School students are Brayden Baugh on clarinet, Kasey St. Andre on flute, Markus Will on trumpet and Brianna Dibble, Isaac Hansen, Samantha Helms, Eliza Scheel, Madi Stiner- Wright and Mason Wink in choir.
The Sadie Halstead Middle School students are Emilie Baugh on flute, Allie Ericksen on clarinet, Evan Hansen on alto saxophone, Jacee Phillips on flute, Elijah Sattleen on trombone, Yvaine Urdahl on trumpet, Charlee Vadney on flute and Alicia Cotton in choir.
“They’ve practiced the really hard little bits, and then rehearsals will help them fine-tune it and put it together with others,” Munson said. “So, they’ll do great.”
Students auditioned for the Northeast-B Honor Band and Choir in January. Their auditions were then reviewed by music educators from each school district, one being Munson. After selecting the top students who auditioned for each instrument or vocal part, the Northeast- B Music Educators Association posted the results in February.
At least one student from each school district is selected by the association. At the Newport School District, more than half of those who auditioned were.
“At the high school, there were only a few kids that auditioned, partly because there’s a track meet the day of the event,” Munson said. “And so, there’s a bunch of kids that might have gotten in.”
Munson estimates the concert will be over an hour long, with the three Northeast-B Honor Groups, symphonic band, concert choir and wind symphony, performing four pieces each.
The groups only have two days to rehearse for the concert — the day before at Rearden High School and the day at the First Interstate Center for the Arts. So the pieces are only moderately difficult, Munson said, and not as difficult as the pieces school bands and choirs perform on the all-state level.
“It is an honor group, so they’re not super easy,” Munson said. “But also, we only have one day plus the day of the concert to put it together.”
The Newport School District has had a music program since at least the 1980s when Newport High School was built, complete with a music room and stage.
Nowadays, Newport High School has about 15 students in band and 16 in choir, while Sadie Halstead Middle School has about 70 in band and six in choir.
Since 2B schools like Newport High and Sadie Halstead Middle School are among the smallest in the state, Munson said they may not have enough students to cover each instrument or vocal part required by a certain piece. But the larger Northeast-B Honor Band and Choir does.
“We have to kind of pick and choose a little bit,” Munson said. “But in a big group like this, everything is covered, which will sound cool that way.”
To Munson, the Northeast- B Honor Band and Choir is a way to recognize student musicians, who do not receive the same recognition as student-athletes.
Music is fun, collaborative and “super good for kids’ brains,” Munson said. On the program for the March 19 band concert, Munson noted two statistics: The schools that produce the highest academic achievement in the country are spending 20 to 30% of the day on the arts with an emphasis on music, and students of lower socioeconomic status who took music lessons in grades eight through 12 significantly increased their scores in math, reading, history, geography and social skills compared to non-music students.
And unlike sports, “we don’t really have benchwarmers in band. You’re always playing,” Munson said. “So, there’s something really satisfying about being a part of a musical ensemble.”
The concert is at 7 p.m. March 28 at the First Interstate Center for the Arts, 334 W. Spokane Falls Blvd. in Spokane. Admission is free.
