Students' musicianship recognized

Three Sisters High School students were recognized for their musicianship at the state level recently. These members of the wind ensemble competed in the Central Oregon Solo and Ensemble Festival and received state qualifying scores for their instruments, meaning they were eligible to advance to the state competition.

Junior Dalton Gonzales on trumpet, freshmen Connor Martin on alto saxophone, and Jack Ogan on tuba were the students who earned kudos for their individual musicianship. Ogan was the only automatic qualifier because he took first place at the district festival. Gonzales and Martin were both listed as alternates, and eventually Gonzales was selected to represent Central Oregon at the state festival. The OSAA (Oregon School Activities Association) Solo State Championships took place at Pacific University in Forest Grove at the end of April.

Tyler Cranor, director of bands for Sisters School District, keeps all of his student musicians busy performing at district festivals, honor bands, school performances, and community events such as the My Own Two Hands parade. He was impressed that these students also found the time to learn new music and try out for the state competition.

"These three students have really set the bar high for the future of this program. The fact that all three qualified for state, two as freshmen, is really quite astounding," said Cranor.

"Being lucky enough to participate at State was an inspiring experience because there were so many talented musicians. Being around them gave Jack and me a glimpse at what we could sound like with time and hard work," said Gonzales.

These three students will perform with their fellow band musicians for the last concert of the school year on May 24 at Sisters High School at 7 p.m. The concert is free and open to the public.