All-State Music Festival

The annual all-state music festival was held this past weekend, featuring nearly 1,000 top high school musicians from around the state. Daughter was selected for the percussion section in the all-state band. I blogged about the audition process a few weeks ago here.

Here she is prior to the concert. Of course, she did not want her photo taken, but the Crazed Camera-Wielding Mother did it anyway. :-)

Here is one of many photos I took of the band. If you click on this photo to bigify it, you'll see her at the back of the band on chimes. She played many different percussion instruments throughout the program. During one song she went back and forth behind the band to play a few measures on one then another. Fun for us to watch! :-)

Here's a shot of the band, choir, and orchestra. As you might imagine, the concert was terrific. It was hard to believe we were listening to high school musicians.

Here's a shot of the audience. Take a look at the guy operating the TV camera. Because he was up on a very high platform, he was tethered in a little harness to the ceiling. I kept hoping he'd fly out over the band like Peter Pan but alas, he stayed on his platform. :-)

For those of you in Iowa, the concert will be broadcast on Thanksgiving evening at 7pm on Iowa Public Television, then re-broadcast on Sunday at 5pm. Details can be found here. If you get the opportunity, I hope you'll watch it. It's a great program and would be a nice way to spend the holiday evening!