On Sunday, November 20, two MICDS band students, Chloe Cheng ’23 and Daniel Kuhlman ’27, participated in the 2022 Metro District 8 Honor Ensemble Concerts held at Chaminade College Preparatory School. The St. Louis Metro District 8 is in association with Missouri Music Educators Association and the National Association for Music Education. “These students prepared a lengthy set of music for an audition early in November. Then, they were selected among the top students from all St. Louis public and private schools as well as the Fort Zumwalt and Francis Howell Districts in St. Charles County,” said Becky Long, Middle & Upper School Performing Arts Teacher. Cheng and Kuhlman participated in two evening rehearsals and a full Saturday rehearsal in preparation for the concert. “Mr. Baumgartner [Middle & Upper School Instrumental Music Instructor] and I are proud of their commitment to excellence!” said Long.
Kuhlman played clarinet in the 2022 Metro District 8 Middle School Honor Concert Band under the direction of conductor Dr. Joseph Parisi. Dr. Parisi is a Curator’s Professor at the UMKC Conservatory where he conducts the Conservatory Wind Ensemble and serves as a conducting and music education faculty member. He is also the principal conductor of the Summit Brass at the Rafael Méndez Brass Institute and the Fountain City Brass Band, ranked the 15th best brass band in the world and highest ranked American band in history. The Middle School Honor Concert Band performed works by Johnnie Vinson, Robert W. Smith, William Owens, and Heitor Villa-Lobos.
Kuhlman shared, “It was an honor to be selected again this year for Metro 8. It was a fun and rewarding experience playing with some of the best kids in the St. Louis area.”
Cheng played clarinet as well in the 2022 Metro District 8 High School Honor Concert Band, under the direction of conductor Linda Huck. Huck taught instrumental music in the Farmington R-7 school district for over 30 years. She is the principal bassoonist with the St. Louis Wind Symphony, the Music Coordinator for the Lindbergh School District, and she’s a double reed/woodwind instructor at the Mineral Area Fine Arts Academy.
“I would say that what I most enjoyed about participating in Metro 8 were the high expectations all the students held for themselves and how well everything was executed, especially since we only practiced three times before the concert,” said Cheng. “It meant a lot to me to be able to play at such a higher performance level and I hope to do something like it again in the future.”
In addition to Chloe and Daniel, freshman Joy Chen ’26 was selected as an alternate for the high school honor ensemble concert.
Bravo, band students!