Super State Band!

The Fair Grove High School Band competed in the State Band Competition at Camdenton High School on March 7th, ending with a rank of two.

Preparing for state is huge for the Fair Grove Band; they did this by working on what they need to practice in class, practicing in the mornings, as well as doing group work.

 The director of the Fair Grove High School Band, Natalie Palomo, stated before the competition, “We are preparing by rehearsing daily through class. Students have sectionals (small group work) and full band to get comfortable with their individual parts and how they work as an ensemble. We will also be bringing in a guest clinician to listen and provide feedback as a fresh set of ears to hone in on details before the contest.”

A member of the ensemble, Jesse Elliston (9), added, “The High School Band is preparing for state by practicing diligently every morning.”

What the band focused on specifically are their weaknesses. Palomo explained, “Right now our greatest weakness is improving our intonation and tone quality. This is essentially blending our sounds to be more together and even, rather than sounding like, for example, six flutes, we want to sound like one flute section. It’s a tricky concept to listen for, and even trickier to continuously implement.”

Along with the weaknesses, the band has many strengths. Elliston stated, “I think the band’s main strengths are our companionship and strong brass section.” Palomo continued, “The band plays well in terms of our expressive ability and melodic awareness. We have a good sense of putting emotion into the pieces, and seem to always know where the melody is and balance that.”

Palomo explained how she feels about the state competition, “I’m very excited for state! I love giving the band performance opportunities outside our school, and having a judged event is a great way to hear new insight on bettering ourselves. It also can motivate kids in a different way if they’re not necessarily motivated by general performances. I think it’s a great way to push ourselves to be the best possible, hopefully receive good feedback, and a good score. It’s just a fun way to perform!”