Calhoun wind ensemble earns national honors

Calhoun High School’s 69-member wind ensemble earned Best in Class in the Triple A Division and second place among 14 other ensembles at Festival Disney, a national performance competition last weekend.

It was one of several top awards that Calhoun students won at the contest, which attracts high school musical groups from around the country.

The wind ensemble competes in Festival Disney every other year, alternating with a trip to Virginia Beach. This year the group earned a score of 87, which equates to “excellent” in Festival Disney terms. The score did not change drastically from the last time Calhoun competed in Festival Disney. However, the ensemble’s six student officers agreed that it took on a greater challenge in its choice of music this year.

“I always tried to appease the judges,” said Calhoun band director Edward Tumminelli. “This time I said, ‘I’m just going do what I want to do.’” This was the seventh time Tumminelli has taken Calhoun to Festival Disney since he started attending the competition in its inaugural year in 2005.

The piece he choose for the group’s performance this year was an excerpt from “Mass,” by composer Leonard Bernstein. Written in the 1970s, the piece was considered controversial at a time when the U.S. saw a peak in Vietnam War protests, President Nixon was receiving harsh criticism, and Bernstein, like many Americans, was questioning his role in society. “Mass” is a two-hour mix of theater and music that the wind ensemble condensed into a 15-minute suite. “The students realized how much the [music] demanded,” Tumminelli said.

Kaitlyn Paeth, an ensemble officer and senior, said that the group had changed its dynamic since she was a sophomore. She explained that, each year, it welcomes new students with different talents and strengths, and seniors depart.

Most of the officers this year were part of the ensemble as freshmen or sophomores, although most students do not join until their junior year. “We saw the progression,” said student officer Logan Strobing. “We had extraordinary leaders coming up before us… and we took the torch.”

In addition to students joining or leaving the group, the instruments they play also change. Student officer Amber Lievre entered Calhoun as a clarinet player, but switched to oboe when another student graduated. “It’s a completely different animal,” she said.

According to Tumminelli, the students spend time practicing after school, attending extra help sessions and listening to music outside class.

Because of the dedication Tumminelli fostered in her, Lievre said, she was accepted by the prestigious Crane School of Music at SUNY Potsdam. “I would not be in that program if it weren’t for Mr. Tumminelli’s help,” she said.

In addition to the ensemble’s achievement, Calhoun also won an Outstanding Soloist award, for Alex Werthauer, and Outstanding Accompanist award, for Julia Losner. The concert choir took second place in its division, and the crescendo band earned third place. The wind ensemble will perform its suite, Bernstein’s “Mass” at Calhoun on April 27 at 7:30 p.m.