RHS Students Admitted Into CMEA’s Western Regionals and All State Festival
Back in November 2024, many Ridgefield High School musicians auditioned for the CMEA Western Regional Music Festival. On Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend, those students who were selected got to perform at the Festival itself and taste the fruits of their labor. Every year, RHS sends many young talents to participate in this incredible event.
The Western Regionals Festival brings together the strongest music students in Western Connecticut to partake in playing rigorous music for this occasion. Every year, Western Regionals elevates musicians’ skills and confidence, helping young musicians to perform to the best of their ability. Additionally, this festival brings brilliant music students together, allowing them to foster friendships with other talented young musicians. Ridgefield High School’s incredible music program has advocated strongly for all students to audition for this ensemble, and many of Ridgefield’s students are admitted each year. This year, Ridgefield was represented with a total of 33, a school record and a testament to the strength, dedication, and enthusiasm of the RPS music program.
The audition process is challenging, and being accepted into CMEA’s prestigious Western Regionals group is a great honor. Orchestra Director Micheal McNamara says, “The audition process is not an easy one. Students who go through it must practice some difficult repertoire rather vigorously and then play live in front of two judges, with only one shot to get it right. That experience alone is good for students because it conditions them to have to prepare a lot for something very short and then perform it under pressure. The more they do it, the more confident they become. It is a valuable and transferable skill that can be applied to many real life situations. Then to watch them all play with peers from the surrounding area that are as skilled and passionate as they are, and get the professional experience of putting something monumental together very quickly, is an incredible and inspiring process to witness over the weekend.”
From Orchestra, the students that participated are Alyssa Bello, Audrey Englert, Eva Figlar, Fyodor Feldshteyn, Olivia Hsiung, Julia Pierz, Hancheng Peng, Samantha Sauer, Clarabelle Sutjito, Ava Murdock, Olivia Tejada, Joseph Velasco, Kiril Volkov, and Ryan Zou.
Additionally, from the band, the admitted students are Gia Kim, Ian Whitehurst, Denys Shushura, Simon Bleck, Preston Penn and Zachery Pichardo.
Band Director George Beratis says, “I am incredibly proud of our students who earned a spot in the Western Region Festival. It takes months of meticulous preparation to prepare multiple etudes and scales, and then the students have one shot to perform it at their best in front of live adjudicators. Once the students make it, they have only a couple of weeks to learn extremely challenging repertoire, and then only one day of rehearsals to put it all together. These kids are the cream of the crop!”
Finally, the students admitted from choir are Hazel Connally, Tristan Farmer, Isabella Lodato, Theo McCue Charlotte Overs, and Grace Smith. Mrs. Verney-Fink, RHS Choir Director, said “I was so proud to see our Ridgefield singers up on that stage. They worked incredibly hard to get there, and they deserved every bit of the applause they received during the concert. Both of the Western Region High School Honor Choirs sounded fantastic!”
Students who participate in the Western Regional Festival are also eligible to audition for All State. All State is truly the best of the best in the state of Connecticut and incredibly competitive to gain entry. Still, RHS is being represented! From Orchestra, Ava Murdock, Alyssa Bello, and Olivia Tejada(all violists) will be participating along with band flutist Gia Kim.
The Ridgefield High School Music Community is beyond proud of the diligent work students completed to be accepted for these festivals, and offers a congratulations for what was an incredible performance at regionals.