Band award winners

Ten bands total, six jazz and four concert, took to the stage on May 6 for the spring band concerts.

During the performances, which were held in the new gym, director Erik Hermanson presented this year’s band awards.

Junior trumpeter Jackson Bowen won the Louis Armstrong Award, which is given to the jazz performer that represents everything that a CHS jazz member should be, Hermanson said.

“Jackson is hard working, confident, brave and talented. He was dedicated enough to polish multiple solos for concerts and contests and had an incredible year of performances for his bandmates.”

As the jazz performer who has was voted the top performer of the year by her peers, senior trumpeter Makenna Mueller took home the Woody Herman Award. Mueller was lead trumpet in Holiday Band and played a duet with Greta Hahn at concerts and contests as a member of Black Folder Jazz. 

“She is an exceptional talent and person,” Hermanson said.

Mueller follows in the footsteps of her sister Morgan Mueller (CHS 2022), who, two years ago, won the Woody Herman.

As the outstanding senior concert band musician, Madysen Seely was the John P. Sousa Award winner. Seely played flute as well as keyboards in jazz bands.  

“Mady is a great role model and a perfect example of what it is to be a CHS band member,” Hermanson said. “She is an incredible leader and a talented, hardworking performer.  She makes any group that she is in exponentially better.”

The afternoon jazz concert started with Blue Folder Jazz, a group that included sophomores, juniors and seniors. The group opened with “I’m beginning to See the Light” before accompanying Seely as she sang “Cry Me a River.” Next was all “All Blues” before the band closed with “One Note Samba.”

Next up was Wednesday Jazz, a band made up of seventh graders. Its numbers included “Beginners Rock!” and “A Blues to Grow On.”

From there, it was seventh graders combined with eighth graders in Tuesday Jazz with “Feddie Freeloader,” “Land of Make Believe” and “Gospel John.”

Red Jazz, an ensemble of freshmen and sophomores, performed “Blues Machine,” Misty” and “Along for the Ride.”

“Green Jazz, also a group of freshmen and sophomores, played “Channel One Suite,” “Everything,” “Black and Blue,” and “Moondance.” The band accompanied sophomore Vivian Hilfer as she sung “Everything.”

The concert closed with Black Jazz, made up of juniors and seniors, performing “Kool Bean,” “Maynard and Waynard,” McCarther Park” and “Sway.”

The 6th Grade Band led off the evening concert band performance with “Bugler’s Dream,” “The Crusaders,” “Beethoven’s 9th,” “Power Rock,” and “Smoke on the Water.”

Next on stage, the 7th and 8th Grade Band played “Of Castles and Kings,” “Prehistoric Suite,” “Space Raiders” and “Intensify.”

The 9th and 10th Grade band followed with “Explorations,” “Poco Loco,” “Irish Tune” and “Uman Thurman.”

The 11th and 12th Grade Band performed “Flight of Valor,” “Application Morning” and “Lord of the Dance,” before, taking the advice of the late Cleveland band patron Clayton Wolf (CHS 1959), Hermanson closed the concert with a march: “The Swashbucklers March.”

Above: Band award winners Jackson Bowen, Madysen Seely and Makenna Mueller with band director Erik Hermanson. (photo courtesy of Carrie Mueller)

Ariel Murphy on the saxophone solo

Mylie Dylla on the trumpet solo

Trumpeters Jackson Bowen, Lacey McCabe and Alex Johnson

Kenzie Smith and Allison Cink on saxophone

Trombonists Kale Kelley, Blake Lyons and Kyle Connor

Trombonists Nick Simonette, Mylie Krenik and Kendra Zimmerman

Dakota Lotspeich on the bass and Reid Knish on the trap set

Madysen Seely solos “Cry Me a River”

Blake Gibbs on the trap set

Harper Rutz and Charlotte Meyer on bass guitar

Jack Mons, Brayden Seeman on trumpet and Pierce Lyons on trombone

Jake Mueller, Jeremy Miller and Jack Mons on trumpet

Nolan Schlaak on saxophone

Kaelyn Blaschko and Maliah Elias on clarinet

Director Erik Hermanson boosts the sound of Maliah Elias’s clarinet.

Ben Traxler on the trap set

BenZander Hoechst on bass guitar

Clara Hilfer on bass guitar

Owen Lloyd and Jack Anderson on trumpet

Jack Anderson, August Keltgen and Brooklynn Bosse on trumpet

Eighth graders Gavin Marks and Aubrey Blaschko on the saxophone

Eighth graders Cassidy Otto, Kayla Hoffman and Ava Kluntz on the flute

Jackson Wille and Luke Heldberg on the trombone

Aubrey Blaschko on the sax solo

Jack Shouler, Carson Lyons and Charlie Perkins on trombone and Taylor McCabe, Kaitlyn Flowers and Marshall Heldberg on trumpet

Vanessa Wondra, Maile Meissner and Anna Lamont on flute

Caleb Connor and Aiden Domras on trumpet

Emma Bluhm and Madison Wollschlager on bass clarinet

Neenah Lassiter on bass guitar

Charlie Maxfield and Zayden Linder on saxophone

Freshman Taylor Wolf on the sax solo

Henry Boelter on the trap set

Wyatt Williams on the trap set

Elijah Mons on bass guitar

Samantha Baker on the sax solo

Olivia Reinhardt and Carter Kern on saxophone

Bode Bartell, Caleb Possin and Mason Kluntz on trumpet

Gavin Karels, Nathan Seeman and Melissa Miller on trombone

Anna Kawatski-Klein on the baritone saxophone solo

Sierra McCabe on baritone saxophone

Lilly Lamont on trombone and Olivia Shouler on clarinet

Adalyn Gibeau and Thayne Remiger on saxophone   

Maya Lassiter on alto saxophone and Carter Barto on tenor saxophone

Greta Hahn and MaKenna Mueller on trumpet

Dylan Zimmerman on the trap set

Nathan Strobel, Adam Seeman and Derek Miller on trumpet

Ava Hahn on French horn and Chloe Anderson and Mariah McCabe on trombone

Vivian HilferVivian Hilfer sings "Everything."

All concert photos courtesy of Patty Sullivan


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