Steve Bloom/The Olympian
North Thurston High School choir members (from left) Debbie Kagy, Colin Montgomery and Cara Evans are among those who will participate in the All State Choir in Yakima this year.

Teens will make beautiful music at All State

Students will perform Monday at Yakima event

RUTH LONGORIA, THE OLYMPIAN

LACEY -- Colin Montgomery said he auditioned for the All State Choir as a chance to find out how good he is and see where he ranks within the thousands of high school vocalists in Washington.

The 18-year-old North Thurston High School senior said he was thrilled to find out his baritone voice was chosen to blend with the elite group of musicians' vocal chords.

Montgomery is one of several aspiring musicians from South Sound high schools who will head east of the mountains this week to participate in Washington's All State Music Conference.

"I'm ecstatic to be part of the group; all of the musicians are really good, so I'm definitely looking forward to it," Montgomery said.

900 selected

Each fall, students from bands, choirs, and orchestras throughout the state are invited to send in their audition tapes.

About 900 students were selected this year from the more than 2,000 audition tapes.

The students will arrive in Yakima on Friday, spend the weekend in intensive instrumental and choral rehearsals, and perform Monday in a concert at Yakima's Sun Dome.

The conference is part of the Music Educators National Conference, which takes place every year in Yakima. During the four-day event, music teachers from across the state come together to learn new techniques and strategies.

This year, 11 students were selected from North Thurston Public Schools, 40 from Olympia School District, six from Tumwater School District, two from Yelm, three from Rochester and eight from Shelton.

Dan Lundberg, Capital High School band teacher and music coordinator for the Olympia School District, said he was amazed that so many students from his district were chosen for the prestigious music conference.

"I don't think we've ever had 40 students chosen before. This is a huge honor," Lundberg said.

Credit for the strong showing of musicianship goes to music teachers throughout South Sound, he said.

"All of these kids started somewhere in someone's beginning instrumental or vocal group," he said. "There are a lot of good students and instructors out there."

North Thurston High School music teachers Darren Johnson and Randy Poff both said they are extremely proud of their students.

Poff has been the vocal instructor at the high school for 25 years.

"Teaching music is a rewarding career because I get to share my love of music with my students. Music is a very important part of life," Poff said. "I have some very fine students, and I'm proud to send them to the conference."

Ruth Longoria writes for The Olympian. She can be reached at 360-754-5435.

Participants

South Sound students selected for this year's Washington All State Music Conference include:

- North Thurston High School: Jeffrey Gamez, David McLemore, Ryan Tucker, Karina Brazas, Cara Sun Evans, Deborah Kagy, Colin Montgomery, Brian Briggs, Caleb Lambert.

- River Ridge High School: Jaci Thurgood.

- Timberline High School: Laurie Rockett.

- Capital High School: Korbi Adams, Amanda Foran, Andrea Rennie, Carson Smith, Seamus Walsh, Ashley Adams, Chelsea DuVall, Erin Foran, Anna Morsett, Will Rohrer, Megann Schmidt, Brandon Corneliusen, Benjamin Lee, Steven Lovinger.

- Olympia High School: Samantha Baker, Amy Flinton, Michael Gacetta, James Heckman, Brian Rascon, Aaron Wilkinson, Kristin Burch, Elizabeth Bullman, Gavin Hayes, Jennifer Lovanne, Christine Knackstedt, Justin Olmstead, Ann Chang, Amanda Course, Nick Dygert, Jeffrey Edwards, Laine Eisendrath, Jackie Fay, Danielle Johnson, Amy Lee, Andrea Marlowe, Nicole Miller, Matt Wei, Sasha Wiktorek, Nathan Wong.

- Tumwater High School: Brett Youngquist, Lara Grenko, Jake Tyrrell, Elizabeth Boyer.

- Black Hills High School: BrieAnn Ross, Jeff Powell.

- Yelm High School: Katie Fagerlund, Eric Deatherage.

- Rochester High School: Kassie Keel, Laura Hutchinson, Brian Holman.

- Shelton High School: Greg Hoff, Nofo Moliga, Tim Murdock, Shara Graves, Jeffrey Williams, Steve Hamilton, Jenny Miser, Julie Russo.

For related stories go to the Communities section.

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