W.C. Friday Cavalier Band reaching for the stars
The W.C. Friday Cavalier Band has had a school year full of performances at school and in the community. Band Director Cindy C. Owes has allowed her students to take on leadership roles when possible.
Band members held a special 9/11 Remembrance Ceremony at the flagpole which was planned and led by the band members themselves. The Jazz Cavaliers started meeting weekly since Covid hit.
The Jazz Cav’s members decided to host several mini-breakfast concerts for the faculty and staff at school. The Jazz Cav’s even had the opportunity to perform at the McAdenville Tree Lighting on Dec. 1.
In late October, seventh and eighth grade band held a Fall Concert. Owens submitted the video of their performance to the Disney Performing Arts/ Imagination Campus in Orlando Florida. In late November, she received notification that the W.C. Friday Cavalier Band was selected to perform on March 9 at Disney Springs.
In addition to the numerous performances, the Eighth Grade Band continued the tradition of collecting monetary donations to purchase toys for the Levine Children's Hospital children. Eighth Grade Band members met early on a Saturday morning and purchased gifts for the children. Band members also made holiday cards for the children that were delivered with the toys.
The band jumped into second semester with the 2023 South Central All-District Band Auditions, which were held at Porter Ridge High School on Jan. 14. Hundreds of middle school musicians from across the South-Central District participated in the audition process.
The auditions consisted of the major scales, the chromatic scale which had to be memorized plus a solo and sight-reading portion. Students were scored according to the N.C. State Rubrics. Congratulations to the following members of the W.C. Friday Cavalier Band who were selected: Ayden Kisby-Jones- 1st Chair Contra Bass Clarinet, Khalil Houston- 8th Chair Trumpet, Danny Major- 2nd Chair Euphonium, Catherine Putnam- 4th Chair French Horn.
These four musicians participated in the 2023 South Central All-District Honor Band Clinic held at Stuart W. Cramer High School in late January. Due to his chair placement, Kisby-Jones had the opportunity to audition for the North Carolina All-State Honors Band at Atkins High School on March 4. Ayden Kisby-Jones, who was selected to the 2023 North Carolina All-State Honor Band, as 1st Chair Contra Bass Clarinet which will take place at UNC Greensboro on April 28-30.
This article originally appeared on The Gaston Gazette: W.C. Friday Cavalier Band reaching for the stars
