In the minds of many people, music is a way to express their emotions. There are musicians who dream about becoming part of the music that people love to hear. For two Fraser High School band members, they are experiencing their dream earlier than most musicians. Being selected by audition, senior trumpet player, Patrick Score, and sophomore flute player, Lydia Moenssen, became members of the All-State Honors Band ensembles. Patrick is a member of the All-State Jazz Ensemble while Lydia is a member of the All-State High School Band. With an average of over 2,000 students across Michigan audition each year for the 400 seats in the 5 total ensembles, the two Fraser High students completed a great accomplishment by passing their audition.

“For the audition, I had to prepare an étude, which is a musical composition practiced in order to help perfect a specific skill. I was also required to play a few scales and sight read,” said Lydia Moenssen.

On January 24, Patrick and Lydia performed in concert with the rest of the ensembles in Grand Rapids during the annual Michigan Music Conference. They rehearsed for 3 days with nationally recognized conductors for the concert.

“The three days of rehearsal were amazing from the beginning to the end. It was great to play with other players who were just as serious as me,” Moenssen said.

To be able to perform All-State for music is an admirable opportunity and worth all of the effort that Patrick and Lydia has given. Despite the fact that there were many hard working musicians who auditioned that didn’t get accepted, some received attention from their judges. Sophomore saxophone player, Ian LoPiccolo, received Honorable Mention for the All-State High School Band.