From Tuesday, May 13th to the early morning hours of Saturday May 17th, the SHDHS Senior Concert Band, Wind Enesmble and Percussion Ensemble had the honour of traveling to our nation's capital, Ottawa, to represent our school at the National level. Only the very best of the best are invited to represent Ontario at the National level, and to have three of our ensembles qualify for such an excursion is a true testament to the hard work and dedication of our music students at South Huron. The bands represented our school well under the discerning and critical eyes of the National panel of adjudicators.
After all was said and done, the music students at South Huron performed so well, and with such energy that the adjudicators awarded our students with every honour they could.
Our Wind Ensemble performed first, and because of their emotional, technical and exciting playing, were awarded a silver standing. A silver award is a very difficult thing to attain at the national level, and the Wind Ensemble should be very proud of this accomplishment.
The Senior Concert band played next, and played very well. A few technical and musical issues kept this group from achieving the few extra points they needed to achieve the silver, and were awarded a very high bronze standard. The group should be very proud of how they played that afternoon, as there were some of the greatest musical moments of the trip experienced that day.
The next day, our percussion ensemble performed a very late spot on the National Arts Centre's stage. The energy and musicianship shown from this group was nothing short of mind-blowing, and these musicians found a rhythm and a stride that unarguably led to one of their greatest performances to date. The adjudicators responded, awarding this group the highest recognition they have available, and one that is only reserved for the best around: gold.
Outside of the competition, there were performances by our White Jazz combo as well. This combo was given the honour of performing at a classy dinner for hundreds of Musicfest participants. The group played a lot of crowd favourites, and they responded by riotous applause and appreciation for our group. A huge congratulations to those students for their courage and energy for their performance that night. 
Also impressive was to experience the National Concert Band, a group that our very own Carly Schroeder was invited to play with. Carly was one of a very select few students from all across Canada who were invited to play with this prestigious group of young musicians. Our students stayed to witness Carly's performance with this group, and we were all very impressed with their technical and musical abilities as a group. Congratulations Carly for achieving this great honour, and although we missed having you as a part of our trip, we were all so proud to see you as a part of the NCB.
It wasn't all business on this trip out for our music students, though. We saw many amazing concerts, saw some amazing historical sites like the Diefenbunker, went on a dance cruise of the Ottawa river and much more.
Despite all of the amazing musical experiences, the fun, the laughs and the more serious moments, what was most impressive was the teamwork and togetherness that our group so amazingly displays at all times. You are all a part of the biggest team at our school, and you acted that way at all times. The spirit, maturity and responsibility of the South Huron music students was by far the most impressive aspect of all that we did together, and I applaud and thank you all for being the great people that you are. You represented our community so exceptionally well, and showed the whole country what SHDHS is all about.
Photos courtesy Karen Brown
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