Student Musicians Take the Spotlight as MENC Announces National Honor Ensembles for 2010
RESTON, VA (May 24, 2010) – MENC: The National Association for Music Education announces the members of the 2010 MENC National Honor Ensembles. 35 states are represented by the music students selected to participate in this year’s String Ensemble, Concert Band, and Mixed Choir. The 2010 ensembles will perform at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on June 27 at 4:00 p.m. during MENC’s Music Education Week event in Washington, DC. Discount tickets are available with Music Education Week registration, or full price concert tickets can be purchased for $30 at the Kennedy Center Box Office through the day of the event.
The complete list of students is available at 2010 MENC National Honor Ensembles.
MENC established its National Honor Ensembles in answer to member requests for recognition of music student performance beyond state and divisional levels. “We are very pleased to offer this unique performance opportunity to a very select group of our nation’s finest high school musicians,” said John Kuhner, MENC Eastern Division president and chair of the National Honor Ensembles Task Force. “Over the course of four days, these top flight musicians will rehearse with marvelous and inspirational conductors, leading up to an exceptional final performance to be held at one of our country’s most iconic performance venues, the Kennedy Center. The 2010 MENC National Honors Ensembles will most surely be a once in a lifetime musical experience for these incredible high school musicians!”
Conductors for the 2010 MENC National Honor Ensembles are
- Anthony Maiello, Director of Instrumental Studies at George Mason University, Fairfax, VA (concert band)
- Andre Thomas, Director of Choral Activities at Florida State University (mixed choir)
- Colonel (Ret.) Dennis M. Layendecker, former Commander and Music Director, US Air Force Band (string ensemble)
The auditions, open to high school sophomores and juniors, were reviewed by MENC members appointed by the MENC National Honor Ensemble Committee. The Committee oversaw the ranking of all applications and the selection of students to participate in each National Honor Ensemble.
For more information call 1-800-336-3768 or visit www.menc.org.
MENC: The National Association for Music Education, among the world’s largest arts education organizations, marked its centennial in 2007 as the only association that addresses all aspects of music education. Through membership of more than 75,000 active, retired, and pre-service music teachers, and with 60,000 honor students and supporters, MENC serves millions of students nationwide through activities at all teaching levels, from preschool to graduate school. MENC’s mission is to advance music education by encouraging the study and making of music by all. Since 1907, MENC has worked to ensure that every student has access to a well-balanced, comprehensive, and high-quality program of music instruction taught by qualified teachers. MENC’s activities and resources have been largely responsible for the establishment of music education as a profession, for the promotion and guidance of music study as an integral part of the school curriculum, and for the development of the National Standards for Arts Education. MENC is located at the National Center for Music Education in Reston, VA.
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