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Fine Arts Assessments • Ticket Orders • Staff • Fine Arts Brochure • Virtual Tour • A Vision for Arts Education

FINE ARTS NEWS 

ORDER A DVD OF THE 2009 ALL SCHOOL MUSICAL, DISNEY'S BEAUTY & THE BEAST!

The district has purchased the recording rights for this year's all-school musical, Disney's Beauty & the Beast.  To order your copy, please click here and download the order form.  Please mail your order form along with payment to: 

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST - DVD ORDERS

c/o Mr. Jason Greenawalt, Musical Director

155 Cochran Road

Pittsburgh, PA 15228

UPCOMING EVENTS

**A full schedule of rehearsals, meetings and events for the Marching Band can be found at www.leboband.com and for the various percussion ensembles at www.mtlpercussion.com

CONGRATULATIONS!
 
2008-2009 Honors:

Several senior orchestra students received scholarships recently.  Eric Guroff, Daniel Radin, Catherine Schilling, and Alvin Zhu each received $350 for the 2009 Mt. Lebanon Strings Festival Scholarship.  And Catherine Schilling was awarded the PMEA (Pennsylvania Music Educators Association) District 1 Music Scholarship for $1,000.

 

The Mellon Middle School 8th Grade Music Ensembles (Band, Chorus and Orchestra) all participated in the High Notes Music Adjudication recently at Carnegie Mellon University.   The Chours and Orchestra both received a "Superior" rating and the Band received an "Excellent" rating.

 

The High School Concert Choir, Triple Trio and Men's Ensemble all earned Superior ratings at an adjudication festival held at Kinds Dominion, Virginia while on their recent trip to Washington, D.C.  In addition to the ensemble awards, Sam Viggiano (senior) was awarded an outstanding soloist award out of all the schools that were performing that day. 

 

Eight-eight Mt. Lebanon School District students were selected into Pennsylvania Music Education Association (PMEA) Honors Ensembles throughout the 2008-09 school year.  Most of these selections were through auditions.  The objectives of PMEA are to promote and support quality music education, learning and performance and to promote and support music education in schools and communities.   PMEA is affiliated with MENC, the National Association for Music Education.

High School Ensembles:

-Six students qualified for District 1 Honors Choir held in October 2008 at Upper St. Clair HS:  Meredith Andrews (soprano 1), Katie Butcher (soprano 1), Katie Palmieri (alto 2), Sam Viggiano (bass 1), Taylor Sweeney (bass 1), and Zeke Reed (bass 1).

-Five students qualified for District 1 Honors String Orchestra held in November 2008 at Fox Chapel HS: Amy Xie (violin), Alvin Zhu (viola), Grace Stokan (viola), Angela-Maureen Nagem (viola), and Alex Draus (viola).

-Five students qualified for District 1 Honors Band held at Carnegie Music Hall in Oakland in November 2008: Alyssa Howard-Tripp (clarinet), Melanie  (flute 2).Danver (clarinet), Tianli Yuan (flute), Kyle Harris (flute), and Teea Kokkonen (flute).

-Five students participated in District 1 West Band held in January at Hampton HS: Melanie Danver (bass clarinet), Alyssa Howard-Tripp (clarinet 3), Kim Minnotte (percussion), Kevin Schorr (euphonium), and Tianli Yuan (flute 2).

-Seven students participated in District 1 Senior High Orchestra held in February at North Allegheny Senior HS:  Ben Brodie (violin 1), Kyle Harris (flute 2), Jeremy Hois (oboe 2), Michael Lopato (violin 2), Angela-Maureen Nagem (viola), Tianli Yuan (flute 2), Teea Kokkoenen (flute 2).

-Four students qualified for Region 1 Band held in March at Ambridge HS: Melanie Danver (bass clarinet), Alyssa Howard-Tripp (clarinet), Kevin Schorr (euphonium)   and Tianli Yuan (flute).

-One student qualified for Western Region State Orchestra held in March at Erie McDowell HS: Tianli Yuan (flute).

-One student, Tianli Yuan (flute), qualified for All-State Band held in April at Valley Forge.  This is the highest level for student performance for the PMEA festivals.  The All-State Festival is held annually concurrently with the PMEA Annual Conference.

-One student, Catherine Schilling (viola), qualified for MENC All-East Orchestra held in March in Providence, Rhode Island.  All-East Festivals are held every other year concurrently with the MENC Eastern Division Conference.  Only sophomore and juniors who successfully auditioned into the All-State Ensemble the prior year are eligible to apply for the All-East Ensemble. 

 

Middle School Ensembles:

-Six students participated in Junior High District Orchestra held in January at Pine Richland HS.  Students from Jefferson MS were Phillip Clippinger (violin 2), Adam Sacks (cello), and Alex Trbovich (viola); students from Mellon MS were Megan Fitzgerald (violin 2) and Andrew Vogel (cello); and Owen Nicholas Brown (violin) from the HS all were selected.

-Two students participated in Junior High District West Band Festival held in March at Bethlehem Center HS:  Sarah George (cornet) from Mellon MS and Jessica Cohen (percussion) from Jefferson MS.

-Six students participated in Junior High District Chorus held at Marshall MS in the North Allegheny SD.  Students participating from Jefferson MS were Rosemary Baird (soprano 1), Arianna Light (alto 1), Robbie McKinney (tenor 1), and Philip Mashek (tenor 1).  And student participants from Mellon MS were Aaron Blum (tenor) and Elizabeth Harris (soprano 1).

 

Elementary Ensembles:

-Seven students participated in Elementary Sing Fest West at Eden Hall Upper Elementary School in the Pine Richland SD.  Students from Howe Elementary were Lindsey Barnhart (alto) and Rosina Anwar (alto).  Participating students from Jefferson MS were Nicholas France (alto) and Grace Manning (soprano).  And participating students from Mellon MS were Caity Bell (soprano), Laura Carskadden (soprano) and Alex Hartman (alto) .

-Eight students participated in Elementary Band Fest West held in May at Quaker Valley HS:  Emma Buerger (flute) from Markham Elementary, Sarah Smith (clarinet) from Hoover Elementary, Hannah Brem (clarinet) and Sadie Saxton (flute) from Foster Elementary, Julian Auer (baritone) and David Aul (trumpet) from Howe Elementary, and Andy Oppenheimer (trombone) and Joseph Swindal (trumpet) from Washington Elementary.

-There were two other music festivals our students participated in this year but were not sponsored by PMEA.  Eleven male students from both Jefferson MS and Mellon MS participated in Mucho Macho Music festival sponsored by the Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA).  From Jefferson MS participants were Nicholas France, Eddie Gray, Mark Klemencic, Philip Mashek, Robbie McKinney, and Fernando Melean.  From Mellon MS participants were Alex Hartman, Michael Peters and Kinsey Wick.

-Thirteen elementary strings students participated in the Elementary Honors Orchestra festival in April at Baldwin-Whitehall HS: Vivek Anil (violin 1), Elena Rose (violin 1), Jiawen Shu (violin 1), Herminoo Ramirez (violin 2), Shannon Conway (viola), Alexandra Hatton (viola), Cara Murphy (viola), Matthew Smith (viola), Laura Weston (viola), Tess Clippinger (cello), Julia Ford (cello), Marigrace Moses (cello), and Madelyn Rice (cello).

 

The Jefferson Middle School 8th Grade Music Ensembles (Band, Chorus and Orchestra) all participated in the High Notes Music Adjudication in May at Carnegie Mellon University and all three ensembles received the highest possible rating of a "Superior".  This is the 2nd consecutive year the ensembles have all received Superior ratings at the adjudications.

 

The Mt. Lebanon School District was recently listed on the roster of the "Best 100 Communities for Music Education" — a nationwide survey that identifies school districts committed to music education as a conduit for success in school and in life.  This is the second time Mt. Lebanon has been recognized on this list; the first was in 2007.

 

Senior High School Orchestra Director, Robert Vogel, was awarded the Orchestra Director of the Year award by the Pennsylvania and Deleware Strings Teachers Association (PADESTA).

 

The High School Concert Percussion Ensemble and the High School Orchestras were invited to perform for the 2009 Bands of America National Percussion Festival and Orchestra America Festival that were held in Indianapolis in March 2009.  This festival is considered one of the top national-level events for music ensembles.  Mt. Lebanon was the only school from Pennsylvania selected to perform in these presitgious events.  Held concurrently with this festival is the Honors Band of America ensemble; one Mt. Lebanon High School student, Kim Minnotte, was selected by audition into this ensemble.

 
2007-2008 Honors:

The Jefferson Middle School Music Ensembles (Band, Chorus and Orchestra) all participated in the High Notes Music Adjudication in May at Carnegie Mellon University and all three ensembles received the highest possible rating of a "Superior". 

 

Six students have qualified for the 2008 Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (PMEA) All-State Ensembles (Orchestra and Band).  Students auditioned at the Regional level festivals to qualify for the State level.  The students representing Mt. Lebanon in All-State Orchestra are Kirsten Ashbaugh, Lucy Bender, Thomas Dougherty, Erika Pinkerton and Catherine Schilling.  Maureen Conway is representing Mt. Lebanon in All-State Band. The concert will held Saturday, April 19th at 4:00 PM  at the Hershey Theatre in Hershey, Pennsylvania.  Tickets may be purchased at the concert site or are available in advance through the PMEA office until Wednesday, April 16th.  Visit www.pmea.net for more information about ordering tickets.

 

The 2008 Mt. Lebanon Percussion Keyboard Ensemble performed Saturday, February 23rd at Heinz Hall prior to the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra performance featuring world-renowned percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie.  The students performed various selections and one of the students talked with the audience about the various instruments that were used for the performances. The piece Dame Glennie performed was the world premiere of Triple Play, Concerto for Orchestra and Percussion by John Corigliano and conducted by Ms. Marin Alsop.

 

Alvin Zhu was selected to perform on the National Public Radio Program "From the Top" hosted by Christopher O'Reilly (a Pittsburgh native).  The program's goal is to promote the top high school musicians in the nation.  He recorded the interview and performance on September 29th (show #166) in Vermont and won a $10,000 scholarship to further his musical development.  The scholarship is sponsored by the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation.  Alvin's show will air on WQED on December 1 at 5:00 PM.  For more information please visit www.fromthetop.org.

 

The Mt. Lebanon Percussion Ensemble has been selected through audition to perform at the 2008 Pennsylvania Music Educator's Association (PMEA) State Convention to be held in Hershey, PA in April 2008.  This performance will mark the ensemble's third appearance at the PMEA State Convention with previous performances in 2002 and 2005.  The performance has been scheduled for Thursday, April 17 at 3:00 PM.

 

Thirteen students have been chosen by audition to participate in PMEA Honors Ensembles this fall.  Honors Orchestra members include: violins: Michael Lopato, XiXia Wang, and Amy Xie and viola: Catherine Schilling.  Honors Choir members include: alto 1: Emily Stack and alto 2: Shannon Davis and Dami Obaro.  Honors Band members include: flute: Rebecca Macoskey; clarinet: Maureen Conway, Alyssa Howard-Tripp, and Issac Pearlman; euphonium: Brian McDonough; and tuba: Scott Schorr.  Honors Choir concert will be presented Saturday, October 20th at Derry Area High School; Honors Orchestra concert will be Sunday, November 18th at Fox Chapel Area High School; and Honors Band concert will be Sunday, November 25th at Carnegie Music Hall, Oakland.

 

Two seniors, Rebecca Macoskey and Brian McDonough, have been chosen by audition to participate in the 2008 US Army All-American Marching Band.  They will perform in the US Army All-American Bowl January 5, 2008 in San Antonio, Texas.  The Bowl will be aired live on NBC from 12:00 - 3:00 CST.

 
2006-2007 Honors:

Seven students have qualified for Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (PMEA) All-State Ensembles (Chorus, Orchestra and Band).  Students auditioned at the Regional level festivals to qualify for the State level.  The students representing Mt. Lebanon are Senior Thespina Christulides, soprano; Sophomore Erika Pinkerton, violin 1; Sophomore Catherine Schilling, viola; Sophomore Kirsten Ashbaugh, cello; Junior Naomi Sarchet, bass; Junior Becca Macoskey, flute; and Junior Brian McDonough, euphonium.  The concert will held Saturday, April 21st at 11:30 AM and 4:30 PM at the Cumberland Valley High School (Hershey area).  Tickets may be purchased at the concert site or are available in advance through the PMEA office until Wednesday, April 13th.  Visit www.pmea.net for more information about ordering tickets.

The Mt. Lebanon School District was recently listed on the roster of the "Best 100 Communities for Music Education" — a nationwide survey that identifies school districts committed to music education as a conduit for success in school and in life.

Seven high school music students have been selected by audition to participate in four separate National Ensembles.  Katherine Chivers, Tom Daugherty and Shaun Rodgers were named to Honors Orchestra of America and Anne Witt was named to Honors Band of America; both ensembles will be held in conjuction with the 2007 Band & Orchestra National Festivals during March in Indianapolis, IN.  Kelsey Kordella was named to All-East Band and Adrienne Doctor and Ben Rothschild were named to All-East Orchestra; both ensembles are hosted by the National Music Educators Association (MENC) and will take place at the 2007 MENC Eastern Regional Conference in March in Hartford, CT.
2005-2006 Honors:

The High School Concert Percussion Ensemble has been invited to perform for the 2007 Bands of America National Percussion Festival to be held in Indianapolis in March 2007.  This festival is considered one of the top national-level events for concert percussion ensembles.  A large number of ensembles from across the country auditioned for the 2007 Festival Committee with the top eight groups receiving invitations to perform. 

Congratulations to High School Dance Teacher, CeCe Kapron, for being named one of seven Teachers of Excellence by the Teacher Excellence Center at their annual recognition program on April 27, 2006 at Carnegie Music Hall. As a finalist, Mrs. Kapron will receive a $2500 grant for the high school. Over 4,000 teachers were nominated from 75 school districts for this award. Congratulations to Mrs. Kapron for this wonderful recognition of her work.

Congratulations to the High School Concert Percussion Ensemble on an exceptional performance at the 2006 National Music Educator Association Conference (MENC) in Salt Lake City April 19 – 22nd.  The students demonstrated they are among the top musical ensembles in the country.  The invited ensembles submitted audition tapes to their state music educators association (PMEA) who then recommended ensembles to the national selection committee; only one percussion ensemble is selected for this honor.  Congratulations to directors Mr. Richard Minnotte, Mr. Thomas Earley, Mr. Subha Das and to all the students who performed.

The High School Chamber String Orchestra, String Orchestra and Symphony Orchestra recently returned from the 2006 Orchestra America National Festival where all three ensembles received accolades from internationally renowned music educators, professional musicians and conductors.  They were described as one of the top orchestras in the country.  Only a maximum of eight ensembles are chosen by audition for this honor.  This year only six ensembles were chosen, and Mt. Lebanon comprised half: the Mt. Lebanon HS Chamber Orchestra; the Mt. Lebanon HS String Orchestra; the Mt. Lebanon HS Symphony Orchestra; Mission Viejo HS Chamber Orchestra from Trabuco, California; Alan C. Pope HS Chamber Orchestra from Marietta, Georgia and Libertyville HS Orchestra from Libertyville, Illinois.

The High School Percussion Ensemble has been selected as one of only three in the country to represent Malletech Instruments as a Malletech Artist Ensemble.  Most of these artist slots are reserved for the most elite professional players and teachers; however Mt. Lebanon's ensemble has been recognized as one of a few select high school performing groups in the country to receive this honor.  Congratulations!!

 

 
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