Two Pretty Prairie Middle School students have been nominated and chosen to participate in the South Central Kansas Music Educators Association (SCKMEA) Middle School District Honor Band. The students selected are seventh graders Sommerleigh Mizell and Michael Ramirez. Mizell is a percussionist and Ramirez plays the tuba.
Pretty Prairie Band Director Trae Gehring said that students are nominated every year to participate in an all district honor band.
“I am very honored that two of my students were chosen to represent Pretty Prairie,” Gehring said.
Pretty Prairie is a part of the South Central District. Mizell and Ramirez will participate with students from all classes, some as large as schools from Wichita. Mrs. Marie Watkins will be the student's clinician. Watkins has taught band for the past 35 years in Colorado.
Selection criteria for the honor band includes receiving a rating of 1 at contest or whether a student takes personal lessons. Mizell had to turn in an audition tape on at least two types of percussion instruments. Her options were snare, timpani and mallets.
A concert will take place in the afternoon at Goddard on Saturday, Nov. 9. Everyone is welcome to attend.
More information and a full roster of those selected is available at sckmea.org.