Saturday, January 28, Sparkman band students tried out for the District 1 Honor Band at Huntsville High School. If they make it in, they have a chance to get into one of the All State bands. The all state bands are one of the most important bands you can join. They are great for college applications.

There are three all state bands; the Red, the White and the Blue. Some people don’t know what honor band is, so I asked the band directors. They told me all the details about what you have to know for auditions.

“It is a band composed of students in our district which is different from counties,” said Katie Manker, assistant director of bands at Sparkman High School. “It’s the highest level of students in our district.” 

The requirements for the auditions can be difficult to pass.Some people can’t even get past the first round. I asked them what they were looking for and who was judging it. 

“You have to play two etudes, a technical and a lyrical,” stated Brenton Nash, director of bands at SHS. “You also have to play a minimum of 7 scales, but you can choose between 12 majors and 2 minors.”

Those can already be pretty difficult, but that’s not even the last part of the audition. You have to sight read. Sight reading is when you read the notes while playing.

“You have one minute to sight read a piece that you’ve never seen before and play it,” said Nash. “Then while you’re playing you’re being evaluated by a group of judges who can only hear you to prevent any favoritism from going on.”

It can be one of the best things if you want a band centered college scholarship. Some people might not think it’s useful, but it can give you a ton of new experiences. Manker says, “It’s always nice to be under the baton of a different conductor.”