Director's Report: Michael Boitz
January 2009
Happy New Year and Greetings from the SHS Instrumental Music Department. Here’s to great friends, great music, and meaningful education for Saratoga’s youth in 2009!
Saratoga is a remarkably supportive community to all of our students. Everyone involved with SMB and Music Education in our schools is a partner. If you are a member of SMB, you are contributing in cultivating the very best experiences for our students. Your membership and participation serve as a voice of support to the students in our programs…and they hear you loudly and appreciate all SMB and the Saratoga Community do! Thank You.
Our year has started off with a bang as we prepare for all of the excitement associated with our second semester. I hope you will visit the SMB website and make sure the second semester concerts and events are on your calendar. Concert Bands, Orchestras, Jazz Bands, Winter Guard and Winter Percussion are all busy during the second half of the year and students in these groups are preparing diligently to perform and present the very best to our community in the coming months. It’s always rewarding for students to see a hall full of smiling faces, and in turn I know you will love what our students have to share with you. I hope to see you often during the second semester of the year!
2009 is already a record-breaking year for the SHS Music Department. As a member of SMB, I hope you will share in the joy of the incredible musical accomplishments listed below:
Congratulations Zachary Jacobs, “Presidents Own” Concert Competition Finalist
Zachary Jacobs (11) sent in an audition CD and has made the finalist round in the elite “Presidents Own” Marine Band Concerto Competition. Zachary is among just 7 other high school students across the country flying to Washington DC in February to perform and compete in this finalist round. This marks the first time ever SHS has had a student in this competition, and only the second time a student from our state has made it. We’ll all be pulling for Zachary as he visits Washington DC in February!
Congratulations Aaron Garg, Santa Clara County Soloist Winner
Aaron Garg (12) is among the top musicians in CA, and he proved this again recently in winning our county concerto competition. Aaron will perform his solo piece, accompanied by the students of the county honor band, on Sunday, January 18th 2:00 p.m. at the Henry M. Gunn HS Spangenburg Auditorium. Please come and support Aaron and all 31 SHS students in the honor band at this concert!
Congratulations Santa Clara County Honor Band Members
The students listed below will join students from 26 respective high schools across Santa Clara County to perform in the 57th annual SCCBDA Honor Band on Sunday, January 18th 2:00 p.m. at the Henry M. Gunn HS Spangenburg Auditorium. For the 9th year in a row, SHS has the largest representation in the county in this honor band. Please congratulate these students:
Aaron Garg (12), Tiffany Lin (12), Steven Hong (11), Dana Burley (11), Jane Shin (10), Matthew Leung (12), Elizabeth Chin (12), Julia Glausi (12), Christina Robert (12), Sandra Sotiriadis (12), Priyanka Hardikar (11), Alana Rossip (10), Taylor Chin (11), Kyle Fukui (10), Guillaume Bellegarda (11), Tejas Mulye (12), Austin Shieh (12), Victor Chan (11), Tony Glausi (9), Keita Hasegawa (12), Andrew Buchanan (12), Dhruv Seshadri (11), Zachary Jacobs (11), Mitchell Turpin (11), Nick Renda (10), Christopher Jones (9), Chris Rea (12), Steven Sung (11), Grant Fukui (12), Terran Chao (11), Vincent Huang (11).
Congratulations California All-State Band Members
The competition for a spot in the elite California All-State Band is astonishing. SHS is honored to have 16 students represent our community in 2009. Congratulations to the students below for this prestigious honor. These students will represent SHS at the annual CBDA All-State Conference February 19-22, with the weekend culminating with a concert performance at the Sorroyan Theater in Fresno at 1:00 p.m. on February 22nd.
Aaron Garg (12), Tiffany Lin (12), Tajas Mulye (12), Jane Shin (10), Kyle Fukui (10), Sandra Sotiriadis (12), Elizabeth Chin (12), Anstin Shieh (12), Jason Shiuan (10), Tony Glausi (9), Chris Rea (12) Matthew Leung (12), Julia Glausi (12), Victor Chan (11), Zachary Jacobs (11), Terran Chao (11).
Congratulations California All-State Orchestra Members
Earning a spot in the All-State Orchestra in California is remarkable, as there is no limit (unlike all-state band) to the number of audition CD’s each high school can submit. This results in countless audition CD’s, particularly for string players. Congratulations to the students below for this well-deserved honor. These students will represent SHS at the annual CMEA Conference, this year to be held in Southern California, the weekend of March 12-14, culminating in a concert performance the afternoon of March 14th.
Cindy Chang (11), Annie Lee (11), Tammy Lian (11), Annie Ting (11), Vivian Tsai (9), Thomas Wang (12), Carolyn Chen (11), Daniel Hsu (9), Anthony Sutardja (10), William Tang (10), David Wang (10), Kevin Hsu (11), Claire Chu (11), Walter Hsiang (10), Felicia Tang (12) and Grant Fukui (12).
Once again, Thank You to SMB and the unyielding support Saratoga gives to our youth. It’s a true honor and consistently energizing to be a part of a community that values the education of our youth.
Michael Boitz, VPA Chair
Saratoga High School
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