February 26, 2004
Students jazzed about festival
West High jazz bands receive seven awards at CMU competition
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
Before many of their classmates are even awake, members of West High School's jazz bands are at school, practicing.
Members of the extra-curricular band kick off every Monday and Wednesday morning with 45 minutes of practice starting just before 7 a.m.
Their perseverance paid off recently as the West High School Green Jazz Band and the Green Jazz Combo received seven awards at the 31st Annual Central Michigan University Jazz Festival.
The festival was held on February 13 in Mount Pleasant and drew jazz bands from around the state.
Competing in the class A/AA category, the West High School Green Jazz band garnered two first runner up awards: in the outstanding big band category and the outstanding section category for the trumpet section. Guitarist Joe Krellwitz received a second runner up award in the outstanding soloist category. Members of the school's Gold Jazz Band also attended the festival but did not bring home any awards.
The school also sports a jazz combo, consisting of six players: guitar, bass, drums, tenor sax, trombone and trumpet. The Green Jazz Combo brought home four honorable mention awards for soloists Aaron DeGabriele on tenor sax, Joe Krellwitz on guitar, Dan Hunt on bass and Nick Pilarski on drums. The combo played a piece composed by local musician Jeff Haas as well as some jazz standards during their presentation.
"The combo is a good opportunity to do a lot of improvisation," said Krellwitz, a senior who also sings in the choir and plays percussion in the school's symphony band. "We took home more honorable mentions than any other school."
Greg Stein, a trombone player in both the Green Jazz Band and Jazz Combo, said the smaller group provides the most musical spontaneity.
"We take a standard jazz forum, 32 measures, then give it our own little twist," said Stein, a junior at the school, of the Green Jazz Combo.
In addition to praising her students' hard work and dedication, band director Pat Brumbaugh also points to West Junior High School's strong band program.
"One of the reasons that we're so successful is that they're getting such good training at the junior high level," Brumbaugh said.
She noted that the students choose most of their music and create their rehearsal schedule. They also study the music and work to perform pieces the same way that the original big bands would have performed them.
"It's a good group of kids, they have a good attitude and a good work ethic," Brumbaugh added. "We've gone to this competition before and done really well, we've been moving up each year and this has been the best so far."
Kyan Kiogima is a first-year member of the jazz band. The tenth grade student plays alto sax in the Green Jazz Band and enjoyed the jazz festival, which also featured concerts by other bands and music clinics.
"The competition was nerve wracking but it was fun at the same time," she said. "and is a fun extracurricular thing to do."
Stein noted that the band members had another motive for attending the jazz festival.
"Our main focus at Central Michigan University was to hear all the other bands and see what they are doing," he said.