Every year, the Missouri State High School Activities Association hosts a competition for musicians to demonstrate their prowess. It is for soloists and small ensembles, which is why it is called “solo and ensemble.”
“It’s an opportunity for musicians to perform music as a soloist with a piano or in a small group,” orchestra teacher Daniel Mieloch said. “For many, this is a chance to perform music they have been working on during private lessons or simply a way to play the melody all of the time and be in the limelight.”
There are two parts to the event. The first is the district competition, which happens on the first Saturday of March. Rankings for the districts are as follows, in order of lowest to highest: developing, satisfactory, outstanding and exemplary. If the soloist or group receives an exemplary rating, they are qualified to move onto the state level occurring on the first weekend of May, with rankings being bronze, silver and gold, according to mshsaa.org.
“[The best part is] watching [students’] reactions to good news that their rating is high enough to advance to state performance,” choir teacher Patrick Dell said.
Musicians are not allowed to select a random composition, rather they have to pick from an official list of approved pieces. In order to allow for adequate judging, the pieces being played need to have at least three minutes of playing time. If a piece’s time is insufficient, then the performer needs to play a second piece along with the first. Sometimes the musician’s instructor will select the piece for them.
“Me and my private lessons teacher were practicing that piece already, so I decided to just follow through and do it for solo and ensemble,” violinist Alayna Barton said.
This year, there was a sum of 72 soloists and ensembleists from West registered for districts, with 30 receiving exemplary. Of them, there were 17 golds earned at state, according to mshsaa.org.
“I thought it was really cool,” percussionist Miles Allen said. “I’m glad to have that experience.”
The event itself allows students to experience competing, and for some students, it is their first time with something more serious. It helps with getting ready for later in life.
“It’s definitely good to get out into the world and try and create your own opportunities because in the music world, you never know who’s watching,” choir member Aubrey Bernstein said. “It can be a small community, and so that could mean going to state and then somebody recognizing me and being like, ‘Hey, we want you.’ It’s just getting out there really helps, and it also helps me prepare for college auditions and stuff like that.”
