Students Participate in District Solo and Ensemble

Congratulations to all of the Middle School and Upper School students who participated in the Wisconsin School Music Association (WSMA) district solo and ensemble festivals. Of those who competed, many University School of Milwaukee students qualified to compete at the WSMA state solo and ensemble festival held the last Saturday of April and first Saturday of May. 

Each year over 32,000 students (in more than 11,000 events) qualify at district festivals to perform at the state solo and ensemble festival, making this event one of the largest of its kind in the nation. These students represent the student talent and high quality of music programs in Wisconsin’s schools. In order to qualify for the state level, students had to earn a “starred first” rating in Class A, which consists of the most difficult music, at the district level.

The below students earned a gold medal and scored high enough to qualify for the state festival. Click here for a full list of results, including gold, silver, and bronze medal winners. Many thanks to Andi Franklin, Middle School and Upper School choir teacher; Stephanie Hancock, director of bands; and Steve Johnson, orchestra director for their assistance and support! 

Middle School:

Brooklyn Becker ’30: Violin Solo 
Lucas Getter ’31: Cello Solo
Alex Grassl ’31: Class A Vocal Solo
Eli Mondano ’31: Class A Piano Solo; Music Theater Solo; and Class A Vocal Solo

Upper School:

Sloan ’28 and Brooklyn ’30 Becker (MS): Violin Duet
Sloan Becker ’28: Violin Solo
Chloe Chen ’27: Violin Solo and Violin Duet
Elina Cheng ’27: Violin Solo
Benji De Torre ’28: Violin Solo
Emery Domer ’28: Music Theater Solo and Class A Vocal Solo
PJ Heiny ’28: Music Theater Solo and Class A Vocal Solo
Yousef Gardezi ’28 and David Zarate ’29: Violin Duet
Sophie Irwin ’27: Class A Vocal Solo
Ayan Iyengar ’29: Class A Flute solo
Lesley Jimenez ’26: Violin Solo
Eleanor Kastrup ’29: Violin Solo
Summer Klingbail ’28: Music Theater Solo
Zoë Manning ’26: Vocal Solo
Ainsley Polston ’28: Music Theater Solo and Class A Vocal Solo
Maia Scherman ’27: Class A Vocal Solo and Music Theater Solo
Nathan Silber ’28: Class A Piano Solo
Raymond Yang ’27: Violin Solo and Piano Solo
David Zarate ’29: Violin Solo