District Jazz Festival brings best scholastic jazz musicians to area

FOUNTAIN SPRINGS – Two local schools teamed up to host some of the best scholastic jazz musicians in east-central Pennsylvania this weekend.

Though the PMEA District 10 Jazz Band festival took place at North Schuylkill High School in Fountain Springs, it was a joint affair between North Schuylkill and Shenandoah Valley.

The two districts’ music programs are headed by brothers Jacob and John Shoener.

It took place Jan. 30 and 31 with a concert at 7pm. Randy Kapralick and Rick Hirsch served as guest conductors.

The festival featured a jazz orchestra and a big band portion. Musicians were selected through auditions from schools in Schuylkill, Carbon, Berks, Lehigh Northampton, and Pike counties.

Locals in the orchestra included North Schuylkill’s Henry Evans on trumpet and Addison Lesher on Bass.

In the Big Band, Shenandoah Valley’s Toby Gudinas took part on alto sax along with Mahanoy Area’s Ben Bux and North Schuylkill’s Gregory Stump on Trombone.

The article District Jazz Festival brings best scholastic jazz musicians to area first appeared on The Shenandoah Sentinel.