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Last updated on Wednesday, February 14, 2018
(INDIANAPOLIS) - Outstanding music ensembles and student musicians from across the country will gather in Indianapolis for the 27th Annual Music for All National Festival, presented by Yamaha, on March 15-17, to present concerts and participate in music education workshops at top venues throughout Indianapolis.
This year marks the premiere of the National Choir Festival as part of the Music for All National Festival, with 12 exceptional choirs from across the country participating. With the debut of choral performances, the Festival now encompasses all of the major ensembles of a traditional school music program.
The 2018 Music for All National Festival will feature more than 70 high school and middle school ensembles. Indianapolis' own New World Youth Symphony Orchestra will also perform. The Festival is comprised of the National Concert Band Festival, Orchestra America National Festival, Sandy Feldstein National Percussion Festival, Chamber Music National Festival, and the inaugural National Choir Festival, as well as three national Honor Ensembles: the Honor Band of America, the Honor Jazz Band of America, and the Honor Orchestra of America.
Saturday afternoon will feature a special mass choir concert with all of the Festival singers performing as the Music for All National Choir under the direction of Music for All Artistic Choral Director, Henry Leck, and Guest Conductor, Rollo Dilworth. The National Mass Treble and Mixed Choirs, as well as the Ball State University Orchestra will perform alongside them. This concert is at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 17, in Hilbert Circle Theatre. Admission is free, general admission seating.
High school and middle school ensembles were selected to perform at the Festival by recorded audition. Concerts will take place at Clowes Memorial Hall, Howard L. Schrott Center for the Arts at Butler University, Indiana Historical Society, Hilbert Circle Theatre, Warren Performing Arts Center, and St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church. Renowned music educators will evaluate the selected ensembles' performances in addition to their participation in professional master classes and special networking events. Invited concert bands, orchestras, choirs, percussion ensembles, and honor ensemble members participating in the 2018 Festival come from 32 states including: Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin.
The Festival week kicks off with the Indianapolis School Music Festival on Wednesday, March 14, hosted by Broad Ripple High School. Music for All is committed to school music in its hometown of Indianapolis and provides evaluators, clinicians, and support for this Festival for bands, choirs, and orchestra from Indianapolis Public Schools.
In its 27th year, the Festival continues to expand and thrive as an annual program of Music for All, one of the nation's largest and most influential organizations in support of music education. "The non-competitive atmosphere of the festival provides a place for growth, cooperative encouragement, and mutual respect," says Debbie Laferty Asbill, Vice President of Marketing and Communications at Music for All. "The ensembles are free to stretch themselves, reach for new heights, and strive for innovation, growth, and excellence. The Music for All National Festival is a key pillar of how we advocate for music education in schools by shining a national spotlight on the levels of excellence being achieved by young musicians."
Festival Honor Ensembles
Three honor ensembles bring student musicians from different schools across the nation, selected by audition to rehearse and perform together.
The Honor Orchestra of America and Jazz Band of America will perform a shared concert at 8 p.m. Friday, March 16, in Clowes Memorial Hall. Larry J. Livingston, Chairman of the Conducting Department of the Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California, will conduct the Honor Orchestra of America. The Jazz Band of America will be directed by Jeff Rupert, Director of Jazz Studies at the University of Central Florida, with guest artist Sean Jones on trumpet and Vandoren Emerging Artist jazz winner David Milazzo on saxophone. Tickets for the Jazz Band of America and Honor Orchestra of America concert are $15 and can be ordered in advance at cloweshall.org, musicforall.org, or Ticketmaster.com.
The Honor Orchestra of America will also perform at 8 p.m. Saturday, March 17, in the Howard L. Schrott Center for the Arts at Butler University. Tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for students, senior citizens, and groups of 10 or more. They can be ordered in advance at cloweshall.org, musicforall.org, Ticketmaster.com, or purchased at the Clowes Hall ticket office.
The Honor Band of America will perform at 8 p.m. Saturday, March 17, at Clowes Memorial Hall, conducted by Dr. Scott Weiss, Director of Bands at the University of South Carolina. Tickets range from $22 to $35 for the Honor Band of America Concert at Clowes Memorial Hall, and are available at cloweshall.org, musicforall.org, and Ticketmaster.com.
Chamber Music Concert
The Music for All Chamber Music Concert will take place at 8 p.m. Saturday, March 17 at the Christel De Haan Fine Arts Center at the University of Indianapolis. The concert will feature the classical winners Ryan Toher, clarinet, and Julian Velasco, saxophone, from the Vandoren Emerging Artists Competition and the Yamaha Performing Artist, Rex Richardson. The Vandoren Emerging Artists Competition awards classical and jazz clarinetists and saxophonists between the ages of 18 to 23. The winners have the opportunity to perform at the National Festival and travel to Paris to meet representatives from Vandoren. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased directly at uindyarts.universitytickets.com.
National Concert Band Festival Tickets
Tickets for the invited concert band performances of the National Concert Band Festival at Clowes Hall, Thursday through Saturday, March 15-17, range from $6 to $20 and can be ordered in advance at cloweshall.org, musicforall.org, Ticketmaster.com, or can be purchased at the Clowes Hall ticket office.
Orchestra America National Festival
Tickets for the individual orchestra performances of the Orchestra America National Festival at Hilbert Circle Theatre, Thursday evening, March 15 and Saturday morning, March 17 are $15 for both sessions, and can be ordered in advanced or purchased at the ticket office or on their website www.indianapolissymphony.org.
Free Admission Events
Music for All is offering free admission to several concert events within the Festival. The free admission events include:
National Concert Band Festival - Invited Ensembles
Thursday, March 15
6:00 p.m. - 9:15 p.m.
Howard L. Schrott Center for the Arts, Butler University
Friday, March 16
8:30 a.m. - 5:45 p.m.
Howard L. Schrott Center for the Arts, Butler University
Sandy Feldstein National Percussion Festival
Thursday, March 15
4:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Warren Performing Arts Center
Friday, March 16
8:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Warren Performing Arts Center
National Choir Festival
Friday, March 16
8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church
Chamber Music National Festival
Friday, March 16
8:30 a.m. - 3:45 p.m.
Indiana Historical Society
Middle School National Music Festival
Saturday, March 17
8:00 a.m. - 1:15 p.m.
Howard L. Schrott Center for the Arts, Butler University
A full schedule of Festival ensemble concerts, times and locations is available at www.musicforall.org/festival, or for more information call 800-848-BAND (2263).
About Music for All
Since 1975, Music for All, through its Music for All, Bands of America, Orchestra America, and choir programs, has been a destination and set the standard for scholastic music ensemble performance and music education advocacy. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational organization, Music for All's mission is to create, provide, and expand positively life-changing experiences through music for all. Music for All's vision is to be a catalyst to ensure that every child in America has access and opportunity for active music making in his or her scholastic environment. Music for All serves more than 500,000 participants annually with programs that include 30+ annual events, including the Bands of America Grand National Championships and Regional Championships for marching bands, the Music for All Summer Symposium camp for students and teachers, the Music for All National Festival and Affiliate Regional Music Festivals for concert bands, orchestras, choirs, chamber ensembles, percussion ensembles, and the national honor concert band, jazz band, orchestra, and the Bands of America Honor Band that will march for the fifth time in the Rose Parade® in 2021.
Sponsor Information
Music for All efforts are supported through sponsorships, including current partnerships with National Presenting Sponsor: Yamaha Corporation of America; Official Uniform Sponsor: Fred J. Miller, Inc.; Official Student Travel Partner: Music Travel Consultants; Official Performance Equipment Sponsor: Wenger Corporation; Corporate Sponsors: Ball State University, United States Marine Drum & Bugle Corps, Zildjian and Vic Firth Company, Visit Indy and the City of Indianapolis, and Strategic Advocacy Partner: NAMM; Associate Sponsors: Delivra, Vandoren, Director's Showcase International, REMO, Tresona Multimedia, and Woodwind & Brasswind. Music for All is also supported by the Indiana Arts Commission, Arts Council of Indianapolis, the Ball Brothers Foundation, Lilly Endowment Inc, George and Frances Ball Foundation, Allen Whitehill Clowes Charitable Foundation, Nicholas H. Noyes, Jr. Memorial Foundation, Inc., and Arthur Jordan Foundation.
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