Area students selected to perform in Texas All-State Music Ensemble

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Katherine Smith and Rebekka Rudvidzo will perform with the Texas All-State SSC Mixed Choir in San Antonio, Saturday, February 12, 2022, at the Henry B. González Convention Center as part of the 2022 Texas Music Educators Association Clinic/Convention.

Kate and Bekka were chosen for this prestigious honor through a competitive process held this year across the state at District, Region, Pre-Area and Area levels. These students are members of the Pampa High School Chorale and Show Choir, under the direction of Brianna Montgomery and Tammy May, who are members of the Texas Music Educators Association, a 14,000+ member organization headquartered in Austin. Bekka is also a private student of Tammy May and Kate studies with both Tammy May and Paige Brown, of Amarillo. This is Kate Smith’s second time to be named as a member of a TMEA All-State organization. Kate is the daughter of Paul and Lisa Smith.  Bekka is the daughter of Job and Tanaka Ruzvidzo.

High school students selected to perform in the All-State concerts have competed through auditions to qualify at the state level. All-State is the highest honor a Texas music student can receive. 1,875 students are selected through a process that began with over 70,000 students from around the state vying for this honor to perform in one of 18 ensembles. Texas Music Educators Association sponsors the Texas All-State competition. This competitive process begins throughout the state in auditions hosted by 33 TMEA Regions. Individual musicians perform selected music for a panel of judges who rank each instrument or voice part. From this ranking, a select group of musicians advances from their Region to compete against musicians from other areas in eight TMEA Area competitions. The highest-ranking musicians judged at the TMEA Area competitions qualify to perform in a TMEA All-State music group. Only the top 2.6 percent of musicians who initially audition become All-State musicians.

These All-State students participate in three days of rehearsals directed by nationally recognized conductors during the TMEA Clinic/Convention. Their performances for thousands of attendees bring this extraordinary event to a close. For the All-State concert schedule and conductor information, go to the Performances section of www.tmea.org/convention.

Founded in 1921, Texas Music Educators Association is an association of over 14,000 members dedicated to promoting excellence in music education. Go to www.tmea.org/convention for more information.