The Mighty Hornet Band attended UIL Solo and Ensemble in Gilmer on February 2nd. The band sent four class one ensembles and multiple soloists on the trip. Class one ensembles are at a higher difficulty than others, so they had the opportunity to advance to state.

“We had to practice quite a bit for our ensemble, it required a lot of hard work, time and dedication for achieve the results we were looking towards,” Sophomore Band Member Landon Kahler said. “I expected us to get a 1, with the combined efforts of the members of our ensemble working together to achieve our goal.”

Three out of the four ensembles managed to score a division 1, the best possible score which allowed them to become state-bound. The band sent two brass quintets, a sax quartet, and a flute trio. Out of that group, the brass quintets and sax quartets are the only ones now state-bound. All those who qualified will attend State Solo and Ensemble on May 27th in Pflugerville.

“It felt good to compete music wise to help make me a better musician,” Sophomore Band Member Callie Jones said. was extremely proud and confident in my performance”

Along with the four ensembles, the band also sent eleven soloists. These students worked hard on both their ensembles as well as solos to compete. Eight of the eleven soloists scored division 1 on their solos, and the other three scored division two.