The 2016 NAfME All-National Honor Ensembles Choir performs at the Gaylord Resort and Convention Center in Dallas, TX.

During the 2016-17 school year, along with other talented music students across the United States and overseas in military base schools, William McArthur and Ernest Collins from North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics practiced with dedication to gain a chair in their local, district, and state music honor ensembles.

And now Collins and McArthur will join the “best of the best” for the National Association for Music Education’s (NAfME) 2017 All-National Honor Ensembles November 26-29, 2017, at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort at Walt Disney World in Orlando, FL. The Jazz Band and Choir concerts take place 7:30-9:00pm, November 28, and the Concert Band and Symphony Orchestra concerts begin at 10:00am, November 29, in the ballrooms at Disney Coronado Springs Resort. The concerts are free and open to the public. Tickets are not required.

The 2016 NAfME All-National Honor Ensembles Choir performs at the Gaylord Resort and Convention Center in Dallas, TX.

William “Jack” McArthur is a senior percussion student at NCSSM. McArthur is the son of Christopher and Jennifer McArthur of Charlotte, NC.  Ernest “EJ” Collins is a junior tenor saxophone student at NCSSM. Collins is the son of Ernest and Monique Collins of Indian Trail, NC.  Both musicians have performed with the North Carolina All-State Band and various regional honor bands across the state.

Phillip Riggs, instructor of music and band director at NCSSM and 2016 GRAMMY Music Educator of the Year, “This is the highest honor a high school musician can attain. It is the equivalent of football players selected for the Army All-American Bowl and the McDonald’s All-American Basketball game. These students have worked countless hours to attain the skills and musicianship needed to perform at this level.”

The All-National Honor Ensembles performers represent collaboration and creativity in its highest musical form. The All-National Honor Ensembles consist of a concert band, symphony orchestra, mixed choir, and jazz ensemble. Students were chosen through an audition process. The concert band and symphony orchestra will each have 155 and 152 instrumentalists respectively, the jazz ensemble 21 instrumentalists, and the mixed choir 281 vocalists. Eligible students have qualified for their state-level honor ensemble program and competed against top students for a spot in these national honor ensembles.

Selected students will be rehearsing a challenging repertoire in preparation for performing under the baton of five of the most prominent conductors in the United States: Dr. Z. Randall Stroope (Mixed Choir); Dr. Margery Deutsch (Symphony Orchestra); Dr. T. André Feagin (Concert Band); and Todd Stoll with Lauren Sevian (Jazz Ensemble). All conductors have received top honors in their field and will spend several days rehearsing with students before the concert.

Names, schools and states, as well as music directors, of the 609 2017 All-National Honor Ensemble students will be available at this website late August.

National Association for Music Education, among the world’s largest arts education organizations, is the only association that addresses all aspects of music education. NAfME advocates at the local, state, and national levels; provides resources for teachers, parents, and administrators; hosts professional development events; and offers a variety of opportunities for students and teachers. The Association orchestrates success for millions of students nationwide and has supported music educators at all teaching levels for more than a century. With more than 60,000 members, the organization is the national voice of music education in the United States.

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• August 08, 2017
• music awards & honors