San Jose, April 28, 2022: The Moreland School District is thrilled to announce that the Latimer Middle School Symphonic Orchestra and Easterbrook Discovery Middle School (EDMS) Symphonic Band, Symphonic Strings, and Jazz Band each placed first place in their categories at the Music in the Parks Festival on Saturday, April 23, 2022. In addition, EDMS Symphonic Strings was chosen as the best overall middle school string group of the day, scoring higher than all other orchestras.
These two Moreland schools competed against 16 schools throughout the region at Milpitas High School, host of the festival. Led by Easterbrook Discovery Middle School Music Teachers Rebecca Ayer and Easterbrook Discovery Middle School and Latimer Middle School teacher Nils Johnson, EDMS and Latimer music students received the following ratings at an awards ceremony held at California’s Great America:
- EDMS Jazz Band: 1st Place with a Rating of Excellent
- EDMS Symphonic Band: 1st Place with a Rating of Superior
- EDMS Symphonic Strings: 1st Place with a Rating of Superior
- Latimer Symphonic Orchestra: 1st Place with a Rating of Excellent
Music in the Park hosts a series of weekend festivals that bring together school groups from around the Bay Area at a grand performance, followed by an awards ceremony.
Join us this month for upcoming Spring Concerts from Moreland’s award-winning music programs, including our 4th and 5th grade honors orchestra and band (see individual sites for times):
- Anderson 4th/5th grade Spring Concert: May 17, 2022
- Baker 4th/5th grade Spring Concert: May 12, 2022
- Country Lane 4th/5th grade Spring Concert: May 13, 2022
- Easterbrook Discovery School 4th/5th grade Spring Concert: May 10 & May 17, 2022
- Easterbrook Discovery Middle School Spring Concert: Mat 16, 2022
- Latimer School 4th/5th grade and middle school Spring Concert: May 9, 2022
- Payne Elementary School 4th/5th grade Spring Concert: May 13, 2022
- Moreland Middle School Spring Concert: Mat 26, 2022
STUDENT MUSICIAN: INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENTS
On Monday, April 11, 2022, Moreland Middle School 8th grader, Saarthak Shankavaram was announced as the 1st place winner of the San Jose Symphony Concerto Competition. A violinist since he was 10 years old, Saarthak played the first two movements of Mozart’s 5th violin concerto by memory, accompanied by pianist David Stein. As the first place winner, Saarthak will play with the San Jose Youth Symphony Concert Orchestra during the 2022/2023 season. Saarthak is a member of the Moreland Middle School Orchestra.
In addition, Easterbrook Discovery Middle School 7th grade student Shogo Huang recently performed at the American Protege Winners Recital on April 15, 2022 at Carnegie Hall in New York. Shogo qualified for this performance by being one of 31 performers to win the American Protege competition in 2020. Shogo is a member of the Easterbrook Discovery Middle School Symphonic String Orchestra, as well as the San Jose Chamber Orchestra.
Moreland School District is proud to be home to budding and thriving student musicians. With the leadership of Music in Moreland (MiM), a subcommittee of the Moreland Education Foundation (MEF), parents and community members dedicate their time to sustaining Moreland’s award-winning music program. For more information on Music in Moreland, visit www.mefhome.org/music-in-moreland/