Bridgewater-Raritan High School’s band students recently auditioned and 15 were accepted for the prestigious NJMEA All-State Bands.
The auditions were held at J.P. Stevens High School in Edison and provided opportunities for students to participate in a statewide band with students across the state.
The New Jersey Music Educators Association (NJMEA) is an organization committed to the advancement of music instruction in New Jersey’s educational institutions at all levels that provide enrichment opportunities for practicing and retired teachers and prospective music educators, as well as sponsoring various festivals and all-state performing groups for K-12 students.
This is similar to the Central Jersey Music Educators Association (CJMEA), the Central Jersey regional ensembles for band, orchestra and choir. Region band members were especially encouraged to audition for All States.
In preparation for the auditions, students were expected to meet once or twice with their respective band directors for a mock audition to feel better prepared with the audition material.
The following Bridgewater students were accepted:
- Julian DiMaggio for percussion
- Iswer Prasad Harinarayan for percussion
- James Krempasky for euphonium
- Brian Castone for contrabass clarinet
- Saraansh Rawat for saxophone
- Ananth Raman for trumpet
- Fisayo Ogunsulire for trumpet
- Kevin Wang for trumpet
Dr. Tom Bourgault, one of the band directors at BRHS, commented on the students’ acceptance.
“We are proud of our region and All-State band representation from our school every year. It feels so good to see our students work hard and achieve their goals,” Dr. Bourgault said. “Bridgewater’s music program is one of the biggest and best in the state, and it shows with the incredible talent we see every day.”
The students who qualified began attending rehearsals starting with a reading rehearsal at BRHS on February 5. They will also host two concerts, one on February 23 in Atlantic City and the other on February 24 at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark.
