Over the weekend, my friends JSG and EJG posted that their daughter was a finalist in the Concert on the Green music contest in Clay County. I had never heard of it, so what does anyone do these days when you don't know? I googled it! This is what I learned:
Concert on the Green has been around for 21 years. (Ok, my head must have been in Duval County sand.) Each year, they host the Young Artitst Scholarship Competitions for music and art students to support the arts in Clay County. For the art competition, it's a Poster Contest to design that year's poster for Concert On The Green. This year, an 11th grader from Fleming Island High won with her "Musical Stairs" poster (pictured below). (I'm guessing the art winner also receives a monetary scholorship like the music side does, though I didn't find anything backing that up.)
Concert on the Green has been around for 21 years. (Ok, my head must have been in Duval County sand.) Each year, they host the Young Artitst Scholarship Competitions for music and art students to support the arts in Clay County. For the art competition, it's a Poster Contest to design that year's poster for Concert On The Green. This year, an 11th grader from Fleming Island High won with her "Musical Stairs" poster (pictured below). (I'm guessing the art winner also receives a monetary scholorship like the music side does, though I didn't find anything backing that up.)
The music competition was on Saturday where they chose 6 finalists in the Sr. Division and 4 finalists in the Jr. Division. My young friend, IMG, a 9th grader at Douglas Anderson, was one of the Jr. Finalists. Yea!!! Since I had no plans, I drove over to watch the competition, located in a church in Fleming Island. My friend, CC, explained that the first round is just the student and the judges. Part of the final round is to not only hear the pieces of music again, but also see how they student performs in front of an audience. (I did have little flashbacks to my high school competitions.)
The Jr. Division was won by an 8th grade violinist. I was impressed with her, especially only being in 8th grade. The Sr. Division winners (one vocalist and one instrumentalist (on clarinet)) both were incredible. Both are 11th graders at Fleming Island High. Christine, the vocalist, had amazing clarity and control; she studies with my friend CC, so I'm not too surprised.
On May 30th, the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra will be doing an outdoor concert at St. Johns River College on the lawn in front of the Thrasher-Home Center for the Arts. The Jr. Division winner will have the opportunity to perform during the pre-concert entertainment. Get this, though - the two Sr. Division winners get to perform with the Symphony. How freaking cool is that?!?!?!!!
Back to my young friend, IMG. I wasn't surprised that she could sing, after all both her folks are fabulous performers and she's attending DA. What I was pleasantly surprised about is the maturity of her voice. At only 15 years old, her voice was more full than I expected, and her range and control are beyond her years. I could tell she was nervous, but she pushed through that and gave the audience a solid performance. I really look forward to hearing her again. (Hugs, kiddo.)
If I can find someone to go with me, I fully intending on going to the concert on the 30th. $15 to hear the Symphony is a deal you can't beat, and the night helps keep music and art in our schools. I'm all for that!
TTFN!
Concert on the Green's website:
Article on Jacksonville.com
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