Category Archives: Fine arts

Waltrip Ram Band Invited to Perform at Inaugural Celebration

The Waltrip High School band has been invited to participate in the Inaugural Celebration in Washington, D.C.

The award-winning band has been invited to perform at several venues at the Inaugural Celebration, including the World War II Memorial and the Post Office Pavilion. The band also is a candidate to be the representing band program for the State of Texas in the Inaugural Parade. 

Band Director Jesse Espinosa said after more than 30 years of success and building a great reputation under recently retired band director, Charles Stevens, the Waltrip Ram Band is still achieving excellence in educating young student musicians.

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Johnston MS Orchestra Recognized at State and National Levels

Johnston Middle School’s Sinfonia Orchestra recently earned recognition at both the state and national levels.

The group was ranked as one of the top five most-outstanding middle school orchestras for the third consecutive year by the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA), through the TMEA’s Honor Orchestra program. This annual competition seeks “to recognize and honor quality musicianship in the performance of advanced literature at the highest level” since 1960.

On the national front, Johnston was also named one of the Foundation for Music Education’s commended Mark of Excellence winners in the “string orchestra” category of the National Orchestra Honors project (Lanier MS is the other honoree from HISD; it won in the “full orchestra” category).

The Johnston Sinfonia Orchestra is directed by José Rocha.

Sharpstown High School Band Performs with the Houston Symphony

The Sharpstown High School Band will receive the rare honor today of performing with members of the Houston Symphony.
The performance takes place at 2p.m. at Sharpstown High School (7504 Bissonnet). The Sharpstown students will perform one of the musical arrangements from the Symphony’s rendition of Gustav Holst’s “The Planets – An HD Odyssey”.

“The Planets” is one of the Symphony’s most celebrated pieces. It tells the story of NASA’s exploration of the solar-system while high-definition images of the planets are shown on a screen behind the orchestra.

Today’s performance is part of an ongoing partnership between the Houston Symphony and HISD. The Symphony is donating a DVD copy of its performance to each of the district’s 279 schools. Teachers will also receive the educational companion disc, which will provide interactive-cross curriculum lesson plans for all grade levels.
“We’re very excited that our band has been chosen to perform with the Houston Symphony. This is a tremendous honor for Sharpstown High which speaks volumes about the hard work of our teachers and students,” said Principal, Rob Gasparello.

HISD Board of Education Trustee Greg Meyers and Houston Symphony General Manager Steven Brosvik are scheduled to speak at today’s event.
“The Houston Symphony and the Houston Independent School District have had a rich and deep partnership and we are pleased to continue to grow these opportunities,” Brosvik said. “As music is needed to provide a complete education for our children, we hope this resource will provide a synergy for learning across the curriculum.”

The Symphony’s generous donation is being made possible because of a gift from Marathon Oil.

Schools perform at Hattie Mae White for “Fine Arts Friday”

Watch a performance by the Marshall Middle School Band at a recent “Fine Arts Friday” event at the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center:

Click image to view video. If unable to access YouTube, go to: http://houstonisdtx.swagit.com/play/03262012-512

You can watch a different school perform every Friday during lunchtime at the cafeteria located inside district headquarters at 4400 West 18th Street.

Click here for a schedule of upcoming performances.