Niwot High Jazz Bands claim superior at Skyline Jazz Fest

Both of the Niwot High School Jazz bands received "superior" scores this past week at the Skyline Jazz Fest. Under the direction of Wade Hendricks, director of bands at NHS, each group performed three pieces in front of three judges.

This year the judges were John Gunter, Director of Jazz Studies at the University of Colorado Boulder, Ed Breazeale, a local jazz educator and performer, and Dr. Shawn Williams, Assistant Professor of Jazz Trumpet at UNC Greeley.

These jazz experts evaluated the bands on three pieces and gave scores from 1-5, one being the highest and known as "superior." Afterward, the groups attended a 30-minute workshop clinic with the judges on their sound, stage presence, tone, and other aspects of the group's performance.

This two-day event is held every April at Skyline High School. NHS has participated for at least 18 years, 11 of which have been under the tutelage of Hendricks. "This year," said Hendricks, "there were two outstanding soloists chosen for each group - Caleb Roby and Charlotte Stauch in one jazz band, and in the Advanced Jazz band, the soloists were Hazel Rinehart and Alex Fick."

For those interested in hearing these "superior" jazz bands perform closer to home, they will be performing at the upcoming "Crossroads" concert at NHS on Tuesday, May 7 at 6 p.m. This will be the final concert of the school year, and for seniors the last concert they will perform at Niwot High. Also performing at the concert will be the Niwot Percussion Ensemble, the Symphonic Band, and Advanced Symphonic Band.