Student Accomplishments - 2020/2021

In a year mired in loss, frustration, isolation, and uncertainty it’s been a comfort and given me a sense of personal pride to have students that have endured and even thrived throughout the 2020 and 2021 school year. Summer is approaching. Restrictions are slowly being lifted. Hopefully, kids (and everyone) will get to experience a sense of normalcy again. They’ll get to do things they’ve been hoping for, see people they’ve missed, and go about rebuilding their lives, conceivably with intention and joy.

Below I’m going to list some of the accomplishments that some of my students made over the past year. While this year’s list is going to be somewhat, well let’s say more truncated than the usual, I want all of you to remember that getting through this year alone is the greatest accomplishment and every one of you should be proud of whatever you did this year. I know I certainly have the regrets in my mind “Why didn’t I do…” “Why didn't I try…”, which are all too common regardless of a global pandemic. And possibly the scariest question of all is “What now?”

Know that I regard it as a deep privilege to get to work with each of you. I hope our time together, that music, that getting to learn something new each week brings you some amount of joy (ignoring my occasional long-winded diatribes) and that we can all find the things for which we’re grateful.

As for “What now?”, we can do one day at a time. I just want each of my students to know that you are here and that you are valued.

2021 GMEA All-State Winners:

Shelly Mao - Alto saxophone, 4th Chair

Rohan Bhagat - Alto saxophone, 2nd Chair

Ben Mamut - Alto saxophone, 1st Alternate

2021 GMEA All-State & District Honor Band Finalists:

The following students made their District Honor Bands. If they are noted as an All-State Finalist then they also passed on to the second round of All-State auditions.

Shelly Mao - Alto saxophone, River Trail Middle, 2nd Chair, All-State Finalist

Cade Jones - Clarinet, Mill Creek High, All-State Finalist

Ben Mamut - Alto saxophone, 2nd Chair, All-State Finalist

Ellis Johnson - Clarinet, North Gwinnett Middle

Rohan Bhagat - Alto saxophone, 2nd Chair, All-State Finalist

Colin Baillie - Alto saxophone, North Gwinnett

2020/2021 Atlanta Youth Wind Symphony

Rohan Bhagat - 1st Alternate

2020/2021 Metro Atlanta Youth Wind Ensemble

Aidan Spaid - Tenor saxophone, Chattahoochee High, 1st chair

2021 Governor’s Honors Program

Rohan Bhagat - Alto saxophone, GHP Finalist, Classical focus

Special Recognition:

Connor McCary - GT Marching Band

Melissa Neff - UGA Redcoat Band