Kathleen I. Tyrell, Superintendent
180 Harborview Road
Hull, MA 02045
For Immediate Release
Friday, May 12, 2017
Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: john@jgpr.net
Hull High School Concert Band Earns High Marks in Washington D.C.
HULL — Principal Michael Devine is pleased to announce that the Hull High School Concert Band earned a gold medal at the WorldStrides OnStage Music Festival in Washington D.C.
After a year of planning and practice for the festival, the band’s 38 members, Director Ian Barkon and other HHS teachers arrived in Washington D.C. on April 28 to be judged and rated against a set of national standards for music performance.
“This was a goal of mine since I was hired to be the high school band director in 2012,” Barkon said. “I had many great experiences with music including traveling with my high school band and bonding with my friends. I knew that the timing was right to pursue a music festival with this group of students as we have been ‘training’ for the past five years.”
The performance in the nation’s capital marks another milestone for the Hull band program since its revitalization in 2011. Thanks to efforts from the parents, administrators, guidance counselors and music teachers in Hull, the music department has grown to give the 40 students in the band the opportunity to perform and be rated based on a set of national musical performance standards.
After their performance, the HHS band was honored at a banquet for all of the participating bands from across the country, earning a gold distinction.
“I am so proud of all of the students,” Barkon said. “This event not only strengthens our music program in Hull, but it also shows the students that all of their hard work in the classroom has a purpose.”
Beyond the stage, the band explored the historic sights in Washington D.C., including the Washington, Lincoln, and Jefferson Memorials, the World War II and Korean War Memorials, the MLK and Theodore Roosevelt Memorials, Arlington Cemetery and the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum.
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