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WSMA
Wisconsin School Music Association
Violin students in middle or high school may recognise this better as
Solo & Ensemble Contest. This is a big thing for all music students in
schools that participate in these contests every year. What makes it
so great? WSMA encourages all music students to want to be better
at their art, which in turn, makes them more sucessful people
overall. They support music education in school, which has
unfortunately been dwindling due to budget cuts, especially in
publicly funded schools. The WSMA website has all the current
information on everything you need to know, and some things you
may not know.
I think that the contests are great because they encourage
performance, competion among fellow musicians, teamwork, and a
high level playing, all of which the participators can expect in
college, life, and the real music world. I also like the fact that the
student is expected to know something about the piece he or she is
playing, forcing that student to analyze and research it. The
contests are great motivators for all musicians, and helps the
student, parent, and others realize just how long it takes to perfect a
piece.
So what about guitar players? They have something for guitar
players believe it or not, but only for classical duets, trios, quartets
and ensembles. I couldn't find anything about solo guitar. There
are special group entries for jazz, electronic or other types of
ensembles. There are unfortunately no piece lists are available, so
you would probably need to have the piece approved by the
association prior to the contest. There is the option of jazz
ensemble, if the student's school has one, and if the student has an
electric guitar. Otherwise the guitar student can enter with the
schools choir, sing a vocal solo, and/ or enter the contest with a
different instrument.
For more info about WSMA, visit the website at
www.wsmamusic.com.
For a list of the approved pieces, visit
www.wsmamusic.com/music_list.
FYI! Due to the competitive nature of the WSMA contests, I am
happy to give 1 extra lesson free of charge to any of my participating
students.
Solo & Ensemble Contest. This is a big thing for all music students in
schools that participate in these contests every year. What makes it
so great? WSMA encourages all music students to want to be better
at their art, which in turn, makes them more sucessful people
overall. They support music education in school, which has
unfortunately been dwindling due to budget cuts, especially in
publicly funded schools. The WSMA website has all the current
information on everything you need to know, and some things you
may not know.
I think that the contests are great because they encourage
performance, competion among fellow musicians, teamwork, and a
high level playing, all of which the participators can expect in
college, life, and the real music world. I also like the fact that the
student is expected to know something about the piece he or she is
playing, forcing that student to analyze and research it. The
contests are great motivators for all musicians, and helps the
student, parent, and others realize just how long it takes to perfect a
piece.
So what about guitar players? They have something for guitar
players believe it or not, but only for classical duets, trios, quartets
and ensembles. I couldn't find anything about solo guitar. There
are special group entries for jazz, electronic or other types of
ensembles. There are unfortunately no piece lists are available, so
you would probably need to have the piece approved by the
association prior to the contest. There is the option of jazz
ensemble, if the student's school has one, and if the student has an
electric guitar. Otherwise the guitar student can enter with the
schools choir, sing a vocal solo, and/ or enter the contest with a
different instrument.
For more info about WSMA, visit the website at
www.wsmamusic.com.
For a list of the approved pieces, visit
www.wsmamusic.com/music_list.
FYI! Due to the competitive nature of the WSMA contests, I am
happy to give 1 extra lesson free of charge to any of my participating
students.
Niccolo Paganini- "La Campanella"
