House Concurrent Resolution 110

(As Adopted by House and Senate)

A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION COMMENDING AND CONGRATULATING THE 2015 MISSISSIPPI LIONS ALL-STATE BAND UPON WINNING THE 31ST INTERNATIONAL LIONS BAND CHAMPIONSHIP.

WHEREAS, the 2015 Mississippi Lions All-State Band traveled to the "Aloha State" of Hawaii on June 25, 2015, on the beautiful beaches of Honolulu, to compete in the 98th Annual Lions International Convention Parade of Nations, Division I, Category BII, All-State Bands category and brought home the championship for the 31st time; and

WHEREAS, these outstanding young people have practiced their instruments for years to make it to this point achieving this honor through a grueling audition that included: the Circle of Fifths starting on Concert F followed by all Twelve Major Scales and the Chromatic Scale in an impressive three minutes; preparing for the entirety of two complex Etudes when only excerpts revealed in the audition room were required; and a sight-reading selection, the entire process concluded with a call-back audition; and

WHEREAS, upon being selected to the Lions Band, the students rehearsed at Jones County Junior College from June 18, 2015, to June 25, 2015, and traveled to Honolulu, Hawaii, to win the World Championship with impressive scores of 89.00, 98.00, 98.00, and a perfect score of 100.00; and

WHEREAS, as the band marched down the streets of Honolulu perfectly in sync with a roll step that bands around the world would envy, it was a sight and sound to behold with the intense crash of sharp percussion announcing the band's arrival, followed by resounding trumpets as dancers leapt through the air like pink flowers in the wind, and then the colorguard entered, flags twirling in precise rhythm with the band which was playing the spirited "Mambo" followed by a beautiful version of "Tonight" from West Side Story, that initially featured the woodwinds, then majestically growing until it ended in a bold chromatic progression and the band paraded away to a cheering crowd; and

WHEREAS, the band was led during the parade by a young man always in time, Drum Major Jack Fletcher; and

WHEREAS, the music of the classic West Side Story would not be the same without the elegant dancers who were as follows: Amber Claire Huddleston, Amanda Rich, Collyn Taylor, Scarlett Sandifer, Brooke Bullock, Khyla Shumpert, Cydney Campbell and Haley Templeton; and

WHEREAS, the colorguard had a vital role for anyone who has heard West Side Story - shouting Mambo, with gusto, the ladies included: Erin Brooks, Claire Sanford, Kendall Kern, Lainey Stevens, Giselle Roman, Grace Morgan, Leah Fontaine, Emma Grace McGrew, Madison Wren, Jenny White, Savannah Mitchell, Stephanie Stewart, Mackenzie Dodds, Rosa Gaines, Carlye McNeese and Ashley Kavanaugh; and

WHEREAS, a marching band needs more than brass and drums, it must have the sound of reeds and the delicacy of the flute especially for a song with such graceful parts as "Tonight," the flute players were as follows: David Xie, Yulianna Jimenez, Lindsey Wolfe, Jumana Karzon, Kaitlyn Borsi, Alyssa Brieck, Cecelia Prentiss and Becca English; the oboe players were Kathy Rorabaugh and Donté Malone; the bassoon players were Lee Easson and Sydney Davis; the B-flat clarinet players were essential and were as follows: Isabel Cheney, Lauren Slay, Daniel Rorabaugh, Jessica Garner, Jessica Googe, Alex Green, Meghan Smith, Laura Sanderson, Seth Abernathy, Kaylin Roberts, Laura Bowden, Taylor Bost, Sahil Duvvuri, Allison Randall, Emory Booth and Barbara Rainey; the bass part is not restricted to tubas, as proven by the following bass clarinet players: Natalene Vonkchalee, Ana Dean, Jane Halfhill, Alexandria Jones and the contrabass clarinet player Kyle Woodward; and

WHEREAS, when Leonard Bernstein wrote West Side Story, he was influenced by classical, jazz and popular styles and no instrument can express his jazz intentions better than the following saxophone players: the alto saxophones were Madalyn Harkness, Eric Harper, Patrick Knight, Matthew Gioia, Madelina Sarullo and Will Frye; the tenor saxophones were Terrell Gilmore and Zack Everett and the baritone saxophone was Parker Cruise; and

WHEREAS, the trumpets had an outstanding sound that spoke of triumph as if knowing they would again be champions, and they were as follows: Landon Grigsby, Michael Maxey, Erick Wicklund, Dzung Le, Max Warren, Martin McCandless, Ben Wright III, Joshua Stuart, Matthew Thompson, Andrew Freeman, Ian Cullagh, Paige Hall, Peyton Stevens, William Smallwood, Andrew Speegle, Anthony Piascik, Jesse Tutor, Wesley Gerard, Austin Steward, Haley Roberts, Danielle Crayton, Jesse Gibens, Staci Fox and Dylan Teas; and

WHEREAS, for the original film of West Side Story, Bernstein longed for the texture and subtlety of classic musicals and that would not have been possible without the following excellent French horns: Rico Fraccastoro, Brittany Corrie, Jonathan Lindsey, Kaitlin Walley, Alyssa Cocco, Miriam Rimmey, Blake Lowman and Emma Brown; and

WHEREAS, one could not imagine a marching band without trombones, who played a huge role in the chosen works of "Mambo" and "Tonight," and they were as follows: Jacob Easley, Trevor Schoup, Justin Smith, Kody McKlveen, Sarah Chipley, Thomas Ly, Starnes Dees, Brandon Broome, Eric Cleckner, Richard Easterling, Tyler Greer, Grayson Mayne, Matthew Freeman, Erica Nichols, Willie Falvey and Nicholas Durrett; and

WHEREAS, in this classic hit, the Sharks were led by the character of Bernardo, and his voice could only be represented by these exceptional baritones: Travis Pratt, Daniel McAllister Jr., Matthew Duck, Dalton Lewis, Samuel Campbell, Justin Cavanaugh, Nicholas Hudson and Garrett Gill; and

WHEREAS, requiring not only strength in skill and sound, these tuba players were also strong in body carrying a 25-pound tuba for often unknown lengths of time, and they were as follows: David Thomas, Treyce Bannerman, Dakota Brown, Jared Moore, ReJohn Toten, Ryan Hominick, Jordan Ryan and Brian Evans; and

WHEREAS, the very pulse of the band was the following percussionists: snare drums included Matthew D. Lewis, Mason Hill, Kyle Humphreys, Garner Sinquefield, Trey Knapp, Reed Parker, Tarrah Frederick, Wade Bush, Wade McDonald and Jacobe Jones; the two tenor drums were Nathan Moeller and Jeremy Hendrix; and the mallets were Lauren Stephens and Drew Fisher; and

WHEREAS, this select group of musicians included many outstanding students and one such young woman was Miss Laura Ashley Sanderson, a senior at Purvis High School, who has demonstrated consistent musical achievement since the 7th grade, achieving first chair of the top band at William Carey, Pearl River Community College, Jones County Junior College and Southeast Mississippi Band Directors' Association; and

WHEREAS, not only is Miss Sanderson accomplished locally, she has been accepted to the State Concert Band four years in a row and has consistently moved up in this Mississippi Lions All-State Band starting at fifteenth chair when she was in the 10th grade working up to ninth chair for this 2015 honor in Hawaii and on November 21, 2015, the results for the 2015 band were announced placing her at second chair; and

WHEREAS, this band has been superbly trained and inspired by Director Jeff Cannon and Assistant Director Mickey Mangum, who broadened their skills and offered an opportunity of a lifetime to budding musicians; and

WHEREAS, it is the policy of this Legislature to recognize and honor the achievements of student musicians such as those in the 2015 Mississippi Lions All-State Band, who have brought honor to their local schools, communities and the State of Mississippi:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE SENATE CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby commend and congratulate the 2015 Mississippi Lions All-State Band, Clarinetist Laura Ashley Sanderson, Director Jeff Cannon and Assistant Director Mickey Mangum for winning the 98th Annual Lions International Convention Parade of Nations Championship for the 31st time, and extend best wishes to the band and directors for continued success in all of their future musical and academic endeavors.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be furnished to Director Jeff Cannon, Laura Ashley Sanderson and to the members of the Capitol Press Corps.