Six students from Bethel High School recently earned All-State recognition from the Connecticut Music Educators Association.
Caroline Renner, soprano; Matt Hannequin, trumpet; Kevin Hannequin, trombone; Ben Fitzpatrick, alto sax; Marika Gutzman, trumpet; and Chad Klinefelter, tuba, will represent the school at the All-State Music Festival on Saturday, April 5.
That concert will be held at The Bushnell in Hartford.
The six students went through a rigorous testing process.
In November, the students met singing and playing standards to earn Western Region honors. The students were tested again at all-state auditions on Feb. 1 at North Haven High School and faced even more stringent standards to earn All-State recognition.
Renner, the Hannequin brothers and Klinefelter are seniors. Fitzpatrick and Gutzman are sophomores. Senior Kathryn Kennedy, alto, earned Western Region honors for Bethel.
Bethel Public Schools have been recognized as a “Best Community for Music Education” by the National Association of Music Merchants. Bethel was one of 176 communities to earn the award from the NAMM.
“On behalf of the entire music department in the Bethel Public Schools, we are proud to salute our terrific young musicians who earned this designation,’’ said Damon Coachman, the Director of Bands at Bethel High School. “Many of them put in hours and hours of practice outside of the classroom to meet the goals and demands of the All-State testing requirements. They are strong ambassadors for our school and testament to the strength of our outstanding music program.”
Front row, left to right: Kevin Hannequin, Marika Gutzman, Choral Director Karen Neville and Caroline Renner. Back row, left to right: Bethel High School Director of Bands Damon Coachman, Chad Klinefelter, Matt Hannequin and Ben Fitzpatrick.