POULSBO — When North Kitsap High School freshman Ryan Shane stood up in front of a crowd of people recently, he was so nervous, his knees were shaking.
But, he said, when he started singing, his nerves “just went away.”
When it was senior Vivian Carson’s turn to perform, her stage fright meant playing flute in front of the judges and crowd was a “big accomplishment for me.”
Shane, Carson and more than 30 other students from North Kitsap High School spent April 24-25 in Ellensburg, competing in the Washington Music Educators Association’s state solo and ensemble competition.
Thirty-two choir students went, including soloists Shane and senior Kelly Lanzafame. Carson and senior Katherine Shafer were the only two band students from NKHS who qualified for state this year.
“It was a really fun experience,” Carson said, “especially since I used to have pretty bad stage fright. But it was good to finally make it to state one year.”
Shafer, who played tenor saxophone at the contest, said, “It was a really big deal for me because I’ve only been taking lessons for a year and a half.
“I just didn’t think I was going to go anywhere or achieve anything,” she added. “It was really cool to be able to go to state and get really good scores, and the competition was fierce, but it was a really good learning experience and I would do it again.”
Aside from the choir soloists, four choir ensembles also performed at the state competition. The mixed ensemble, the women’s ensemble, the men’s ensemble and a quartet competed at state level. Three of them got perfect scores.
Choir director Sylvia Cauter said, “It just means that they have spent hours and hours of hard work and dedication. … It’s a huge accomplishment, because they’re being recognized for that hard work and the ton they’ve done.”
Lanzafame participated in the contest as a soloist for the third year in a row. The first year, she said she placed third in her alto division. Last year, she was awarded first place. This year, she repeated the feat by winning first place again.
“She’s amazing,” Cauter said. “Her voice is so mature, and people can’t even believe she’s 18 years old.”
Lanzafame said competing is “an honor.”
“It’s such an honor to be able to sing there,” she said. “It’s a really good feeling. You feel pretty confident walking around there.”
The competition, she said, was fierce.
“They’re so amazing,” Lanzafame said of everyone who made it to state. “Everyone who goes to state obviously is really good, so it’s just, you’re surrounded by really good people.”
Shafer said, “Playing at state and All Northwest (Regional Contest) were probably the best experiences ever, because your musicality just grows exponentially.”
Shane said, of the experience, “It was exhilarating, but kind of overwhelming at first, because … everybody is there for a reason. There, everybody is good.”
Cauter said that she’s not usually “a fan of music competitions, except for the fact that it’s a motivator.”
“There’s something about when you compete that students, I think, tend to like that sense of competition,” Cauter said. “And it motivates them to work even harder.
“If it motivates the kids, then it’s a great thing.”
