POULSBO — When the North Kitsap High School symphonic band stepped onto the stage of Carnegie Hall in New York City last week, each musician stopped and stared at the towering seats, the expansive stage and the beautiful surroundings.

“It’s nothing you can prepare yourself for,” said clarinet player Crystal Stannert.

“You realize how many great people have played there. I mean, Charlie Parker — he was one of the great saxophone players of all time,” added Krissy Dickson, who plays baritone saxophone.

The North Kitsap students may have stopped and gaped at America’s best-known musical hall, but they didn’t let it intimidate them. The symphonic band was one of two bands to earn a gold (or ‘superior’) rating for its three-song performance.

“They weren’t playing cautiously. They played big when they were supposed to play big and took the chances they needed to make great music,” said Band Director Sara Weyrick.

The symphonic band performed “Eternal Father, Strong to Save,” “Slavyanskya” and “Rhapsody in Blue” April 3.

“We played what we needed to play and we pulled it off,” said Walter Vogel, who plays alto and soprano saxophone.

Thirty-five members of the symphonic band took the trip and teamed up with 20 concert band musicians for a performance in Central Park. Fifteen chaperones also took the trip.

The group spent a week in New York City and visited the Statue of Liberty, Ground Zero, Ellis Island and the United Nations building. They also saw the Duke Ellington Band perform in Birdland, one of the world’s most famous jazz venues.

The symphonic band was accepted to play Carnegie Hall after Weyrick submitted examples of its work to the first-ever New York City Wind Band Festival.

North Kitsap was one of 10 bands to be invited.

The group’s performance was judged by music professors from the University of Tennessee and California Poly Technical Institute.

The Vikings were proud to make a name for themselves among such elevated company.

“We lived up to it,” said Dickson.