Two Haines High School students earned selection to the All-State Music Festival held Nov. 18-20 in Anchorage.Karissa Land were among nearly 90 students in the all-female treble choir.Land were first-time All-State honorees. They sang scales and “America the Beautiful” on tape evaluated before the festival.Land had two days of rehearsals and then a concert presented to hundreds of guests.
About 400 high school musicians participated in the Alaska School Activities Association’s festival as part of the band, orchestra, and mixed and treble choirs. Haines junior Hannah Wing and sophomore
“I don’t think a student from Haines has gone in quite a while,” said music teacher Kristina Mulready.
Wing and
“I thought it was fun and pretty outstanding for such a small group,” Mulready said of Haines gaining two All-State berths.
Wing called All-State a huge honor. “It’s just a whole other level of music, and it’s really cool to be a part of,” she said.
Bartlett High School and West Anchorage High School hosted All-State events. Wing and
Land said rehearsals stretched to about 12 hours.
The treble choir was under the direction of Sean Burton of Briar Cliff University in Iowa.Land had to sing in Latin and Spanish and handle the “weird pronunciations” of a Scottish folk song.
Land also is involved in band and Drama, Debate and Forensics.
She said for her future plans, “I still want to do music, but I also want to do something else.”
The song lineup included “I Cannot Dance, O Lord,” “Caledonian’s Air,” “Mata del anima sola,” “In Magna Symphonia” and “Psalm 23,” which meant Wing and
Wing, a basketball and track competitor, said the All-State Music Festival deepened her love for music.
“Haines has a huge focus for athletics, and that’s awesome, but music is one of those things that involves your emotions and affects you spiritually and physically,” she said.