Seventeen Samo students make All-State Band

Amancai BirabenStaff WriterSeventeen Samo students out of 20 that auditioned got accepted into the California Band Director's Association (CBDA) All-State Band this year, which according to band director Michael Corrigan is an impressive number compared to most other California schools.“This is our third consecutive year having 17 out of 20 students,” Corrigan said. “This is the largest number from any high school in the state.”Senior percussionist Hanyu Chwe was one of the 17 students accepted. He says that the audition process was challenging and quite extensive.“First you had to audition for Mr. Sakow and Mr. Corrigan, and the 20 who passed that then auditioned for the actual honor band. I had to send in a recording playing snare drum, marimba and the timpani pieces,” Chwe said.Sophomore oboist Mollie Bernstein participated in the California All-State Band for two years in middle school, and was accepted into the high school division this year.“Last year I auditioned and thought I’d get in, but didn’t,” Bernstein said. “So then this year, I was trying to have neutral expectations of what would end up happening.”Knowing the audition process would be challenging, she prepared her piece ahead of time.“I started working on my piece in the summer, and then recorded in early fall,” Bernstein said. “Since you’re competing against 1600 other musicians, you want to make sure the recording you send in is flawless. So that took some time.”Because Samo has had such a high rank in the band for the past years, Corrigan and band director Terry Sakow are proud of their students’ hard work.“It’s a great honor to be recognized, and I’m proud of our musicians,” Sakow said. “The audition process isn’t easy, and they worked really hard to get accepted.”abiraben@thesamohi.com