Students from 16 junior high and middle schools in the Lake Land College district will take part in the 30th annual Frances Watts Johnston Junior High Honors Band and Chorus Festival on Friday, May 1 at Lake Land College. The concert will begin at 7 p.m. in the Field House and is open to the general public with free admission.
The event is made possible through the Lake Land College Foundation and the Frances Watts Johnston Memorial Fund, which was established by the E.I. Johnston family of Shelbyville. More than 3,500 students have participated in the festival in the past 30 years.
Students from the following junior high and middle schools were nominated by their music instructors to participate in the festival: Cowden-Herrick, Cumberland, Dieterich, Effingham, Kansas, Lake Crest, Marshall, Mattoon, Moulton-Shelbyville, Neoga, Okaw-Valley-Findlay, Pana, Paris Crestwood, Paris Mayo, Ramsey and South Central.
The music festival is coordinated by Nancy Kinsey Caldwell, music instructor at Lake Land College. This year's guest band director is Kelly Davis of Dieterich and the choral director is Robin LeGrand from Lawrenceville. Returning for her second year, Susan Hiddle of Paris will be the accompanist once again.
The choral performance will consist of the following songs: "Finale B" - music by Jonathan Larson/ Roger Emerson, arr.; "In Flanders Fields" -music by John Jacobson/ Roger Emerson, arr.; "Old Joe Clark" - music by Joyce Eilers/ Neil Johnson, arr.; "Shenandoah" - Linda Steen Spevacek, arr.; "Sound of the Sea" - music by Mark Wilson; and "Witness" - music by Jack Halloran/ Bolks, arr. Following the choir will be the band performance of: "A Salute to Glenn Miller" - Mike Story, arr.; "Bandology" - Eric Osterling; "Shenandoah" - Robert Sheldon, arr.; and "The Cowboys" - John Williams/Jay Bocook, arr.
For more information about the festival, contact Dustin Smith, special events coordinator, at 217-234-5445.
