On Friday, March 31 the the Middle School Vocal Ensemble under the direction of Miss Zayna Dayeh, the High School Orchestra under the direction of Mr. Cory Neville, the 8th Grade Orchestra under the direction of Mrs. Corrie Nye, and the High School Vocal Ensemble under the direction of Mr. Austin Wolford, all participated in an adjudication event designed to judge the proficiency and abilities of our music ensembles. Mrs. Nye and Miss Dayeh organized and hosted the adjudication at Quaker Valley Middle School and Dr. Jeffrey Tedford (Chair, Music Department; Associate Professor of Music; Director of Orchestras) from Grove City College served as head adjudicator.
The adjudication followed the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (PMEA) Music Performance Assessment (MPA) format and protocols. Participating ensembles prepared two contrasting pieces of comparable difficulty to be performed for the Dr. Tedford. After the performance of the prepared pieces, the 8th Grade Orchestra, Middle School Vocal Ensemble and High School Orchestra elected to be judged in sightreading where they were given five minutes to study a piece of music they had never seen, before being expected to perform it at sight. With both the prepared pieces and sightreading, the orchestras and choirs were judged in the areas of tone, tuning, accuracy, technique and interpretation.
Using the PMEA Music Performance Assessment rubrics, Dr. Tedford found that all four of the QV Music performing groups were deserving of earning final “Superior/Outstanding/A+” ratings in all aspects of their prepared performances. The rating of “Superior” is the highest possible rating in the PMEA MPA system, and is reserved for music performing ensembles and soloists who have achieved and can demonstrate the highest levels of achievement and mastery. In sight reading, the 8th Grade and High School Orchestras earned a rating of “Excellent/Advanced/A,” while the Middle School Vocal Ensemble earned a “Superior” rating in both sight reading and their prepared music.
After the adjudication event, students had lunch with Dr. Tedford and participated in a Q&A where he shared information about his personal background, careers in music, opportunities to stay involved with music as a non-music major both in college and post-graduation, and more.
Congratulations to all of the students in the 8th Grade and High School Orchestras, the Middle School Vocal Ensemble and the High School Vocal Ensemble, as well as Miss Dayeh, Mr. Neville, Mrs. Nye, and Mr. Wolford!