Fayetteville-Manlius High School’s trombone quartet recently received top honors during an annual competition.
Coached by F-M High School music teacher Jennifer Greene and comprised of senior Tavish Daly, juniors Lydia Sprague and Joseph Hall and freshman George Langenberg, the quartet was named “Best Syracuse Area Ensemble” at the 15th annual Syracuse Friends of Chamber Music (SFCM) Youth Chamber Music Competition on March 18.
This year’s competition, held at First Unitarian Universalist Society in Syracuse, featured five ensembles comprised of three to eight students in grades 7 through 12 that are enrolled in a New York state school district (or are homeschooled) within 90 miles of Syracuse. The groups each performed two musical scores and were evaluated based on musicianship, ensemble communication, tone, stage presence and overall presentation.
The primary purpose of the competition is to encourage students in the Central New York area to discover the joy of preparing chamber music for performance under the guidance of a coach, according to the SFCM website.
F-M’s trombone quartet will again perform its award-winning competition pieces — “Achieved is the Glorious Work” by Joseph Haydn and “Song for Japan” by Steven Verhelst — on April 29 during SFCM’s final 2016-17 subscription series concert. A performance by the event’s featured ensemble, American String Quartet with pianist Anton Nel will follow.