The air was rich with the sounds of instrumental pieces and vocal arrangements last Saturday when Manhattan High hosted the Kansas Music Education Association for a busy day of practices and performances. Students from all over North Central Kansas took part in the event, with students from band, orchestra and choir practicing and performing several musical pieces.

“It challenged me because there is a limited time to learn challenging music,” Taryn Lancaster, junior, said. “There were so many talented people in the room, and you just wanted to listen to them and not pay attention to your part.”

Lancaster participated as a member of the KMEA district honors orchestra. Other groups included the honors band and choir, who also gave performances after a day of group preparations.

Due to the large number of musical students across Kansas, KMEA divided into seven districts, with Manhattan students performing with the North Central district.

Through the program, students were given the chance to learn from different conductors than they practice with on a daily basis, creating a unique rehearsal.

“We had a different director and there were a lot more people than our regular orchestra,” Lancaster said. “It was a very new experience.”

Students had been practicing individually until the KMEA event, meaning that their day long rehearsal was their only chance to prepare before a performance that evening.

“My favorite part [of the event was] where I was able to play in an ensemble that just met the day of the concert, but it sounds like we’ve always been together practicing each of the songs we played,” Mizuki Asano, sophomore, said.

While the day proved to be a great for students to practice their musical talents together, it was also a learning experience.

“Each director is different, and they all have different ways of taking the music,” Asano said. “I’ve learned how to have any perspectives of the music.”

A wide variety of skills were honed at the KMEA event, each one proving to be important for musicians when they began their performances.

“My sight reading skills heightened immensely, and I learned a lot about the people around me,”

Lancaster said. “Over half of the orchestra was full of Manhattan students, and I was very proud of that and our abilities.”

Choir students were also given the chance to showcase their abilities, singing a total of four songs together.

“[It was hard] learning a song the day of and performing it well even though we sang it like five times that day,” Mckayla Alberto, junior, said. “There are a lot of talented singers in Kansas.”

Over all, students felt that the KMEA event gave them a chance to increase their knowledge and improve their musical skills over the course of the day.

“I’m very glad that I was allowed to participate in KMEA this year, and will definitely be auditioning again next year,” Lancaster said. “I’m very proud of the MHS orchestra and the other music programs.”