The program has had numerous students selected for the ILMEA District Festival. 50 likes. In 2014 the group had 5 top soloist award winners.
The MJHS Wind Ensemble has earned an invitation to the “SuperState Festival” at the University of Illinois nine times.
MJHS has had students selected for the newly formed All-Illinois Junior Band each year. The seventh and eighth grade band members are evaluated and placed in either the Wind Ensemble or Cadet Band. The ensemble practices before school and performs many of the different jazz genres. In 2014, the MJHS jazzers won the “State of Illinois” Jazz Festival at ISU. There have been as many as 29 students selected in a single year. The Jazz Band at MJHS has also won several honors over the years. The Jazz Band at MJHS has also won several honors over the years. The Marion Junior High Band Program includes students in grades six through eight. In 2009 and again in 2014, the Wind Ensemble was invited to perform at the “All-State Music Festival” in Peoria. The Jazz Band at MJHS has also won several honors over the years, section awards, and many of our students have received individual soloist awards. In 2020 the Wind Ensemble will premiere a new work by popular composer, Todd Stalter. The MJHS Wind Ensemble also attended an elite festival, the “Festival of Gold” at Symphony Hall in Chicago, in the spring of 2008.
In 2020 the Wind Ensemble will premiere a new work by popular composer, Todd Stalter. The ensemble practices before school and performs many of the different jazz genres. In 2012 the Wind Ensemble out scored 26 bands from 9 states to win the top band trophy at a Music in the Parks festival. Students are placed into one of three concert bands. It has won awards at national international events. In 2015, 2016 and 2018 MJHS Band outscored all ensembles at festivals in Chicago, St. Louis and Atlanta to win top honors. Most recently, in 2014 and 2015, the Jazz Band won the Southern Illinois University at Carbondale Jazz Festival. . The Jazz Band performs in the community and competes at festivals. In 2007 the Wind Ensemble won the top band performance trophy at a Heritage Festival event in St. Louis, outscoring all of the high school bands at the festival to win the award. In 2015 the group had 3 top soloist award winners. The Marion Junior High Band Program is a respected program in our state. In the past, the Wind Ensemble and Cadet Band have won their classes at Illinois State University’s “State of Illinois Competition.” Several times in the past the Wind Ensemble and Cadet Band received a “Superior” rating from all judges at the IGSMA District 3 Organization Contest.