Last Saturday, musicians from Mid-Prairie High School and Highland High School participated in the IHSMA State Large Group Music Festival. While the schools were at different sites, both saw plenty of success.

The Mid-Prairie band, lyrica choir, and mixed choir were in Grinnell for the 3A contest. The Golden Hawks received a Division 1 rating for all 3 performances joining Williamsburg as the only other school at the event to do so.

Meanwhile, Highland’s band played at Central DeWitt High School in the 1A contest, where they received a Division 2 rating. Band Director for the Huskies, Andy McDonald, spoke with KCII prior to the event, about how he believes the festival is a good learning opportunity for all students involved. “This is not a typical contest. We’re not competing against other schools per se, I just view it as we’re competing against a standard.”

The Large Group Music Festival was the final IHSMA event of the school year.