Central Huron Secondary School Jazz Band is Gold at Nationals

by Bob Montgomery

The Central Huron Secondary School Jazz Band can add another plaque to their trophy case after their recent competition at the 52nd Musicfest Nationals at the University of Toronto on May 15th.

Aaron Neeb is the Music Teacher and the Director of the Bands at Central Huron Secondary School. They have the Jazz Band, a concert band and an intermediate band. And the Jazz Band did exceptionally well at the 52nd Musicfest Nationals under some fairly challenging circumstances. “We had an 8:00am performance slot and we had to leave at 3:00 in the morning to get there on time.. We played three pieces for music professors from McGill University and Humber College, and their performance earned them a gold standing at the A300 level in competition with other jazz bands and students from across Canada, so that was pretty impressive.”

Neeb says the Jazz Band is made up of seventeen instrumentalists including trumpet players, trombone players, alto, tenor, baritone saxophone and then a rhythm section with base, drum and a piano. Neeb says they have four students who are graduating this year and there are some younger students coming up through the ranks. He says it's important for the students to know that they're playing very well at a high level and they should continue pushing and learning more and getting even better and they really want to get out and play in their community and help build community.

The Jazz Band's next public appearance is this Sunday at the Clinton Raceway.

Central Huron Secondary School Jazz Band

Photo courtesy of Central Huron Secondary School