Winter Band Concert 2020

Congratulations to the students and staff affiliated with the Concert Band, Symphonic Band and Wind Symphony for presenting a wonderful Winter Band Concert.  Composers ranged from Balmages to Owens, from Gillingham to Yagasawa, from Grundman to Alford.

If you were unable to join us in person in the auditorium last night, please view the archived broadcast on the South High Fine Arts You Tube Channel:

Scholastic Art Awards Celebration Breakfast

Thanks to the student artists who attended the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards celebration breakfast.  We are proud of your artistic process and the products that are produced.

Congratulations to the DGS visual art team for mentoring these students through the artistic process.

Thanks to the South High School administration for sponsoring a moment to celebrate the work of these student artists!  

A list of every DGS Scholastic Art Awards winners is listed below.

Gold Key Awards (9)

Madison Bilotta - Drawing and Illustration
Ashley Boak - Photography
Morgan Donahue - Photography
Eileen Harris - Drawing and Illustration
Catherine Kammerer - Mixed Media
Patrick Lowery - Digital Art
Hewane Melkie - Photography
Alexis Pragides - Drawing and Illustration
Arielle Williams - Photography

Silver Key Awards (9)

Skyler Groveau - Digital Art
Jillian Heiling - Ceramics and Glass
Jenna Hunter - Ceramics and Glass
Catherine Kammerer - Drawing and Illustration
Sofya Kristesashvili - Photography
Kaylee Kushta - Photography
Katie McGuire - Drawing and Illustration
Katie Novotny - Photography
yu (Lily) xinyang - Ceramics and Glass

Honorable Mention Awards (6)

Juliana Crooks - Ceramics and Glass
Samantha Groseth - Photography
Grace Malatia - Drawing and Illustration
Aloha Mendibles - Drawing and Illustration
Ben Skibbe - Ceramics and Glass
Elizabeth Spear - Photography

2020 DGS Winter Guard Show a Resounding Success

Congratulations to the student, staff and parents affiliated with presenting the 2020 DGS Winter Guard Show.  20 Winter Guard teams from throughout the Midwest performed and competed during the course of the event.  Thanks to a fabulous team of parent and student volunteers, the event was a logistical success from start to finish.

Special shout out to the student performers in the DGS Winter Guard.  Continuing their trajectory of improvement and success this season, the ensemble finished first place in their class.  Great job team - keep up the great work this season!

DGS Wind Ensemble and Indiana University Concert Band - A night of amazing artistry!

It was an amazing night of collaborative music making as the DGS Wind Ensemble and Indiana University Jacobs School of Music Concert Band.  Both ensembles performed cutting edge wind band repertoire with artistry and elegance.  IU Saxophone Professor Otis Murphy was a featured soloist, amazing the patrons with his artistry and fluency on the instrument.

Special thanks to Dr. Jason Nam and Dr. Eric Smedley and the student musicians in the IU Concert Band for sharing their artistry and musicianship with our community - it was a great night to be a Mustang musician!

If you were unable to join us in the auditorium in person, please enjoy the archived broadcast below:

              

Vocal Health Clinic for DGS Singers

Members of the South High School Choral program were presented with a clinic on vocal health today by Dr. Lori Sonnenberg.  Dr. Sonnenberg is an expert voice pathologist who specializes in providing information and strategies for singers to maintain lifelong vocal health.

Dr. Sonnenberg's appearance today was funded through a grant provided by the Downers Grove Junior Woman's Club.  Thanks to Fine Arts staff member Ms. Winchell for facilitating this experience for our student musicians!

DGS Winter Guard continues season of improvement!

The South High Winter Guard continued their competitive season this past weekend at the WGI Regional Competition at Warren High School in Indianapolis, Indiana.  The team showed significant improvement, scoring a 67.4 from the judging panel. 

South High School is proud to host a home competition on Sunday, February 23, 2020 in the Main Gymansium at DGS.   The show begins at 10:30 AM, with the DGS Guard performing at 1:08 PM.  Get out and show support for this hard working team of students! 

South High Student Artists Earn IHSAE Scholarships

Madison Bilotta, artist

"Tangled" - Katie Leinart, artist

"Healing" - Grace Malatia, artist

"Fracture" - Maddie Puccillo, artist

BRIDGEPORT, CHICAGO, Sunday, March 8th, 2020 — The best student artists from approximately 100+ Illinois high schools will converge to showcase their art and vie for more than $88,000,000 in college scholarships offered at the 8th  Annual Illinois High School Art Exhibition (IHSAE).  DGS student Madison Bilotta, Katherine Leinart, Grace Malatia, Tara Pikey, Madelyn Puccillo, Ishmael Sandoval, and Lizzy Spear  have collectively received over $800,000 in scholarship offers with more scholarships still being processed as of press time!  Madison Bilotta, Katherine Leinart, Grace Malatia, Tara Pikey, Madelyn Puccillo, and Ishmael Sandoval will have their artwork displayed at the Senior Show and Alexis Pragidas, John Neer, Katherine Leinart, Patrick Lowrey, and Kaylee Kushta will have their artwork displayed at the General Show as part of the Illinois High School Art Exhibition.  These art shows run from Tuesday, March 3rd through Friday, April 3rd at the Bridgeport Art Center in Chicago’s Bridgeport neighborhood.

A public opening for both shows will be hosted on Sunday, March 8th from 11am-6pm at the Bridgeport Art Center (1200 W 35th St, Chicago, IL 60609).

IHSAE has partnered with more than 40 art schools, colleges and universities from across the nation; most of which, will be on hand to meet with students and parents at the College Recruitment Fair, running from 10am-2pm.

D99 Jazz in Clinic and Concert with NIU Jazz Orchestra

The student musicians of the DGN and DGS Jazz Bands participated in an educational clinic and concert with the internationally acclaimed Northern Illinois University Jazz Orchestra. Led by Professor Reggie Thomas, and featuring guest artist Todd Williams (Saxophone), the NIU Jazz Orchestra performed an exciting set that kept the audience engaged and cheering for more.

Congratulations to the members of the DGN and DGN Jazz programs for their outstanding performances tonight at the Tivoli theater in Downers Grove. It was a pleasure and honor for our students to open for the great Northern Illinois University Jazz Orchestra!

DGS Jazz Workshop

DGN Jazz Lab Band

DGS Jazz Lab Band

DGN Jazz Ensemble

DGS Jazz Ensemble

NIU Jazz Orchestra

NIU Jazz Orchestra with Guest Artist, Todd Williams

2020 FOFA Summer Study Grant Applications

Student Artists and Musicians:

If you are interested in continuing your fine arts studies this summer at a music or art camp, but need financial assistance to attend, please consider applying for a scholarship from Friends of Fine Arts, which annually supports over $3,000 in summer study grants to student musicians and artists.

To be considered, your application must be submitted by April 1, 2020. The Summer Study grant application is on a Google form, completely paperless.. You can complete the form here:  
FOFA SUMMER STUDY GRANT APPLICATION.  You must be logged in with your District 99 e-mail to access and utilize the form.

Questions about the application process? Please ask Mr. Williams, Downers Grove South Fine Arts Department Chairman at gwilliams@csd99.org.

Downers Grove Music Club Rising Stars Scholarship

$400 Awards for Freshmen, Sophomores and Juniors in Music

The Downers Grove Music Club will present multiple $400 Rising Stars Music Awards.  Awards are given to students enrolled in the District 99 high schools in the areas of Band, Choir or Orchestra.  Award recipients are selected based on the merit of their musical accomplishments, as described on the application form and the quality of the musical performance provided on the recording portion of the application. The goal of these awards is to recognize and reward those students who have worked very hard in their musical pursuits and have achieved a high level of accomplishment as a musician.

Freshman, Sophomores, and Juniors may apply for one of the multiple Rising Stars Awards ($400 each).  The link to this award page on the Downers Grove Music Club website is DGMC Rising Stars Music Award.

Who Is Eligible?
Any  District 99 high school band, choir or orchestra student, currently in his/her freshmen, sophomore or junior year, pursuing a musical educational experience during the summer in which tuition is charged, is eligible to apply for a Rising Stars Award. Pianists may apply in the musical category with which they are affiliated.
 

Award recipients are required to perform the following year at the DGMC Rising Stars program, usually scheduled on a Tuesday evening in April.

How Can I Apply?
The application, and submission of performance video, must be completed online.

All entries must be DATE/TIME STAMPED by the deadline date of April 1, 2020 to be eligible for review.

Questions should be sent to:  musiced@downersgrovemusicclub.org.

Downers Grove Music Club Scholarships for Seniors

The Downers Grove Music Club will present a $1,000 College Music Award to at least one student enrolled in Band, Choir or Orchestra in District 99. Award recipients will be selected based on the merit of their musical accomplishments, as described on the application form, and the quality of the musical performance provided on the video recording portion of the application.  The goal of these awards is to recognize and reward those students who have worked very hard in their musical pursuits and have achieved a high level of accomplishment as a musician.

Seniors may apply for one of the two possible College Music Awards ($1,000 each).  The link to this award page on the Downers Grove Music Club website is DGMC College Music Award.

Who Is Eligible?
Any District 99 high school band, choir or orchestra senior, who will be graduating during the this academic year and who will be attending college in the fall of 2020, is eligible to apply.

How Can I Apply?
The application must be completed and submitted, along with a performance video recording, as directed on the submission website, by April 1, 2020.  Award recipients will be chosen only from among the applications received by the deadline date.

All entries must be DATE/TIME STAMPED by the deadline date of April 1, 2020 to be eligible for review.

Questions should be sent to:  musiced@downersgrovemusicclub.org.

Rotary Scholarships for Seniors

The Rotary Club of Downers Grove is now accepting applications for their annual Charles Dickerman Music Scholarship.  Each year the Rotary Club of Downers Grove presents a $2,000 scholarship check to a deserving high school senior who resides in Downers Grove or in the District 99 attendance area.  Charles Dickerman was a founding member of the Rotary Club of Downers Grove.  He was a nuclear physicist at Argonne National Laboratory who had undergraduate degrees in both physics and music.  Charles stayed involved in music throughout his life and was an avid bagpiper.

A scholarship application may be downloaded from the organization's website: http://DGRotary.com. 

Applicants must have their forms emailed or postmarked by Wednesday, March 25, 2020. If selected as a finalist, candidates must be available for an interview and audition on the evening of Monday, April 27, 2020.

The qualifications to apply for this scholarship are:

• Be a graduating senior attending a public, private, parochial or home school, and reside in Downers Grove or the High School District 99 attendance area. 
• Plan to pursue a post-secondary education program.
• Have participated in high school curricular music activities and/or extracurricular music activities. 
• Composers and/or arrangers qualify for this scholarship. 
• Pursuit of an undergraduate music major or minor is not required.
• Financial need is not a criterion for selection.
  

Information: 

Dave Humphreys
Rotary Club of Downers Grove
musicscholarship@rotarygrovefest.com
630-968-5526 

Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp - Summer Scholarship Interviews

The Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp (in Michigan) is one of the nation’s leading arts immersion camps.  BLFAC is a non-profit summer school of the arts specializing in two-week arts programs for intermediate and high school students. 

Because there is a strong tradition of highly qualified District 99 students attending Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, the institution actively recruits in our schools.  Additionally, BLFAC sends a representative to our building each February to hear interested students play and sing.  From those interviews, BLFAC frequently awards merit-based scholarships to attend the camp.  This year’s BLFAC interviews will be held on Wednesday, February 19, 1st through 6th periods.  If you are interested in playing or singing a short audition for the BLFAC rep, please express your interest on a sign-up sheet in the Fine Arts Office B122.

What should you be prepared to play or sing in your audition?  Plan to perform 2-3 min of music that you have been working on with a private music teacher, or in class.  This could be an etude, a solo, or a piece of literature that you have really enjoyed studying.  Pick something that shows off your abilities!

The Blue Lake representative will share some basic information with the student to take home to parents.  In the meantime, you are encouraged to check out Blue Lake’s website at www.bluelake.org.  

Many DGS students have received significant scholarships to attend Blue Lake as a result of these interviews. Please consider this fabulous opportunity!

Mustang Musicians at the 2020 IMEC

Congratulations to the student musicians who participated in the 2020 IMEC as All-State Musicians in at the Civic Center in Peoria, Illinois.   Students worked with inspirational conductors and teachers for several days to prepare and present a concert of challenging repertoire. Even with limited rehearsal time,  each ensemble presented a stunning performance of challenging repertoire to a capacity crowd at Arena in the Civic Center for the All-State and Honors Concerts in Peoria.  Several District 99 students were featured during the concerts as soloists or in principal chairs in each of the ensembles.  

Special kudos also to the music go to the music faculty in District 99 for personifying the spirit of professional volunteerism that keeps ILMEA a vibrant organization - we are proud of each of you for your ongoing contributions.

All the District 99 students and staff extend a heartfelt "thank you" to the staff and volunteers and staff from ILMEA who contributed to creating this experience for our student musicians.   

WINDS AND PERCUSSION

Jonah Sprandel (11) - Alto Saxophone - Honors Band

CHORUS

Peter Burrows (12) - Tenor I - Honors Chorus
Nathan Frewen (10) - Tenor II - All-State Chorus
Agne Giedraityte (12) - Soprano I - Honors Chorus

Diana Kwak (11) - Soprano II - Honors Chorus

Stefan Tambik (12) - Tenor II - Honors Chorus

ORCHESTRA STRINGS

Therese Malinowski (12) - Cello - Honors Orchestra
Olivia Roti (10) Viola - All-State Orchestra

COMPOSITION
Aiden Schutte (12) - 2nd Place Remix Category