Originally posted 4/18/14
I recently had an article written about me. The article talks about my acceptance into the Western Michigan University All-Star band, as well as my compositions. I’ll copy the article onto this blog.
Visit the article here.
led him to become a standout musician on the school band and in performances across the state, said music director Jonathan Schnicke. He recently played first chair in the 46th annual Spring Conference on Wind and Percussion Music at Western Michigan University and earned a first division rating for his solo at the State Solo Ensemble Festival at Grandville High School.He was one of 120 Michigan high school students selected to join guest classical music composer John Mackey for the concert, during which they played Mackey’s song “Strange Humors.”
Parker, a long time fan of Mackey’s, said he was thrilled to be named first chair, a very competitive post.
His songwriting has also caught on with his classmates. Fellow band students recently performed his piece, “Spontaneous Moods for Trombone and Piano,” at the State Solo Ensemble.
“I love doing honors bands and music camps,” said Parker, who hopes to major in music education in college and become a band director. He is the son of Ron and Kerry Fritz.
He began playing the saxophone is sixth grade and has attended Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp. He also plays piano.
“I’m very impressed with his grasp of music and composition style,” said Schnicke. “It’s exciting to see how he continues to develop.”