Time to rosin that bow, because November 6 five Beaver Area orchestra students went to a PMEA District 5 Junior High Strings Fest hosted by Sharon High School.

The strings fest is an opportunity for students from seventh to ninth grades to participate in an orchestra much larger than one at school. Here, students can meet people from the various schools from surrounding counties including Butler, Lawrence, and Mercer.

The following violinists represented Beaver Area during this festival: Connor Crishi, ninth grade; Mikenna Keber, ninth grade; and Victoria Glass, eighth Grade. The following cello students also represented Beaver Area in this festival: Elizabeth Buffington, eighth grade; and Quinn Cherok, eighth grade.

These students worked together for a couple of weeks prior to the festival to learn the music.

Keber said, “There were many new people [at the festival] who were very dedicated to their instrument, and it was a good learning experience.”

At PMEA, which stands for Pennsylvania Music Educator’s Association, festivals, students are under the direction of a guest conductor who is typically nominated by the host school. At this festival the guest conductor was Mrs. Gretchen Wyler Zunic, who twice received the Golden Apple Award for Excellence in Education. Mrs. Zunic is the Head Orchestra Director at Upper Arlington High School in Columbus, Ohio.

“There were many great players, and the music was fine, I just wish we played it faster,” Crishi said of the experience.

During this festival, instrumentalists rehearsed under the guidance of Mrs. Zunic for most of the day and then had a concert in the evening. Their concert consisted of four pieces: Turbulence, Ash Grove, Polka, and Accents—which is a lot of music to put together in one rehearsal.

“I think the students had a great time, and the concert was awesome,” said Beaver Area strings director Mrs. Caroline Russel (formerly Ms. Poeggel).

This event is just one way the Beaver Area orchestra has stayed busy in fall. November 8, the orchestra hosted a donut fundraiser in the Jaycee's craft fair while orchestra members played Christmas carols. Also, members of Beaver Forte (a string quartet) played at a veterans lunch on Veterans Day. These events, along with the PEMA festival, show how involved these students are in creating music.