ABOVE: Orchestra Director Katie Hoagland, left, guides one of her orchestra ensembles while Clinician Jessica Daly, right, provides instruction and feedback during Tuesday’s Fairmont High School Music Festival.

FAIRMONT – For those in band, choir, or orchestra at Fairmont High School, Tuesday’s music festival event was the beginning of an eventful final half of the school year.

Currently, there are around 180 students in band, 275 in orchestra and 234 in choir. Band included marching and pep band, concert band and jazz band. Orchestra has solos and ensembles in its groups, and students can also participate in the summer symphony community orchestra. The choir is divided into four groups: 7th and 8th grade boys, 7th and 8th grade girls and a mixed choir for 9th and 10th grade, as well as 11th and 12th grade.

Choir Leader Molly Bleess said this current choir division is based on space and has changed from past iterations of the choir.

“When our seventh and eighth graders were together, I was like, ‘Should this really be a thing, or should we separate?'” She said. “Overwhelmingly separate won. That was the first change we made was to have two different groups there. Then we got to begin concert choir, our ninth through 12th-grade group, and had to move our ninthcgrade girls into their own section. Now we had too many again, and so we had to divide into two different concert choirs.”

Before Tuesday, the only major performance had been their ensemble concerts in November or December. For only the second time, Fairmont held its music festival within the auditorium from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., providing students with crucial feedback as they prepare for spring and summer performances.

“We put all of our high school ensembles on display throughout the school day, which is helpful for us because we can get feedback from clinicians that help us at later performances or judged events,” Orchestra Director Katie Hoaglund said. “Something else that’s beneficial is the community is invited to come watch. That gives our students practice in front of an audience. It’s also good for community members who don’t do late nights. It’s a daytime performance opportunity.”

Clinicians are former music teachers or musicians, experts who provide guidance on strengths and weak spots. Each ensemble goes up one group at a time for an hour, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., excluding a noon to 1 p.m. lunch break. The other ensembles, if they are not warming up or receiving feedback from clinicians, are in their seats as an audience for the group on stage.

As well as getting feedback from the clinicians, Bleess said they have also found a way to help students help each other.

“Each of us are having our group’s critique of what they hear and see on stage,” she said. “Two of my groups will be in the audience while they watch their peers sing. Usually, they just critique themselves, so it’s really nice they get to look at a different group and help them. We’ll aggregate all of those comments to that group, and they can sort out what they think.”

Heading into music festival, Hoaglund said they set high standards for Fairmont students regarding preparation.

“We like to see increased focus and work,” she said. “Right now is when we want to see most of that. I’m proud of them, of the work they’ve done, and I would like to see continued work. I think they would agree with me that that’s where we’re at right now.”

For Bleess, she said she and her students have had sustained dedication to the pursuit of improvement.

“I can’t find a minute to myself,” she said. “Constantly either coaching or accompanying for them. They’re doing great. They do a ton of work outside of school.”

Before the students took the stage, Band Director Kate Kallenbach said she hoped students would be able to have some lightbulb moments of inspiration.

“Aha moments all the way,” she said. ‘Oh yeah, I could have done that. Oh yeah, she said I should do that.’ It’s not just put on large group contests when you hope they’ll have the time to hear it.”