Lincoln Parish displayed incredible musical talent at the LMTA District Piano Rally last week as 14 Lincoln Parish piano students qualified for state under strict performance standards for this year’s competition.
The District Rally required students to participate in four categories of competition including, performing 3 pieces by memory, testing their sight-reading ability on 2 unknown pieces, playing technical skills of scales, chords, and arpeggios, and taking a written and ear training exam. To qualify for the state competition in Baton Rouge, the students must have obtained a 98 or higher performance score and at least a 94 on the other 3 parts of the competition.
Lincoln Parish piano teacher Denise Cox recognized the immense effort that students put into preparing for the event.
“The students who participated in the rally have studied consistently all year to improve their skills in each category,” Cox said. “It is so rewarding for students and teachers alike to see what great progress they have made through the year.”
62 students from several parishes across North Louisiana participated in the district competition. The rally itself serves as not only an acknowledgement of the hard work the students have put in throughout the year, but also as a means for teacher certification. The state board sets requirements for the competition to measure the skills students should be obtaining within each grade level, serving as a guideline for the teacher’s curriculum.
Local piano teacher and member of the State Rally board, Jeanne Patterson, described how the rally improves student performance through musical standards.
“It takes great commitment on part of not only the student, but the parents to prepare for rally. It is an all-year process,” Patterson said. “As a teacher, it is a great checkpoint to know that I am teaching all that I should be. I use it as a guideline to make sure my students are getting the appropriate instruction in every area of piano study.”
The Lincoln Parish students competing at state on June 8 are listed below along with their district achievements.
Teacher- Cody Chandler
Brielle Smart (A E Phillips)- Level 1, 3rd place
Teacher- Denise Cox
John Cole Parker (A E Phillips)- Level 1, 5th place, Outstanding Achievement
Preston Parker (Ruston High School)- Level 3, 1st place, Outstanding Achievement
Collins Reigelman (A E Phillips)- Prep B, 4th place
Teacher- Steele Moegle
Lucas Chen (A E Phillips)- Level 1, 2nd place, Outstanding Achievement
Krystal Jeong (Cedar Creek)- Prep B, 1st place, Outstanding Achievement
Zoey Wang (A E Phillips)- Level 1, 4th place, Outstanding Achievement
Teacher- Jeanne Patterson
Esther Allen (Cedar Creek)- Prep B, 5th place
Caed Baines (Ruston High School)- Level 3, 2nd place, Outstanding Achievement
Elena Baines (Ruston High School)- Level 3, 3rd place, Outstanding Achievement
Jace Baines (Ruston High School)- Prep B, 3rd place
Jack McGehee (A E Phillips)
Maddie Lu McGehee (A E Phillips)
Kaejha Stewart (A E Phillips)
