PHS Students named to TMEA All-State Band and All-State Choir

Posted Date: 01/12/2023

Written by PHS senior Brody Holleman
Photographs taken by PHS senior Madison Meyer

This past weekend, 2 Paris High School students were named to the TMEA All-State Band and All-State Choir after placing in the top of their respective Areas, competing against students from many different schools around the state.
The Paris High School band had three students (Preston Thompson, Carter Wall, Anderson Bunch) qualify for the area audition after placing 4th chair clarinet, 4th chair french horn, and 1st chair trumpet respectively in the Regional audition, where they played 3 pieces that showcased both their technical and musical abilities in their individual instruments. Of these three students, Anderson Bunch placed 3rd at the Area Audition against students from all over Northeast Texas, which earned him a spot in the TMEA All-State Band for the second year in a row. Bunch was the first Paris High Student to make the band since 2009, and further solidified himself as one of the top musicians in the state with this repeat. Bunch’s achievement is the second state-level recognition that the Paris Band has received this school year, as the Paris Marching Band advanced to the UIL State Marching Finals for the first time in program history back in November.
The band program isn’t the only one at Paris making its name known throughout the state however, as Paris High Senior Johnathan Young was named 3rd chair Bass at the Area Audition, making him the first Paris student to make the All-State Choir in 5 years. Young’s audition process included excerpts from six songs in 4 different languages (English, French, Swedish, and Latin). His road to state included tryouts at the regional, Pre-Area, and Area level, each requiring him to be in the top percentage of each tryout group in order to advance to the next round.
The TMEA All-State Music Convention will be held in San Antonio on February 8th-11th, where Bunch and Young will rehearse for the 3 days with some of the best high school musicians in the state, before performing a concert in the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center. Information about specific performance times can be found at https://www.tmea.org/convention/performances/all-state/concerts/
Pictured left: Anderson Bunch All-State Band
Pictured right: Johnathan Young, All-State Choir