MTHS bands to perform in Disneyland; send-off concert April 1

The Mountlake Terrace High School bands will travel to Disneyland during spring break in April, when 99 musicians will perform and take part in a professional-level music workshop. The bands include the Symphonic Band, Chamber Winds and Jazz Ensemble I and II.

All band members are scheduled to perform at 11 a.m. on April 7, and jazz bands will perform at 11 a.m. on April 9 at Disney California Adventure Park.

Students will also participate in an educational workshop at Disney’s Imagination Campus, where they get to go to a sound stage to see how music is recorded and put into a film, according to Lori Rees, president of the Mountlake Terrace High School Band Boosters.

“The kids walk in and sit down with their music groups, and open a folder to see [Disney] music sheets] for the very first time,” Rees said. “[The campus director] put a short piece of a Disney film on the screen. The kids play the music, and they match that up. So now they have their own soundtrack for Disney.”

Boosters Communications Coordinator Brett Holt said this event helps build community and independence for students because they don’t have their parents’ constant presence.

“[They’re] in an enclosed Disney area, which is unlike our New York trip [to Essentially Ellington],” he said. “The kids get to go out and they get to be on their own. They’re not with their parents anymore, which is a big deal for them.”

Rees added that the students will learn to manage their time and spending while having fun.

The Mountlake Terrace High band will perform at 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 1, for a special Disney send-off concert. The community is invited to attend at the Mountlake Terrace High School theater.

For more information, contact Brett Holt at [email protected].