Local student makes All-State Honor Band

Deanna Buringrud, an eighth grader at Springville School, has been selected for the second time into the California All State Honor Band.

Buringrud, daughter of Lisa and Joel Buringrud and a member of the Springville School Advanced Band under the direction of Brent Iden, left today to participate in the convention and concert.

In all, 1,600 students from schools throughout the state auditioned for the 2013 All State Honor ensembles. The best students were selected for the honor.

The selection process is done blindly — with students providing a tape and college and university band directors selecting the best ones without knowing who the students are or what schools they attend. A second audition is done in person to determine chair placement — with First Chair being the best of the best.

The All State Honor ensembles are held in conjunction with the Music Educators convention which started Thursday and runs through Sunday at the Saroyan Theater in Fresno.

Middle school bands will perform at an 8 p.m. concert Saturday and high school bands start at 10 a.m. Sunday.

All concerts are free and open to the public. They will be held at the William Saroyan Theater at the Fresno Convention Center, 848 M St., Fresno.

Conducting the 2013 All State Honor ensembles will be numerous musical professionals, many with doctorates, including Jamie Shew, Fullerton College; Jeff Jarvis, CSU, Long Beach; Craig Kirchhoff, Minnesota; Bob Ponto, University of Oregon; Scott Hagan, University of Utah; Eric Hammer, University of the Pacific; Michael Stone, Bakersfield City Schools; Raymond Harvey, Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra; and Louis Bergonzi, University of Illinois.