3 Utah students chosen for honor ensembles in national music festival

SPANISH FORK — Three very talented Utah high school musicians get to show their talents at a national music festival.

Palmer Brandt, 16, from Maple Mountain High School, said music speaks for him.

"Music is a way for me to communicate what I feel without having to put it into words and I think it's an easier way for me to do that than actually talking," he said.

Brandt and two other high school students from Utah — Jack Hales, 18, of Herriman, and Tanner Brinkerhoff, 16, of American Fork — were chosen to be part of the Music For All National Festival, which hosts the top student ensembles from across the country. The students traveled to Indianapolis, Indiana, on Tuesday before enduring three long days of rehearsals to be ready for a performance on Saturday.

Brandt and Hales will be performing in the Honor Band of America, which is described by the festival as the "nation's finest student concert honor bands." Brandt was chosen as the only baritone saxophone player in the band, and Hales is one of the trumpet players.

"It's a little bit scary, but also pretty cool. It'll be really exciting to play with a lot of other really good musicians and be able to get straight to like tackling the expressive part of the music rather than just focusing on notes and rhythms," Brandt said.

Hales said it was both surreal and exciting when he found out he had been accepted into the band. He had applied after learning about the band from someone he knew who had done it the previous year.

"I was a little nervous before going because I had a little bit of imposter syndrome, but once I got here, it felt real and exciting," Hales said Thursday after a day of rehearsing. "Preparing was difficult because the music was very foreign to me. All the songs were so difficult, which I am not used to."

The students in the bands were given the sheet music for the performance last month, but they knew they would only have three days to practice with the band in person once they got to the festival.

"It's some of the hardest music I've ever played, it's stupid hard actually. I've been looking at it a ton and trying to learn all these new things. Being able to go and play with the best kids in the country is going to be such a great experience," Brinkheroff told KSL before arriving in Indiana.

Brinkerhoff was chosen to be part of the Jazz Band of America, dubbed "one of the top honor ensembles for young musicians in the nation."

Brinkerhoff is the alto saxophone player for the band, but is also bringing a soprano saxophone, a clarinet and his flute to Indiana as some of the songs he has to play other instruments.

He got the email saying he had been accepted to the Jazz Band of America on Christmas Eve.

"I was super happy and started calling all my friends ... it was like a little Christmas present," he said.

Brinkerhoff said he was excited to go, but also "scared out of my mind" to perform with some of the best musicians in the country. But he also said it's an honor to participate in such an advanced performance.

"Especially with the jazz band, Utah isn't really a music state ... it's mostly like on the East Coast. So representing Utah, I get to tell everyone that Utah does have players and you can actually do stuff in Utah," he said.

Hales agreed, saying it feels awesome to represent Utah's music programs.

"Not only to show others how good I am as a player, but how good Utah is at making competent, professional-level musicians," Hales said.

Despite knowing a week full of hourslong rehearsals and a challenging performance awaited them, the students were so happy to show off their skills and do what they love.

"Performing has always been a musical thing that I really like. I'm not a dancer or a singer or anything, so I feel like playing my instruments actually substitutes dancing or singing, it's like another way to express (myself)," Brinkerhoff said.

Hales said he loves music because there is so much nuance that can make it hard to understand, but once you do, "it becomes one of the most powerful things you have."

"Music has history, emotion, movement, creativity and sound, which make it just as, if not more, powerful than speaking," Hales said.

The students' parents couldn't be prouder of their children. Matthew Brinkerhoff said it has been a "whirlwind," but he just thinks it's amazing his son gets to participate in the festival.

Kara Brandt said she is so happy her son has found his own way to communicate, adding that he has even composed some of his own music, letting people "see the world through his eyes."

"It's just so cool to see his genius just flow through him and to see how his hard work pays off in that excellence. He really is so dedicated. People will say, 'He's so talented,' and I agree that he has a lot of talent, and it's because he works hard. That's why he is here and is in Honor Band of America," she said.

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