Last Friday and Saturday were big days for the St. Dominic Performing Arts. Concert band, jazz band and choir members traveled 376 miles to Cincinnati, Ohio to compete in the 2019 Music in the Parks choir and band competition.

The weekend was a huge success for St. Dominic, winning first overall with a superior rating in jazz and concert band and third place with a superior rating for choir. Along with these accolades, the Crusaders had two individual students receive recognition. Freshman Quint Gholson received an award for outstanding jazz soloist, and junior Maria Klassen received an award for outstanding student accompanist.

“I am very honored to have received an award for doing something that I love, and I’m proud of St. Dominic for all our achievements,” Klassen said.

Before the performance in front of the judges, the band and choir got to work with professors at the University of Dayton.

“Dr. Hankle was super fun and taught us new singing techniques to help us get a better score at the competition,” senior Carissa Schultz said.

The band and choir also got to enjoy a day at Kings Island Amusement Park riding rides, playing games, eating food and hanging out.

“It’s a better version of Six Flags St. Louis,” freshman Jacob Moore said.

All in all, it’s clear that our St. Dominic musicians’ hard work paid off, coming home with a giant amount of hardware for the trophy case.