Los Alamos Middle School band. Courtesy photoLAPS News:
Over the past few weeks, the choir and band programs at the Los Alamos Middle and High School have been busy competing in their respective state contests.
The State Choir Contest was April 13 and 14 at V Sue Cleveland High School in Rio Rancho where both the middle and high school choirs performed.
“The overall event was full of very tough competition,” Choir Director Jason Rutledge said. The students spent a full semester preparing as well as hours outside of school. The hard work paid off, however, as LAMS Hawk Choir came in 3rd Place for the middle school category.
Rutledge also directs the high school choir, who performed tremendously: LAHS Schola Cantorum came in 2nd Place for 5A and LAHS Bel Canto came in 2nd Place in the A-6A Treble Choir category.
Los Alamos Middle School Band competed in the middle school division of the State Concert Band Contest April 19 at Volcano Vista High School in Albuquerque. The students spent a great deal of time preparing for the event, including an all day “Prep Clinic” April 14 where they had the opportunity to work with 10 expert clinicians from all over New Mexico.
According to LAMS Band Director Ryan Finn, “The music they performed was very high level and quite challenging.” The students played very well and were rewarded with an “Excellent” rating. The complete list of rankings can be found on the official New Mexico Activities Association website: https://www.nmact.org/
The LAHS Band also participated in the state competition and received excellent marks. This year, there were no state orchestra contests; however, students and staff are looking forward to the upcoming orchestra concert at 6 p.m. Thursday, May 3, at the Duane Smith Auditorium.
Los Alamos MS Hawk Choir. Courtesy photo
Los Alamos HS Schola Cantorum. Courtesy photo
Los Alamos HS Bel Canto. Courtesy photo 
2018 Choir State Contest Trophies. Courtesy photo