The Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center will ring with the upbeat melodies and grand-sounding tunes of the Jazz Band I during the 100th year anniversary of Texas Music Education Association (TMEA) on Feb. 12.
TMEA advocates for music education, the arts in public school and higher education. For many, TMEA offers a platform to sharpen students’ artistic capabilities and compete with others in the state of Texas. Each year students from all over the state gather to participate in the TMEA conference to encourage a passion for the arts and offer quality musical experiences.
TAMUK students were humbled by the opportunity to be part of the opening night at the TMEA conference. The process to be selected is extremely competitive, but the countless hours of practice finally paid off for Jazz Band I.
“It was pretty exciting. I was speechless at first and then I was like this is a great opportunity to go out there and perform, especially because this is the 100th year anniversary that they are having this conference in San Antonio. For us to be chosen on this specific year was even more than an honor,” Jesus Espinoza, music performance major, said.
The Jazz Band I submitted a couple of recordings to the TMEA committee where judges blindly listen to bands and choose bands to perform solely on the quality of music.
“This is one of the biggest honors we can achieve as the competition to perform at the TMEA convention is very stiff. TMEA chooses only one college jazz band to perform at the convention each year,” Paul Hageman, Director of Jazz Band I, said.
TAMUK’s Jazz Band I is no stranger to the big stage, this is the fifth time they have been selected to perform at TMEA.
They have been selected in 1995, 2003, 2009, 2013, and now 2020.
Since notice of their invitation to participate in TMEA, the Jazz Band I has been practicing to solidify their performance.
“Overall our goal is always to aim for perfection, especially for this upcoming performance. You just got to leave it all on stage, you are in a different state of mind, you are there to perform… Once it’s over and you know that you did everything that you could and you gave it your all, then you know it was great,” Abel Gonzalez, music education major, said.
Jazz Band I is looking forward to performing and showing their Javelina Pride in the TMEA conference.