Cheney High School Jazz season is racking up trophies

The Cheney High School Jazz Band has had a successful season so far.

The season began with the Eastern Washington University Jazz Dialogue Festival Jan. 13 and 14. CHS Jazz I earned the best trumpet section award and Jake Weisgerber won outstanding trombone soloist.

At the Feb. 4 Bellevue College Jazz Festival, CHS Jazz I tied for the runner-up position with the Garfield Jazz Ensemble. Roosevelt Jazz Ensemble took first. Band director Mike Suhling said he was proud of his band for making it to the final evening performance with those two bands, which are both known for their band programs.

“There were a lot of great bands that didn't make it to the finals,” Suhling said.

Suhling said the Bellevue festival was one of the more competitive the band will do, and there are no divisions by school size. Also at Bellevue, Quindrey Davis-Murphy was named outstanding drum set soloist and Caitlin Foster was outstanding bassist.

Individual CHS Jazz musicians are being recognized locally as well.

Weisgerber and Chris Knox will be featured as soloists in the March 10 “Young Giants of Jazz” concert at the Bing Crosby Theatre in Spokane. Weisgerber and Knox participated in auditions and were selected among the best regional high school jazz musicians to play with the Spokane Jazz Orchestra at the concert, directed by Tom Molter.

For more information on the concert, visit >ww.spokanejazz.org.