CHS Orchestra Earns Superior Rating

Members of the Chillicothe High School Orchestra earned the highest rating possible for their performance at the OMEA State Competition, this past weekend.

The orchestra performs at the Annual Black History Month Assembly (Oscar Mikus/CAVS Media).

The Ohio Music Education Association's competition is one in which the students and their director perform for three different judges, who then individually give the orchestra an overall score of a I (Superior), II (Excellent), III (Good), IV (Fair), or V (Poor). After they perform, they are sent to a separate room to prepare for the sight-reading portion, which they are only given eight minutes to prepare for and are once again given a score by the judge.

Directed by Mr. Thomas Watts, the ensemble earned a Superior rating at the contest. According to Watts, this was the first superior the CHS Orchestra has received since 2003.

“Before the event, I was extremely excited and anxious to discover how the students would perform," said Watts. "They’d given me everything they had in the classroom, and they certainly did the same on stage."

Watts commended his students for remaining diligent in learning the music, which they began rehearsing in January -- a month hit hard by snow days and delays.

The CHS Orchestra performs at the Annual Black History Month Assembly (Alexis Lightle/CAVS Media).

"Their dedication, pride, and camaraderie that day showed me what it means to be a Cavalier," said Watts. "As their director, I’m nothing but proud of these students."