“He’s in the top 1% of students I’ve encountered in my career,” high school choral director Mrs. Catherine WIlliamson said.
Baxter Biehl made the National Band in his senior year and will be attending the festival this November. He has advanced through four levels of competitive festivals to make it this far, and his musical educators are thoroughly impressed.
Baxter’s musical success begins with practice.
“For the last 9 years, I have practiced a few thousand hours,” Fleetwood Area High school senior Baxter Biehl said.
His music teachers all agree that Baxter’s work ethic is what allowed him to achieve his goals.
“His work outside the class is so obvious in the classroom,” high school band director Mrs. Elizabeth Mahovsky said.
“Baxter is a dedicated and driven student, which works to his advantage when tackling challenging pieces,” high school orchestra director Mrs. Sarah Shuey, who gained Baxter in the orchestra late in his middle school years and watched him rise through the bass section, said.
Baxter had to make it through four auditions to reach the national level. At the national level, auditions are recorded.
“Recording a video audition can be grueling,” Biehl said.
Taking a video audition can be a long process, and it can take several days to get the perfect take.
The long process paid off for Baxter, however, because he will be attending the national band festival in Maryland on November 3-6.
“I am looking forward to meeting people from around the country and making music with other great musicians,” Biehl said.
Baxter is excited and grateful to be attending this season’s festival.
“Getting this far was definitely not easy, and it is one of my proudest accomplishments,” Biehl said.
The Tiger Times 
Posted on November 17, 2022 by thetigertimes
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