Northwest Homeschool Band receives awards, prepares for concert

Northwest Homeschool Band receives awards, prepares for concert

PORT ANGELES — Prize-winning members of the Northwinds Homeschool Jazz and Concerts Bands are preparing to present a free local community concert at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 20.

The concert will be at Independent Bible Church 116 E. Ahlvers Road, Port Angeles.

The Northwinds Homeschool Jazz Band, led by director Dan Tutton, recently placed first in the 1-A Division at the 55th Annual Clark College Jazz Festival, held Jan. 25-27 in Vancouver, Wash.

Northwinds trumpet player Adam Kennedy and tenor saxophonist Tristan Lowman each were awarded Outstanding Musician Awards for their respective instrumental solos.

The Jazz Band is comprised of local homeschooled students from the Port Angeles and Sequim areas. The band rehearses twice weekly in Port Angeles.

The Jazz Band competed against both public and private schooled students at the Vancouver festival. The high school 1-A Division is comprised of schools with up to 525 students in grades 10-12.

The Clark College Jazz Festival has hosted the largest jazz festival in southwest Washington for over 50 years, band organizers said.

Always the last weekend in January, the festival attracts more than 60 middle and high school instrumental jazz ensembles, and over 1,200 student jazz musicians for the three-day competition.

During the day, groups perform to, and receive instruction from, a panel of adjudicators made up of jazz musicians and educators. Student bands compete for the opportunity to return for the evening finals and a chance to be awarded first-, second -or third-place.

Northwinds Jazz and Concert Bands participated in the Anaheim Heritage Festival in 2017, where they received three gold awards, one silver award and one maestro award.

The concert bands also performed at the Segerstrom Hall in Costa Mesa, Calif. — a Festival of Gold invitation-only event honoring veterans of the Vietnam War.

More in News

PAHS class of 1975 reunion planned

The Port Angeles High School Class of 1975 is… Continue reading

Lower Elwha Klallm Tribal Chairwoman Frances Charles, left, speaks about the Paddle to Elwha 2025 canoe journey as Carmen Watson-Charles, the tribe’s cultural manager, holds an informational pamphlet during a presentation to the Port Angeles Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
Thousands expected for canoe journey this month

Tribe anticipates speeches, songs and traditional dance

Glass recycling returns to Jeffco

Port Townsend, Quilcene locations available

Port of Port Townsend OKs update to its strategic plan

Commissioners discuss economic development

Reservoir project to start this weekend

Lower water pressure expected through Aug. 1

Forks institutes voluntary water conservation measures

The city of Forks is requesting residents to follow voluntary… Continue reading

Resurfacing project begins on Priest Road

Work crews contracted by the city of Sequim have begun… Continue reading

Mandy Miller of Port Angeles and other members of her family spent some time over the Fourth of July weekend picking eight pounds of strawberries at the Graysmarsh Farms north of Sequim. Raspberries will soon though reach their peak picking season, and both are available at Graysmarsh. (Dave Logan/for Peninsula Daily News)
Berry picking

Mandy Miller of Port Angeles and other members of her family spent… Continue reading

Peninsula counties awarded $5M in grants

Funding to cover easements, equipment

Port of Port Angeles to forge ahead with terminal upgrade plans

Design phase would help envision future opportunities

The Northwest Watershed Institute purchased 81 acres for conservation and stewardship in the Tarboo Valley for inclusion in its 500-acre Tarboo Wildlife Preserve. (John Gussman)
Tarboo valley land set aside for preservation

Nearly 500 acres now part of wildlife preserve

Emily Simmons of Port Angeles, a member of the Surfriders Foundation, collects fireworks debris from along Ediz Hook Road in Port Angeles on Saturday. Although fireworks have been banned in the city of Port Angeles, many people used them illegally, leaving behind trash and spent casings and tasking volunteers to pick up the remains. A group from 4PA performed similar cleanup duty on another portion of the hook. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
Cleanup efforts

Emily Simmons of Port Angeles, a member of the Surfriders Foundation, collects… Continue reading