EAGLE, IDAHO — Eagle High School's Percussion Ensemble has moved on to the finals in the WGI World Percussion Championship in Dayton, Ohio after taking first place in prelims with a score of 88.7.
- Eagle High School's group will be the first scholastic team from Idaho to compete in this competition.
- They will perform on Thursday, April 18th at 2:51 central time.
- For more information on the competition click here.
- To view the competition live click here.
(Below is the transcript from the broadcast story)
The Eagle High School Percussion Ensemble is playing its way to the WGI World Percussion Championship in Ohio. I'm your Eagle neighborhood reporter Alexander Huddleston and I met up with the group as they prepare to represent the state in a whole new way.
"Honestly, it didn't feel real," said Sophomore Sophia Meyer.
Junior Parker Greason said, "We’re here to compete and show what we can do."
Years of trophies line the hallways of Eagle High School. This year the school's percussion ensemble is hoping to add a new piece of hardware to the case. The group is heading to the WGI World Percussion Championship this week in Ohio, where they will compete with 6 other units and see over 250 units from around the world perform.
"They are going to have the opportunity to see some of the best percussion ensembles in the world performing," said instructor Rob Sullens.
This will be the first time ever that a scholastic team from the state of Idaho will be performing at this competition.
Greason explained, "It's a crazy thing to be able to represent Idaho for this. Most people are just like Idaho is just some small state. They don't have anything going on. We want to show that Idaho isn't just a side state."
The group knows the pressure is on, but that won't stop them from showing out.
"I'm going to be in front of thousands and thousands of people, and people watching around the world. I'm going to be nervous but I'm super excited," exclaimed Meyer.
They have spent the entire year perfecting the performance and a quite unique performance at that.
"Imagine if Silent Night was for Halloween, but was happening more in December, and then for Here Comes Santa Clause, if Santa Clause originated instead of Germany, in Rio de Janeiro, and has Latin flavors and is really exciting," explained Sullens.
"It's honestly really beautiful because you are making an inanimate object sing, finished Meyer.
The group will be competing in prelims on Thursday, and that will determine if they will move on to finals on Friday.
