Bach to Bebop Music School
Honor Band Recognition
All County · All District · All State · All Region Jazz
University Acceptances · Jazz ensembles (TYJB) · Triangle Youth Music ensembles
John's high school students have been accepted into competitive music programs at:
Specific student acceptances include:
Ben Azevedo — Belmont University Commercial Music Performance (saxophone) & UNC Greensboro Jazz Performance Program
Marissa Jensen — Berklee School of Music & UNC Wilmington
Bob Longest — ECU Music Program
(Student) — NC School of the Arts, Fall 2009
(Student) — UNT Jazz Camp (under Alan Baylock) full scholarship, Spring 2026
One of John's current high school jazz students has compiled an extraordinary record of achievement:
HS = High School · No code = Middle School
Hannah Badger, a high school sophomore, earned All Region Jazz A Band on Tenor (All State Jazz Eligible) and a double placement in the UNC-G Honor Band on both alto and tenor saxophone. Also awarded a full scholarship to UNT Jazz Camp under director Alan Baylock. Additional achievements include 1st Tenor in the Triangle Youth Jazz Band, Wind Ensemble 1st Tenor (as both a freshman and continuing sophomore), All-District on alto, and Featured Quartet Soloist in the school's award-winning marching band show.
A student earned 2nd chair All State clarinet. Two additional students placed in All District Symphonic Band.
A middle school student earned 2nd alternate (6th place) in the All State bass clarinet competition out of 16 students from across the state. She posted the 2nd highest scales score in the competition and finished just 5 points short of a full All State Band placement.
All State: A student earned 13th chair Bb clarinet; another earned 2nd alternate flute. A student also joined the Triangle Youth Jazz Band on alto saxophone.
| Achievement | Instrument |
|---|---|
| 11/12 Symphonic Band — 3rd chair | Alto Saxophone |
| 11/12 Jazz Band — 4th chair | Alto Saxophone |
| 11/12 Jazz Band — 2nd alternate | Alto Saxophone |
| 11/12 Wind Ensemble — 5th chair (2.5 pts from All State eligible; student also earned 2nd alternate alto sax as a doubler) | Flute |
| 9/10 — 5th chair (3 pts from All State eligible) | Flute |
A middle school student earned 5th chair All State flute. At the 2018 RAFA (Raleigh Area Flute Association) Solo and Ensemble Festival, seven of John's student flute competitors earned 3 Superior ratings (trophy) and 4 Excellent ratings (medal).
| Achievement | Instrument |
|---|---|
| 11/12 Wind Ensemble — 2nd chair (All State Eligible) | Alto Saxophone |
| 11/12 Wind Ensemble — 4th chair | Alto Saxophone |
| 11/12 Symphonic Band — 4th chair | Alto Saxophone |
| 9/10 Wind Ensemble — 5th chair (All State Eligible) | Bb Clarinet |
| 9/10 Wind Ensemble — 13th chair | Bb Clarinet |
| 9/10 Wind Ensemble — 15th chair | Bb Clarinet |
| 9/10 Wind Ensemble — 18th chair | Bb Clarinet |
| MS Symphonic Band — 4th chair (All State Eligible) | Flute |
| MS Concert Band — 2nd chair | Alto Saxophone |
| MS Concert Band — 4th chair | Flute |
| MS Concert Band — 17th chair | Clarinet |
| MS — 2nd alternate | Alto Saxophone |
| MS — 5th alternate | Alto Saxophone |
| Achievement | Student | Instrument |
|---|---|---|
| 11/12 — 1st alternate | Quinn Sapp | Alto Saxophone |
| 9/10 — 2nd alternate | (student) | Alto Saxophone |
| MS — 10th chair | (student) | Bb Clarinet |
| MS — 1st alternate (made All State) | (student) | Bb Clarinet |
| Achievement | Instrument |
|---|---|
| 9/10 Wind Ensemble — 3rd chair (All State Eligible) | Clarinet |
| 9/10 Wind Ensemble — 3rd chair | Alto Saxophone |
| 9/12 Symphonic Band — 1st chair | Alto Saxophone |
| 9/12 Symphonic Band — 3rd chair | Alto Saxophone |
| 9/12 Symphonic Band — 2nd chair | Flute |
| MS Symphonic Band — 1st chair (All State Eligible) | Saxophone |
| MS Concert Band — 2nd chair | Tenor Saxophone |
| MS Concert Band — 5th chair | Clarinet |
| NCMEA All District Jazz — 1st chair (All State Eligible) | Baritone Saxophone |
| NC Philharmonic Jazz Ensemble I (HS) | Tenor Saxophone |
| NC Philharmonic Jazz Ensemble II (MS) | Alto Saxophone |
| NC Philharmonic Jazz Ensemble II (MS) | Tenor Saxophone |
Quinn Sapp — one of John's finest sax students, in the same league as Mariela Versola, Jessica Mohr, and Michaela Hinks. Taught for 6 years; made All State as a sophomore. Performed Carnival of Venice from memory, complete with double-tonguing in the variations. Accepted to Appalachian State University, Fall 2016. The 9/10 All State alternate also earned admission to Governor's School on saxophone, 1st chair in the top band at UNCW Honor Band Festival, and 2nd chair at UNCG Carolina Band Festival.
| Achievement | Instrument |
|---|---|
| All State placement | Alto Saxophone |
| All State placement | Clarinet |
| 3rd chair All District → 1st chair All State | Flute |
| Achievement | Instrument |
|---|---|
| 11/12 Wind Ensemble — 3rd chair (All State Eligible → 1st chair All State) | Flute |
| 9/10 Symphonic Band — 2nd chair (All State Eligible) | Alto Saxophone |
| 9/10 Symphonic Band — 2nd chair (All State Eligible) | Clarinet |
| 9/10 Symphonic Band — 12th chair | Clarinet |
| 9/10 Symphonic Band — 9th chair | Flute |
| MS Symphonic Band — 2nd chair | Tenor Saxophone |
| MS Concert Band — 10th chair | Clarinet |
| MS Concert Band — 7th chair | Flute |
| Achievement | Instrument |
|---|---|
| 11/12 Wind Ensemble — 9th chair | Flute |
| Achievement | Instrument |
|---|---|
| Triangle Youth Jazz Ensemble — 2nd chair | Alto Saxophone |
| Achievement | Student | Instrument |
|---|---|---|
| 11/12 — 1st chair | Jessica Mohr | Tenor Saxophone |
| 9/10 — 7th chair | (student) | Flute |
| MS — 5th chair | (student) | Clarinet |
| Jazz Band — 2nd alternate | (student) | Tenor Saxophone |
Jessica Mohr earned 1st chair All State tenor sax in 3 of her 4 high school years — a remarkable record. She was accepted into the Elon University music performance program. The middle school clarinet student reached 5th chair All State in just a 2-year timeframe.
A student earned All State tenor saxophone.
A high school freshman won 1st chair All State tenor sax. A high school junior won All District Band alto saxophone and UNCG Honors Band 1st chair alto sax. A 7th-grade middle school student won 3rd chair All State bass clarinet and All District Symphonic Band bass and Bb clarinet. Two middle school flute students made Concert Band All District.
A high school sophomore won 1st chair All State alto sax with the highest score of any instrument in the competition. An 8th-grade middle schooler won 1st chair All State tenor sax, also with the highest score of any instrument. A high school senior won All District Band saxophone. Another middle schooler won 1st place Concert Band All District on tenor sax. 6th and 8th-grade clarinet players made All District and the Triangle Youth Orchestra.
A high school freshman won All State alto sax symphonic band and All State jazz band — a remarkable double. A high school senior won All District Band. Two 7th-grade middle schoolers took the top two symphonic band tenor sax positions at All District. A student won the RAFA flute division.
| Achievement | Student | Instrument |
|---|---|---|
| 3rd chair symphonic band | Mariela Versola (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| Achievement | Student | Instrument |
|---|---|---|
| 9–12 band — HS | Rachel Turnbell (12th grade) | Tenor sax |
| 1st alternate 9–12 band — HS | Sarah LaWall (10th grade) | Baritone sax |
| 1st chair symphonic band | Mariela Versola (8th grade) | Tenor sax |
| 1st chair symphonic band | Mariela Versola (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| 4th chair symphonic band | Robert Warner (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| 2nd chair concert band | Sherry Tang (8th grade) | Flute |
| Achievement | Student | Instrument |
|---|---|---|
| 1st chair symphonic band | Mariela Versola (8th grade) | Tenor sax |
| 2nd chair symphonic band | Mariela Versola (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| 8th chair symphonic band | Sherry Tang (8th grade) | Flute |
| 2nd chair concert band | Luke Price (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| 1st alternate | Robert Warner (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| 6th alternate | Sherry Tang (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| Achievement | Student | Instrument |
|---|---|---|
| 3rd chair symphonic band | Mariela Versola (7th grade) | Tenor sax |
| Achievement | Student | Instrument |
|---|---|---|
| 5th chair symphonic band — HS | Bob Longest (12th grade) | Alto sax |
| 2nd chair symphonic band — HS | Rachel Turnbull (11th grade) | Tenor sax |
| 7th alternate — HS | Aaron Morrison (10th grade) | Alto sax |
| 1st alternate — HS (Johnston County) | Ecklund Maynard (9th grade) | Flute |
| 5th chair symphonic band | Taylor Webb (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| 1st chair symphonic band | Mariela Versola (7th grade) | Tenor sax |
| 4th chair symphonic band | Mariela Versola (7th grade) | Alto sax |
| 1st alternate | Adam Carrera (8th grade) | Baritone sax |
| 14th alternate | Luke Price (7th grade) | Alto sax |
| Achievement | Student | Instrument |
|---|---|---|
| 2nd chair symphonic band | Mariela Versola (7th grade) | Alto sax |
| 3rd chair symphonic band | Taylor Webb (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| Concert band | Adam Carrera (8th grade) | Baritone sax |
| 1st alternate | Deborah Kiserov (6th grade) | Alto sax |
| 3rd alternate | Luke Price (7th grade) | Alto sax |
| Achievement | Student | Instrument |
|---|---|---|
| 4th chair symphonic — HS | Bob Longest (11th grade) | Alto sax |
| 5th chair symphonic | Lee Sommerfield (8th grade) | Flute |
| 7th chair symphonic | Audrey Chang (7th grade) | Flute |
| 10th chair symphonic | Peter Zhu (8th grade) | Flute |
| 2nd chair concert | Michele Lewis (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| 2nd alternate | Matt Geiger (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| 8th alternate | Cole Calva (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| 7th alternate | Richard Yount (8th grade) | Tenor sax |
| 10th alternate | Jacob Dekker (8th grade) | Clarinet |
| Achievement | Student | Instrument |
|---|---|---|
| 6th chair symphonic | Audrey Chang (7th grade) | Flute |
| 3rd chair concert | Lee Sommerfield (8th grade) | Flute |
| 1st chair concert | Jason Cohen (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| 4th chair concert | Matt Geiger (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| 4th alternate | Mariela Versola (6th grade) | Alto sax |
| 5th alternate | Cole Calva (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| Alternate | Jacob Dekker (8th grade) | Clarinet |
| Alternate | Richard Yount (8th grade) | Tenor sax |
| Achievement | Student | Instrument |
|---|---|---|
| 2nd chair symphonic | Aaron Morrison (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| 4th chair symphonic | Matt Geiger (7th grade) | Alto sax |
| Alternate | Roger Babson (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| Concert band | Lee Sommerfield (8th grade) | Flute |
| Achievement | Student | Instrument |
|---|---|---|
| 3rd chair concert | C. Grimes (8th grade) | Flute |
| 1st chair concert | A. Morrison (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| 4th chair concert | Matt Geiger (7th grade) | Alto sax |
| 1st alternate | Roger Babson (8th grade) | Alto sax |
| 4th alternate | V. Edebach (8th grade) | Alto sax |
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