photo by: contributed

Members of the Free State High School Philharmonic/Symphonic Combined Orchestra are pictured in this contributed photo.

In what their conductor calls one of the highest honors, the Free State High School Philharmonic/Symphonic Combined Orchestra has been chosen to perform in the Kansas City Classic Orchestra and Band Festival.

The free performance, presented by Youth Symphony of Kansas City, will take place at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts on Tuesday.

Free State High School Director of Orchestras Judy Erpelding compared the honor to a sports team playing in the state final. Erpelding said via email the festival showcases the best high school orchestra and band programs from Missouri and Kansas as well as ensembles from Youth Symphony of Kansas City.

“This nomination is (one) of the highest of honors for a high school orchestra program to receive, and I hope our community will join me in both congratulating and supporting these talented and hard-working Lawrence students by attending our performance,” Erpelding said.

photo by: contributed

Free State High School Director of Orchestras Judy Erpelding

The orchestra was selected for the honor in April 2022 based on its performance at the 2022 Kansas State High School Activities Association State Large Group Festival. Erpelding said Free State Orchestra students received perfect scores at the KSHSAA festival from all three judges, and in the following weeks swept the Worlds of Fun Music in the Parks Festival, bringing home both the first place award for string orchestras and the overall winner award for the festival.

The event will include more than 400 musicians as part of two performances, according to the Kauffman Center event page. Erpelding said Free State students have been studying and rehearsing the music they will be performing for the past six months and are excited to share their performance with both the Kansas City and Lawrence communities.

The Free State High School Philharmonic/Symphonic Combined Orchestra will perform at 6 p.m. in Helzberg Hall at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, 1601 Broadway Blvd. in Kansas City, Missouri. Erpelding said the concert should last approximately two hours.

Tickets are free but must be reserved in advance. Reservations can be made on the Kauffman Center website, kauffmancenter.org.