DHS choir students selected to All-National Honor Choir

During the 2019–20 school year, along with other accomplished music students across the United States and overseas in military base schools, John Raskopf from Darien High School (DHS) practiced with dedication to gain a part in his local, district, and state music honor ensembles.

This week Raskopf joins the “best of the best” for the National Association for Music Education (NAfME) 2020 All-National Honor Ensembles (ANHE) Virtual Event January 7– 8, 2021, as a tenor in the 2020 ANHE mixed chorus.

The first-ever All-National Honor Ensembles virtual event will include several rehearsals with the 2020 ANHE Conductors and workshops with renowned clinicians. Each ensemble will create and record a final performance that will be premiered online during the National Association for Music Education’s (NAfME) Music In Our Schools Month® in March 2021.

Raskopf is currently a sophomore at DHS, where he sings tenor in the DHS Tudor Singers under the direction of Christopher Andrade. He studies voice privately with Kathryn Amyotte.

Raskopf previously sang in the 2018 Connecticut Western Region Middle School Music Festival as an alto, and was a member of the Middlesex Middle School vocal groups Camerata and Viva Voce under the direction of Kimberly Sadler and Rebecca Parnoff, respectively. In 2015 he performed in the 6th Annual Connecticut Music Educators Association (CMEA) Elementary Honors Choir while a student at Tokeneke Elementary School.

Raskopf also is a member of the DHS Percussion Ensemble and Theatre 308, the DHS drama club. He composed original music for the group’s November 2020 production
of The Pandemic Project and the fall 2019 production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time, for which he was nominated for a 2020 Halo Award with collaborator Sophie Gilbert. Also an actor, Raskopf most recently performed the title role in in the 2019 Musical Theater Workshop/ Darien Summer School production of Willy Wonka Jr.

DHS senior Eleanor Chase also qualified for the 2020 ANHE mixed chorus, but was unable to participate due to schedule conflicts.

Chase and Raskopf qualified for the ANHE mixed chorus alongside just 22 other students from Connecticut and 241 vocalists across the nation.

"It is a tremendous honor to be selected to an All-National Honors Ensemble," says Colleen Thompson, Director of Music in Darien.  "The selection process is extremely competitive.  John and Eleanor are among the most talented and hard working choral musicians in the country.  Congratulations to them, and to DHS choral director Chris Andrade who prepared them for the audition."

The All-National Honor Ensembles performers represent collaboration and creativity in its highest musical form. The All-National Honor Ensembles consist of a concert band, symphony orchestra, mixed choir, jazz ensemble, guitar ensemble, and modern band (now in its second year). Students were chosen through an audition process.

Selected students will rehearse a challenging repertoire in preparation for performing under the direction of six of the most prominent conductors in the United States: Frances Fonza (Mixed Choir); Nobuyoshi Yasuda (Symphony Orchestra); Rodney Dorsey (Concert Band); Todd Stoll with Terell Stafford (Jazz Ensemble); Chuck Hulihan (Guitar Ensemble); and Tony Sauza (Modern Band). All conductors have received top honors in their field and will spend several days rehearsing with students before the concert.

Names, schools, and states, as well as music directors, of the 552 students named to the 2020 All-National Honor Ensemble are available at nafme.org/ANHE.

National Association for Music Education, among the world’s largest arts education organizations, is the only association that addresses all aspects of music education. NAfME advocates at the local, state, and national levels; provides resources for teachers, parents, and administrators; hosts professional development events; and offers a variety of opportunities for students and teachers. The Association has supported music educators at all teaching levels for more than a century. With more than 60,000 members teaching millions of students nationwide, the organization is the national voice of music education in the United States.

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