Atlanta Music Teachers Association presented its 3rd annual Romantic Festival and Competition on Sunday, October 10, at Southern Pianos. There were five students from MWPS performing in this event, and a total of about 200 students from the Atlanta area participating.

Each students must play two pieces from the Romantic era, and are judged based on their expression and interpretation of the music. Those who are chosen as "Winners" go on to perform for the Winner Recital, and receive a cash award.

Congratulations to Asena, Ayla, Charlie, India, and Matthew for putting in the extra effort required to participate in such an event. To prepare for a competition takes a lot of extra practice, and help from the families to support their efforts.

The next time you see Matthew, give him an extra pat on the back for winning his division! The judge for this category said of Matthew's playing, "His expression was very imaginative and improvisatory. He played with emotion that you don't usually hear from a child his age." That's pretty cool, right?

The feedback the judge gave to all the students is priceless, for both me the teacher and the student. The constructive criticism gives us more direction on moving forward with these pieces and gives us deeper insight into the music we are working on. Overall, these judged performances put each student on a brand new plateau of musicianship.

When you come to the recital, you will be able to hear a few selections from this competition, and hopefully you will be just as impressed as the judge!

Here are some judging highlights: