By NICK PERKINS, Student Reporter
NWOSU is hosting the NWOSU Guitar Festival on 1 April on the first and second floor of the fine arts building between 8AM and 11AM.
It is a competition for guitarists to come and perform a solo for a chance to gain experience and win an award.
The guitar festival is a new idea that started because the guitar is not an instrument that is allowed to perform at the OSSAA band district solo ensemble contest.
“So there is certainly a need in the area to have a solo ensemble contest for guitar,” Dr. Marc Decker, Assistant Professor of Fine Arts, Director of Instrumental Music and Music Education said.
The festival has just shy of 100 entries so far. The students participating are mainly from the northwestern region. Many of them are coming from Enid to get a chance to perform.
The contest is for middle schoolers and high schoolers only. The youngest allowed to perform is 6th graders and the oldest allowed to perform is high school seniors.
The contest will not be open to the public because they are performing solo acts and not with other performers.
However, there will be an awards ceremony after the Festival at 11a.m. in the fine arts building after the contest that will be open for the public to come and see. The awards ceremony will have music playing and the judge will pick the top 3 performers of the day, and they will perform again for everyone.
In the future, NWOSU may put together a piano contest for students to compete and peform at. The piano is another instrument that the OSSAA band district does not allow to perform at the solo ensemble contest.
Students are encouraged to come out and enjoy competing in the contest.