Carol Alvarado, senior at Walter Williams High School, has been accepted into the 2022 All-National Honor Orchestra. Carol will join the double bass section in Bar Harbor, Maryland in November to rehearse and perform with high school orchestra students from across the country. To qualify, Carol had to be one of the top bassists in the state of North Carolina and submitted a separate audition video for the group. This is the highest honor a high school student can achieve in orchestra.
"This is quite an honor not only for her but for our orchestra program as a whole. She demonstrates what can be achieved through consistency and longevity in the orchestra program.. Carol began playing as a 4th grade student at Grove Park Elementary and, now, as a senior has achieved at the national level,” said Veronica Biscocho, Williams High School Orchestra Teacher.
ABSS offers orchestra for 4th and 5th grade students at Grove Park, Hillcrest, and Smith, and 6th grade students at Turrentine. Through a community effort of donations, grants, Orchestra Boosters, and ABSS arts funding, the District works to ensure that every student who wants to learn an instrument has the opportunity to participate in orchestra. As students continue through the program, they see what can be achieved musically and socially through long-term commitment to a skill and to a group. Once students reach the high school orchestra, they hone their musical abilities and participate in events at the county, regional, and state levels. Graduates of the Williams orchestra program have gone on to play in orchestras at UNCG, NC State, Elon, Appalachian, and other collegiate and community ensembles.
You can hear the whole breadth of the Williams Zone Orchestra program at the 4th-12th grade String Fling Concert, Dec. 14, 2022 at Williams High School Auditorium.