Musicians from all over Texas travelled to the University of Texas at Austin for the Texas State Solo and Ensemble Contest (TSSEC), in which they competed for a superior rating. Students who advanced from the region level with a superior rating performed at this competition.

“I thought [TSSEC] was a really great experience,” Emily Tran ‘21 said. “I’m so proud of everyone’s hard work into our quartet and I had a lot of fun performing with my friends. I’m excited for future solo and ensemble competitions because it gives me a great feeling to perform.”

Students reported to the warm-up room approximately one hour before their performance time. After warming up, students headed to check in to their rooms and turn in their original music scores of the solos and ensembles for the judges.

“Performing at TSSEC was a new experience and was kind of fun to be honest. I did it with friends so that made it less nerve-wrecking,” Linsy Stephen ‘22 said. “It was also nice to hear other people from all over Texas practicing their own solos and ensembles.”

Musicians then played for their judges and soon received their ratings online. Out of 23 solos and ensembles from Westwood, six received a superior rating and many others obtained an excellent rating.

“The results are always something to look forward to, but just the process of the whole thing is incomparable to the satisfaction of the results,” Stephen said. “I’m excited for future ensembles and maybe even solos and hope to do another ensemble with my friends next year.”

Results from the competition can be accessed here.