Performance Dates 2022-23

Upcoming Events

2021-2022 AWARDS & ACCOLADES

ALL-STATE BAND/ORCHESTRA MEMBERS (16)

Kali Kaiser, Allyson Ritter, Hyrum Davis, Cooper Taylor, Tyler Webber, Ethan Best, Tyler White, Malak Alkhafaji, Brandy Anderson, Brendan Hilditch, Kristian Bailes, Drake Zinn, Jackson Aoyama, Shota Magick, Annaliesa Shepherd, Esther Kim


AMEA SOLO/ENSEMBLE “TIER III” HONOR RECITAL

Jackson Aoyama – Keiko Abe – Dream of the Cherry Blossoms for Marimba

Mountain Ridge Saxophone Quartet: Braden Lyster, Braden Scott, Cayden Nicholls, Ethan Best – Chris Evans Hass – Polar Vortex Mvmt. 2


AMEA SOLO/ENSEMBLE “BEST IN CLASS”

  • Clarinet – Allyson Ritter – Delmas – Fantasie Italienne
  • Double Reed – Cooper Taylor – Vivaldi – Concerto in E Minor for Bassoon
  • High Brass – Kaylee Carson – H.A. Vandercook – Carnations for Trumpet
  • Low Brass – Drake Zinn – Phillip Sparke – Pantomime for Euphonium
  • Percussion – Jackson Aoyama – Keiko Abe – Dream of the Cherry Blossoms for Marimba
  • Saxophone – Mountain Ridge Sax Quartet (Braden Lyster, Braden Scott, Cayden Nicholls, Ethan Best) – Chris Evans Hass – Polar Vortex Mvmt 2

AREA CONCERT FESTIVAL

  • Wind Ensemble – SUPERIOR WITH DISTINCTION
  • Symphonic Winds – SUPERIOR WITH DISTINCTION
  • Orchestra – SUPERIOR WITH DISTINCTION

ALL-REGION BAND/ORCHESTRA (45)

Jaina Domkus, Hannah Jeon, Jade Marston, Naomi Pinzon, Sarah Cooney, Frankie Perry, Kali Kaiser, Sophia Marchner, Alejandra Larios, Tessa Taylor, Hyrum Davis, Sunaina Reddy, Brooke Bracy, Kaitlyn White, Tyler Webber, Braden Scott, Ethan Best, Danieh Alani (alt), Benjamin Krotonsky, Cayden Nicholls, Braden Lyster (alt), Shreya Vijayvargiya, Taylor Jacot, Yousif Alkhafaji, Cooper Taylor,  Elexis BoDude, Kaylee Carson, Averie Downey, Shelby Long, Baker Rosas, Isabella Cairns, Jonah Cain, Malak Alkhafaji, Arda Gulser, Kaysi Reimer, Tyler White, Brandy Anderson, Drake Zinn, Kristian Bailes, Brendan Hilditch, Noah Harris, Callum Murdoch, Shota Magick, Jackson Aoyama, Annaliesa Shepherd, Aiden Bowers, Esther Kim

Rock The Ridge WINNERS

MRHS Pride of the West is the 2021 ABODA Division 1 Bronze Medalist!

The band finished 3rd at the Arizona State Marching Band Championships.


AzMBA Class 4A Championships

Pride of the West won 2nd Place


ABODA State Marching Semi-Finals

Pride of the West finished 3rd


BARRY GOLDWATER INVITATIONAL – 1st Place, 85.8

Outstanding Music Performance, Outstanding Visual Performance, Outstanding Auxiliary, Outstanding General Effect, Dr. Michael Andersen Sweepstakes Award, George Hattendorf Award


CORONA DEL INVITATIONAL – Third Place, 84.088

Outstanding General Effect


MOUNTAIN RIDGE INVITATIONAL – First Place, 77.925

Outstanding Music Performance, Outstanding Visual Performance, Outstanding Auxiliary, Outstanding Percussion, Outstanding General Effect


HIGHLAND INVITATIONAL – Second Place, 72.325

Outstanding Music

Midwest Clinic 2022 award

SAXOPHONE QUARTET SEMI-FINALS performance at The Coltman Chamber Music Competition, Austin Texas, March 26, 2022

SAXOPHONE QUARTET performance at The Midwest Clinic, Chicago Illinois, December 15, 2021

Midwest Preview Concert! Wed 11/17 at 7:00 pm

The Mountain Ridge HS Sax Quartet and the Highland HS Symphonic Strings will preview their Midwest Clinic performances Wednesday, November 17 at 7:00 PM in the Mountain Ridge High School Auditorium.

This will be an incredible concert, featuring the very best in high school music, and ASU saxophone professor, Christopher Creviston. Hope to see you there!

The Mountain Ridge High School Saxophone Quartet and the Highland High School Symphonic Strings are representing Arizona as Featured Ensembles at The Midwest Clinic in Chicago, Illinois this December! The Clinic is December 14-18, 2021 at McCormick Place West and showcases the finest School and Professional Ensembles in the world. Annually held in Chicago since its inception in 1946, The Midwest Clinic is the world’s largest instrumental music education conference and is now attended annually by an international audience of more than 17,000 music educators, students, and professionals.

Mountain Ridge Band Director Aaron Vogel and Highland High School Symphonic Strings Directors Bill Bitter, Amy Bennett, and Ryan Smith are thrilled to be sharing this concert with each other and the community!

We are so proud of the students of the Band, and beyond blessed to have a supportive staff, parents, community and Administration that values music education for our students! For more information, contact MRHS Band Director Aaron Vogel at aaron.vogel@dvusd.org or visit www.midwestclinic.org.

You can also see a video promotion of the caliber of performance ensembles on the Midwest Clinic’s YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/3xR48joC6sk

The Corona Del Sol Marching Invitational is Saturday, October 23rd.

This is an all day event at Corona Del Sol High School. Address: 1001 E Knox Rd, Tempe, AZ 85284

MRHS is scheduled to perform at 6:45pm. If you plan to attend please arrive in advance in order to allow time to park.

Understanding The CHARMS Financial Statement

Volunteer Training August 4th

Concert Information

Thank you Roth Family Charitable Foundation!

Welcome Mr. De La Cruz!

Mountain Ridge High School and the Mountain Ridge High School Bands are happy to announce that Ivan De La Cruz has been appointed as our new Assistant Director. Ivan brings a wealth of experience in music education and arts administration to our campus. Before moving to Arizona and the West Valley suburbs of Phoenix in February of 2020, Ivan De La Cruz served as the Associate Director of Bands and Visual Program Director for the Dublin Coffman High School Band in Columbus, OH from 2014-2019. De La Cruz helped lead the band to two Bands of America (BOA) Outstanding Visual Performance Awards (2016 & 2017), as well as its first class (AAA) Championship at the BOA Canton Regional in 2017. Prior to moving to Columbus, De La Cruz spent the previous four years teaching in The Woodlands, TX as an Assistant Director of The Woodlands High School Band. During his tenure at The Woodlands, the program was a consistent finalist at the Bands of America Grand National Championships and was crowned the 2013 Grand National Champion.

De la Cruz’s performance career includes time as a member of the Blue Knights Drum & Bugle Corps from 2001-2002 and the Cavaliers Drum & Bugle Corps in 2003. As an educator, De la Cruz served on the Cavaliers’ visual staff from 2004-2010, and the Santa Clara Vanguard visual staff from 2011-2019 before moving into his current role as Corps Director with the organization.

In addition to his work as an educator, De La Cruz also works as a visual designer for numerous schools throughout Texas, Mississippi, Ohio, Arizona and New Mexico, where a multitude of these programs are successful both at the local and state level. He serves as a marching band adjudicator, consultant, and clinician throughout the country. He has also served as a visual judge in the Carolina Winter Ensemble Association, Mid East Performance Association, and the Indiana Percussion Association over the last 5 years. Currently, De la Cruz lives in Goodyear, AZ with his lovely wife Alyssa and their two dachshunds – Charlie and Lilly.