Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Students from Advance and Clemmons earned National Federation of Music Clubs Festival Gold Cups from the NFMC Junior Festival for 2024 at Wake Forest University.

Across North Carolina, there are 13 NFMC Junior Festival events with more than 4,000 students participating, sponsored by the National Federation of Music Clubs and designed to give musicians of all levels and abilities the opportunity to perform and receive yearly evaluations in a non-competitive environment.

Participation promotes music study, stimulates interest in the musical literature of the USA and the world, and encourages each student to reach a high standard of musical achievement.

Their NFMC Festival Gold Cup program is nationally recognized and honors outstanding and excellent musicianship skills in all areas of music.  Festival Gold Cups are earned in three year increments if a student earns a score of Superior for each of three consecutive years.

The following local students earned their NFMC Festival Gold Cups.

• Mallory Andrews is finishing her eighth grade year at Ellis Middle and will attend Davie High in the fall.  Her parents are Adam and Allison Andrews of Advance. Mallory earned her second level (30 points) NFMC Festival Gold Cup in Music Theory.  She is in her seventh year working toward earning the 45 point cups in Hymn Playing, American Patriotic/Folk Songs and Piano Solo and scored a Superior in all of her 2024 events.

Mallory loves dancing and has been taking dance since she was 3 at In Motion Dance Studio, where she has performed on the competitive dance team for the past two years.  She plays clarinet in the Ellis Middle Band and is a member of Hillsdale Methodist Church in Advance.

• Katelynn Beadle is a rising homeschooled Junior and will be taking classes at Forsyth Tech in the fall.  She plans to graduate high school with an associate degree and pursue a degree and career in health care.  She enjoys reading, weight lifting, crochet and playing the guitar.

Katelynn is a member of the Church of Latter Day Saints, where she also plays the piano and organ; and she is the daughter of David and Jeanette Beadle of Clemmons. She is a consistent recipient of superior scores from the NFMC Wake Forest Festival. She has participated for the past six years, and this year earned three 30 point festival gold cups in:  American Patriotic/Folk songs, Hymns and Music Theory. She received this year’s highest numeric scores in the events of Hymns and AP/FS during the Wake Forest festival.

• Garrison Hewitt is completing his sixth grade year at Ellis Middle, the grandson of Anthony and Sandra Carbone and Lorelei and Gary Hewitt. His parents are Brett and Ashley Hewitt of Advance.

Outside of music, Garrison is interested in sports, lacrosse, basketball and cub scouts. He also plays trumpet in the Ellis Middle Band.

He competed in his fifth year at the NFMC Junior Festival this year and earned Superiors in all five of his events.  This is his first year to earn a Festival Gold Cup in Piano Duet. His duet partner is his sister, Viola Hewitt, who also earned her 15 point cup in Piano Duet.  Viola is completing her 8th grade year at Ellis Middle School and will be attending Davie High in the fall.  Viola also plays in the Ellis Middle band on the saxophone.

She enjoys participating in dance, track, scouts and karate. Viola is on track to earn her 2nd level Gold Cups in Piano Solo, Hymns, Music theory and AP/FS in next year’s festival.

• Alex Hirata is the son of Tak and Jennifer Hirata of Advance and is completing his fifth grade year at Shady Gove Elementary.  Alex has earned his first level Festival Gold Cups in American/Patriotic Folk Songs and Music Theory.  He is on track to earn two gold cups next year in Piano Solo and Hymns.

Alex plays on the Drumline at Shady Grove Elementary and enjoys swimming with Tyde and the Oak Valley Orca swim teams.  He likes playing video games and is a member of Boy Scout Troop 732.

• Sean Lane is finishing his junior year at Davie High and will be a Senior in the fall.  He is involved with the Red Cross at the local and regional levels and has established a club at Davie High where they have been able to host blood drives.  He enjoys playing tennis and is a part of the school’s Jazz Band and Marching Band.

Sean earned three NFMC Gold Cups at this year’s Wake Forest festival in Piano Concerto (15 point cup), Sacred Music Piano Solo (15 point cup) and a 30 point cup in Music Theory.  He has been a multiple festival cup winner throughout his seven years of performance and competition and for 2024 received the highest score in Hymns and Sacred Music Piano Solol.

Sean is the son of John and Jackie Lane of Advance. His plans include a possible career in business and he is considering UNC Chapel Hill and NC State. Sean attends Wesley Chapel Methodist Church where he is the church pianist.

• Gabrielle McFarlin is completing her eighth grade year at Ellis Middle and will be an incoming freshman at Davie High this fall.  She is the daughter of Roula and Brian McFarlin of Advance.

Gabrielle has been a piano student with Teresia Queen for three years, and completed her third year of NFMC competition.  She has scored three years of consecutive superiors in five events, including:  Piano Solo, Piano Duet, American Patriotic/Folk Songs, Hymns and Music Theory.  This year she earned 15 point cups in all five events.   She has been a consistent annual studio award winner for the past three years with Mrs. Queen.

Gabrielle also enjoys playing tennis.

• Leela Moore is a rising eighth grader at Saint Leos Catholic School and is the daughter of Jason and Lee Moore of Advance.  She has been taking piano from Mrs. Queen and participating in the festival for the past six years.  For 2024, Leela earned three 30 point Gold Cups, representing six consecutive years of scoring a superior in  Piano Solo, Hymns and American Patriotic/Folk Songs.  Outside of school and piano, Leela enjoys studying Taekwando.

• Tyler Moore is a rising freshman at Bishop McGuiness Catholic High School and is the son of Jason and Lee Moore.  He has been taking piano lessons since kindergarten and has participated in the festival for nine years.  Tyler earned two 15 point gold cups in Piano Concerto and Sacred Music Piano Solo.  He is working toward his 60 point cup in Music Theory which is anticipated his senior year in high school.

Tyler also enjoys Taekwando and will visit Thailand over the summer with his family.

• Nicholas Morris is completing his last year at Jefferson Middle School and will attend West High School in the fall as an freshman. He loves golf and is learning how to lift weights.  He enjoys singing in choir and performing solos.  Nicholas is in the Winston Salem chapter of the Civil Air Patrol and hopes to learn how to fly and join the military.

He is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Clemmons, and is the son of Bryan and Lisa Morris of Clemmons.

• Giulianna Steuart is a rising ninth grader and the daughter of Michael and Kristen Steuart. She will be attending Salem Baptist Christian Academy in the fall.

Giulianna has been a member of NFMC for seven years and this year earned her second level (30 point) festival cups in Hymns, American Patriotic/Folk Songs and Music Theory, representing six consecutive years of earning superiors in all events.

Besides piano, Giulianna loves volleyball, reading, writing and surfing. She likes to write music and will be entering her second year in the Junior Composer’s contest for NFMC. She is a member of St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church in Winston-Salem; and has earned the music studio award of “Personal Best Memory” for the past 7 years with Mrs. Queen.

The students are members of the Music Studio of Teresia Ann Queen, local piano and voice teacher, again, named for 2024 as having the No. 1 ranked federated music studio in North Carolina by the NFMC, ranked third across the U.S.

“This is indeed a high honor from within a national organization that has over 135,000 members across the US,” she said.

The studio is a junior club which participates annually in the NFMC Junior Music Festival, hosted by Wake Forest University.

Although many other factors contributed to this honor, the participation and success of students at the NFMC Junior Festival was the largest contributing factor to the state and national ranking for Queen’s studio.

“I am honored to be affiliated with such a dedicated musical organization on the state and national level and all the opportunities it provides students for challenge and growth in their musical education. Thank you to all students who contributed to being named No. 1 in the state of NC for another year. You contributed with your festival participate scores, sharing music in your churches, performing at nursing homes and talent shows, letters of recognition from congressional leaders in your areas, and all those students who were named state finalists, as well as state title-holders and scholarship recipients in your respective events.”

Other students who contributed to the state and national ranking (but who are in the middle of gold cup years and not pictured include:  Jax Andrews, Blythe Barnes, Flora Hewitt, Olivia Rareshide and Alice Steuart.

“Each student is to be congratulated for all they have accomplished, shared and contributed to this statewide recognition as well as their own individual perfect scores and awards.”