Sparta students take their music to the next level

Sparta - Four Sparta High School students recently performed with the New Jersey All-State Jazz Ensemble. The students took part in concerts at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark on Nov. 18, and at the Borgata Music Box Theater in Atlantic City on Nov. 10. Seniors Bobby Weinschenk, on alto saxophone, and Ed Elowson, on trumpet, returned for a second year to the elite 18-member All-State group after successful auditioning in May.  This year, they were joined by brothers Dan Morgan, also a senior, on tenor sax, and John Morgan, on trumpet, the only sophomore in the ensemble.  Organizers cannot recall siblings performing together in the past in this small group. The students, under the direction of Deborah Gianuzzi at Sparta High School, were the only musicians from Sussex County selected for this honor. The All-State Jazz Ensemble was conducted by renowned trumpeter Terell Stafford, an assistant professor of Jazz Studies at Temple University.  The students rehearsed together since September and had an intensive three-day rehearsal in Atlantic City in November.