The Cazenovia Middle School orchestra and band traveled to Darien Lake amusement park last Saturday, May 16, to compete in the annual Darien Lake Music Festival, where they placed first and second, respectively, in their competition groups.

The orchestra placed first among two schools, receiving a judges’ score of 96 out of 100, while the band placed second out of three schools, with a score of 97 out of 100.

Both the orchestra and band have participated in the annual music festival for years, but have never entered the competition aspect of the festival, opting instead to receive judges’ ratings and comments.

“I’m overall pleased with our score,” said band teacher Kevin Johnson. “That’s fantastic for the first competition we’ve done.”

Jason Emerson is editor of the Cazenovia Republican. He can be reached [email protected].