Carrying on the legacy of excellence in fine arts, 54 Katy ISD students were selected for All-State honors in band, choir and orchestra, securing the state’s highest honor for students in music, the district announced in a February 5 press release. These students represent the elite, top 2.6 percent of student musicians in Texas following a highly competitive selection process that began with nearly 70,000 students from across the state, the release said.

“Congratulations to these students for achieving this incredible statewide recognition; students range from their first time earning this recognition to their fourth time achieving this honor,” said Damon Archer, executive director of fine arts in Katy ISD. “I commend their dedicated teachers for their work in leading these talented students and helping them achieve such high-profile recognition.”

Each year, the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) sponsors the prestigious All-State competition, welcoming student musicians from the organization’s 33 regions. Students audition before a panel of judges who rank each entrant for advancement to the area round, and from there, the highest-ranking musicians are selected for their respective All-State ensemble. Katy ISD had four students that were ranked number one in the state on their instrument: Caleb Elrod (Katy), Leah Wu (Tompkins), Parham Vakili (Seven Lakes) and Brayden Sanchez (Jordan).

All-State musicians participate in four days of rehearsal during the annual TMEA Clinic/Convention, performing before thousands of attendees from across the country and around the world. This year’s convention will be held February 12-15, at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center in San Antonio.

Name Ensemble School

Lakshya Deshpande Choir Cinco Ranch High School

Lucy Ebben Orchestra Cinco Ranch High School

Ryan Gover Band Cinco Ranch High School

Micah Marsh Choir Cinco Ranch High School

Ian Pelton Band Cinco Ranch High School

Srisamhita Ponnapalli Choir Cinco Ranch High School

George Stevens Band Cinco Ranch High School

Ava Cooper Choir Jordan High School

Samantha Cui Orchestra Jordan High School

Jeweet Fang Orchestra Jordan High School

Michael Guo Orchestra Jordan High School

Jacob Jang Orchestra Jordan High School

Pranav Kelwada Orchestra Jordan High School

Zach Lim Orchestra Jordan High School

Christian Olowookere Choir Jordan High School

Brian Rhee Orchestra Jordan High School

Brayden Sanchez Band Jordan High School

Sasha Shetty Choir Jordan High School

Kelvin Sun Orchestra Jordan High School

Maxwell Tang Orchestra Jordan High School

Nathan Xu Orchestra Jordan High School

Huanran (Henry) Yu Orchestra Jordan High School

Caleb Elrod Band Katy High School

Zoe Guess Choir Katy High School

Adryan Pineda Band Katy High School

Mackenzie Simkins Choir Katy High School

Joyce Tan Orchestra Katy High School

Walter Bryant Choir Paetow High School

Jude Sepulveda Orchestra Paetow High School

Joshua Corrigan Band Seven Lakes High School

Austin Falck Band Seven Lakes High School

Grace Gamel Choir Seven Lakes High School

Samir Gandhi Orchestra Seven Lakes High School

Robert Garcia Orchestra Seven Lakes High School

Kevin Hu Orchestra Seven Lakes High School

Jenna Lee Orchestra Seven Lakes High School

Avery Lindsey Choir Seven Lakes High School

ChenXi Ling Orchestra Seven Lakes High School

Olivia Owen Band Seven Lakes High School

Shugo Sakamoto Orchestra Seven Lakes High School

Lauren Son Choir Seven Lakes High School

Bill Sun Orchestra Seven Lakes High School

Parham Vakili Orchestra Seven Lakes High School

Avika Nimmagadda Band Taylor High School

Jennifer Park Band Taylor High School

Sophia Tang Orchestra Taylor High School

Javier Bustillos Band Tompkins High School

Arjun Chandupatla Orchestra Tompkins High School

David Escobar Choir Tompkins High School

Jake Jiang Orchestra Tompkins High School

Kendall Porter Orchestra Tompkins High School

Sreya Sreejith Choir Tompkins High School

Leah Wu Band Tompkins High School

Crystal Yang Orchestra Tompkins High School