C2

By BRENDA MACMINN
For The Daily Gleaner

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HARVEY STATION - This year's Harvey Music Festival has come to a close with the naming of the senior and junior stars.

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Jessica Boonstoppel, left, was chosen star of the Harvey Music Festival while Emma Bradford, right, was selected as junior star. They were chosen by Jennifer Muir of Woodstock, adjudicator of the 2009 festival. They received their awards recently at the closing concert.

Jessica Boonstoppel, 16-year-old daughter of Tammy and Gerry Boonstoppel of Acton, took top honours.

She was named star of the festival by Jennifer Muir of Woodstock, adjudicator for the 2009 festival.

Boonstoppel, who is studying with Garry Hanson of Fredericton, has performed on piano at the festival for many years. This year, she had consistently high marks for her performances in Royal Conservatory of Music Grade 8 or higher selections.

Her entry in the piano quick study and sight reading classes earned her high marks as well. She is a Grade 11 student at Harvey High School.

Boonstoppel received the Arnold and Alice Feeney Memorial Trophy for Star of the Festival and was also the recipient of the Timothy McCullough Memorial Scholarship for a promising piano student.

Emma Bradford, 11-year-old daughter of Dereck and Serena Bradford, was selected as junior star this year.

This isn't something new to Bradford as she was chosen junior star in 2007 while she was a Grade 3 student at Harvey Elementary School.

In addition to her work with choral speech and class songs with her Grade 5 class, her individual entries into solo verse and vocal selections and vocal Broadway duet with Shane MacLaren earned her consistently high praise from the adjudicator.

"I love to sing," said Bradford, a Grade 5 French immersion student. "I especially love the Broadway pieces. I actually like to practice. It makes me feel good."

The Rosalie Shaw Memorial Trophy for Outstanding student vocalist went to Mary Louise Burtt. Burtt, daughter of Laverne Stewart and Rob Burtt, is a Grade 3 student at Harvey Elementary School.

The Murray Moffitt Memorial Award for outstanding performer went to the father/son duo of Darrell and Ben Grant. Their rendition of an original composition, Shimmy, Shimmy, earned them a mark of 90 in the family fun category.

This is the first year for both the Shaw and Moffitt awards.

Beverley Little, director of the Harvey Elementary School choir as well as all the senior and junior church choirs in the festival, was the recipient of the Greg Moffitt Award.

The Kate Jackson Memorial Trophy for outstanding contribution to the school music program went to Buffy O'Regan, president of the Harvey Music Festival.

O'Regan thanked the many volunteers who helped in so many ways from decorating to providing lunches.

She thanked vocal coaches, music teachers, music specialist Aida Tisler and accompanist Sue Richards along with the many businesses, individuals and service groups for their donations.