UIL. These three letters can cause a student to smile, groan, or even cheer with joy. UIL stands for the University Interscholastic League and it is the state’s organization that organizes and governs the rules for academic and athletic competition in Texas.
For programs at school that want to show off their talent, UIL is one of the primary ways for schools to provide opportunities for students to win state-level awards in areas of academics, musical performance, and visual art. The directors of these programs tend to emphasize UIL preparation in their programs to give students a chance to bring home individual medals and top ratings that demonstrate the talent of their students.
On any given day, the halls of the Akins Fine Arts Building are filled with the sounds of students passionately rehearsing and the sights of artists creating eye-catching pieces for UIL competitions. When it comes to music, there are competitions for orchestra, band, guitar, and Mariachi.
In the band room, musicians practice their instruments diligently, striving for consistency and flexibility. Each instrument that is played helps the song have its unique sound, creating a symphony of notes that captivates the listener.
Meanwhile, choir members can be heard perfecting their harmonies, trying to achieve perfect intonation and emotional expressiveness. Singers immerse themselves in a diverse collection, from classical pieces to contemporary arrangements.
Varsity bass Jackson Perez said he was satisfied with their UIl performance in March.
“I feel really good about performance scores,” Perez said, “I don’t feel the best about our sight reading scores, but I understand the reason we got what we got.”
In music-related competitions, students are rated on a scale of 1-5 with 1 being the best rating. In varsity choral, Akins students earned 1’s in concert and 2’s in sight reading. Tenor Bass earned 1’s in concert and 2’s in sight reading. Treble earned two 2’s and a 1 in concert and 2’s in sight reading. Overall, after a period of transition in leadership, the choir program believes it is coming back better than ever.
The orchestra features timeless and contemporary music, while young musicians master their instruments. Varsity orchestra violinist Pedro Salas shared the strategies he was taught to score high during his UIL orchestra competition performances.
“They’re getting really meticulous down to this section and playing a little bit louder than the other,” Salas said.
The Akins orchestra had a strong showing during its UIL competitions this year with the Symphony orchestra winning the coveted sweepstakes award.
In the visual arts department, Akins students were competing with brushes, pencils, and cameras, to express their individual creativity and imagination. State qualifier Sahar Awan, who qualified for the state competition with her photography, explained how students participating in the Visual Arts Scholastic Event (VASE) must verbally explain their work’s inspiration. The art program had four students who advanced to the state competition this year.
Awan said judges look for both skill and the messages communicated by their art pieces.
“They want to know you didn’t just draw a dog because you thought the dog was cute,” she said. “They want to have meaning and why it’s important to you.”
