It’s not just that Geoffrey Madge earned a spot on the prestigious Pennsylvania Music Educator’s Association All-State Orchestra.
It’s not just that he auditioned and beat out 13 other musicians for his spot.
It’s not just that he is only the third Chartiers Valley student to obtain that honor in the last 15 years.
The really cool thing is that Geoffrey, who plays violin in the Chartiers Valley High School Orchestra, achieved all of that on an entirely different instrument—the oboe. Also, he is only a sophomore.
Of course, Geoffrey didn’t just pick up an oboe one day and decide to audition. He’s a talented multi-instrumental musician whose hard work and natural gifts earned him a recognition from the CV school board earlier this week.
Now that he’s made it to All-State status, Geoffrey is eligible to participate in the National Association for Music Education Eastern Division Orchestra Festival next year, which will feature top musicians from 13 eastern states.
Check him out in this video from two years ago, where he plays the oboe part of Bach’s Concerto in C Minor for Violin and Oboe.