We are thrilled to announce the nomination form is now available for the 79th Annual Quad State High School Honor Band Festival, February 25-26, 2027 on the campus of Murray State University. 
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The format of the 2027 Quad State Festival will follow the changes made in 2026:

• We will offer 3 honor bands - Symphony Band, Blue Band, & Gold Band
• You will still send nominations as usual, but we will be asking for students to submit video auditions for band seating (this will be explained more after the nomination process)
• This year we are welcoming Composer-In-Residence Nicole Piunno. Each of the Quad State Bands will perform one of Nicole's pieces and spend time with her in rehearsals!
• Masterclasses will continue to be Friday morning with smaller groups  
• The start time on Thursday, will be earlier (registration begins at 12:30PM)
• ​The Honor Band Concert will take place Friday evening at 7:00PM

Please, only submit Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets format - NO PDFs! 
For Google Sheet Entry - CLICK HERE
OR 
Download the Microsoft Excel Template - HERE

It is important that you complete the nomination form fully for your students to get full consideration for the festival. We ask that you nominate students that will be successful in an honor band environment. Please use the nomination form to rank your students with your best at number 1 and so on.  ALSO - if you have students interested in auditioning for scholarships, please include their email address on the nomination form so that schedule can be arranged. 

APPLICATIONS will be due by MONDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2026 - Please make sure these are sent by 5:00PM central time

Please return nomination forms via share in google sheets OR send your excel sheet via email to me at [email protected] and save your file with your school name as follows: YOURSCHOOL_QSHS_2026 

The fee for selected students will be $45 and will once again include an official Quad State T-Shirt, music, etc. Once students have been selected, we will return an invoice for you to process and keep for your records. 

Anticipated timeline:

• December 1st - Nominations due
• December 11th - Students selected to audition will be sent out to directors with links to audition music
• January 15th - Audition recordings due back to MSU
• February 1st - Final selections and seating announced with links to concert music
• February 25th - Registration at MSU begins at 12:30PM
• ​February 26th - Final Concert at 7:00PM