Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


A Brighton Area Schools student has been selected to perform with a prestigious all-state orchestra at a big conference in January.

Mallory Hopka is an 8th grader at Scranton Middle School. She plays the viola and started playing in 5th grade in the school orchestra at Maltby. Hopka is a member of the Scranton Orchestra, and currently studies privately with Josh Hamilton of Brighton.

In October, the Michigan School Band and Orchestra Association (MSBOA) held auditions for the annual All-State High School and Middle School Orchestras and Bands.

It’s a very competitive audition process that over 2,700 students across the state compete for each year.

Hopka not only made it into the All-State Orchestra, but she is the first chair viola – which is said to be quite a distinguished honor.

Hopka will perform with the All-State Orchestra on January 25th in Grand Rapids at the Michigan Music Conference.

More information about MSBOA All-State is available in the provided link.