Karate is alive and well in Italy — recorder karate, that is. Just ask Stafford Elementary fifth grade student Itzayanna DeLaHoya.

Itzy, as she is known to her family and friends, has just become the first student to earn the black belt, the highest level of achievement, on her recorder in the newly offered fifth grade music class at Stafford.

She earned this distinction by successfully passing off (performing) the Israeli folk song “Hatikvah” on her recorder. Beginning with the white belt and “Mary Had a Little Lamb” last September, fifth grade students have had the opportunity to earn successive belts by learning and then performing increasingly more challenging songs, each one presenting greater challenges than the previous selection. “Hatikvah” incorporates a new note, a wider range, and a greater number of measures than any previous selection. There are also a few tricky fingering patterns within the piece.

Students have worked at their own pace to pass off each selection, earning both a grade of “A” and the corresponding belt for each successful performance.

Congratulations to Itzy for this outstanding accomplishment!

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