The quartet opened with Glenn Miller’s “In the Mood,” a jazzy piece that received love from the audience. Following Glenn Miller’s piece, “Just the Two of Us” by Grover Washington Jr., “Unsquare Dance,” a song played in 7/4, and “Take on Me” by a-ha were played. Next up was a Clarinet Polka that Joey Kotten, the drummer, said the people of New Ulm would enjoy. Sure enough, once the song began, Sweet Haven exploded with energy, with attendees clapping along to the music. Once the song finished, the crowd roared in applause.

About halfway through the performance, Kotten introduced Sarah Todesco, “a good friend and one of the best singers I’ve ever heard.”

Todesco took the stage and sang two songs, “Vienna ” by Billy Joel and “Isn’t She Lovely” by Stevie Wonder.

Following Todesco’s songs, Kotten announced that it was his parents’ 27th anniversary, so the group performed “Piano Man,” his dad’s song. Kotten showed off his versatility by simultaneously playing the harmonica and drums during this piece.

Mitchell Schotzko plays the sax with Joey Kotten on the drumbs

The “Ulmer Quartet” finished off the day with “Take Five,” a piece by “The Dave Brubeck Quartet.” The audience roared with applause once the final notes played, thanking the quartet for their performance.

The Ulmer Quartet consists of four New Ulm Public High School students, Mitchell Schotzko, Britton Beran, Joey Kotten, and Ryan Johnson. The group plays a wide array of instruments. Schotzko, who graduated this year, plays a variety of saxophones for the group. One of two upcoming seniors, Britton Beran, plays the Bass guitar and the Trombone. Joey Kotten, the other upcoming senior, plays the drums and is the spokesperson for the band. Rounding out the group is the youngest member, 15-year-old Ryan Johnson. Johnson primarily plays piano, but he also plays clarinet and saxophone.

The four members were already familiar with each other due to their participation in New Ulm High School’s band program, the “Ulmer Quartet” is what truly brought them closer together.

“We all love playing together. We’ve become a really tight-knit group of guys the last couple of months playing together,” Schotzko said. “Us getting together is just our version of hanging with the boys, if you will.”

The group thanked Kotten for the formation of the group.

The Ulmer Quartet, a newly formed jazz band, plays a show a Sweet Haven Tonic.

“Joey came up to us three in January and said, ‘I got this song I want to play; this group would fill it out. Do you want to do it?’ We just kept going and going, and here we are.” Schotzko said.

As the months went by, the “Ulmer Quartet” began to toss around the idea of performing around town.

“We started out playing at Oak Hills Living Center as a gig to try it out,” Kotten said. After having the opportunity of playing at Oak Hills, the group began searching for other places to play. Beran, crediting his parents, was the one to encounter Sweet Haven Tonics.

“My parents walked into Sweet Haven and ended up talking with Mrs. Peterson, my first-grade teacher. Eventually, it was brought up that I was in a band, and we were looking for places to play. We got given a business card, so we just followed up and followed through,” Beran said. After five months of being a group, the “UImer Quartet” had their first official performance on June 8 at Sweet Haven Tonics.

Following the performance, the group shared what was in store for the future.

Britton Beran shows his versatility on the Trombone

“The main goal is to keep the band together. All of us are different ages, and Mitchell is going off to college, so we have to figure out how to keep playing as a group. Maybe when we’re older, we could even form a professional quartet,” Kotten said.

Regardless of the struggles the group faces in the future due to distance, there is no question that the quartet would love to continue playing together.

“It was a great experience and definitely something I want to keep doing,” Johnson said.

The “Ulmer Quartet” has upcoming performances at Sweet Haven Tonics at 7 p.m. Thursday.