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FROM THE DESK OF PAULA WILLIAMS: |
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posted 5/10/09 FINAL CHORUS CLUB REHEARSAL MONDAY, MAY 11 The final meeting of the 2009 Chorus Club is Monday, May 11, from 3-3:45 in the bandroom. INTERMEDIATE AND ADVANCED BAND UNIFORM CHECK-IN Wednesday, May 13 7:30-8:45AM Thursday, May 14 7:30-8:45AM INTERMEDIATE BAND REHEARSALS The Intermediate Band resumes its' regular T, W, TH morning rehearsal schedule this week and will continue to rehearse through the last week of school in preparation for their final performance of the year on the last day of school, Friday, May 22, as part of the 8th grade recognition ceremony. The final 6 rehearsal dates are: Tuesday, May 12 Wednesday, May 13 Thursday, May 14 Tuesday, May 19 Wednesday, May 20 Thursday, May 21 FINAL PERFORMANCE Friday, May 22, 8:30AM Report to bandroom at 8AM for warm-up. Wear band ringer t-shirts and your choice of pants/shorts and shoes. ADVANCED AND INTERMEDIATE BAND FINAL PERFORMANCE OF THE SCHOOL-YEAR Friday, May 22 at 8:30AM as part of the 8th grade recognition ceremony Report to the bandroom NO LATER than 8AM for warm-up. Wear band ringer t-shirts and your choice of pants/shorts and shoes. SCHOOL-OWNED INSTRUMENT CHECK-IN IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THE PERFORMANCE. Rising 4th grade band instrument testing Tuesday, May 12 All rising 4th graders will be trying out concert band instruments during their music special this Tuesday afternoon. Representatives from Ken Stanton Music will be at school with one of each instrument students may learn to play during their 4th grade year if they choose beginning band as their music special. Students and their parents will be asked to choose beginning band or general music for their music special during the 2009-2010 school year. Detailed information goes home in backpack mail Monday, May 11, and will be due back in to the music office no later than Monday, May 18. reposted 4/30/09 Music in the Morning Friday, May 1, each grade level from Preschool through 5, as well as the Advanced Band, will perform a short musical program in the Primary Commons beginning at 9:10AM. Parents, friends and family are invited to attend. The schedule is as follows: Kindergarten 9:10-9:25 Preschool 9:35-9:45 1/2 and 3rd 10-10:20 4/5 10:35-10:45 (General Music) 4/5 11-11:15 (Beginning Band) Advanced Band 11:30-11:50 4/29/09 OZ Rehearsal and Band Banquet May 5, 2009 Ms Kimball has graciously accommodated the band banquet and has asked that any members of any band participating in the OZ production attend the mandatory dress rehearsal immediately after the banquet has concluded. We thank Ms Kimbal for her generous support regarding this matter. 4/23/09 High Meadows Spring Concert 7PM, April 29, 2009 Pope High School Band Room 5:15 P.M. • Intermediate and Advanced Band Percussionists check-in and go to Band Room. • ***They should be wearing their black pants, black socks and shoes, and band ringer t-shirt. They should have their tux shirt, plain white t-shirt, bow tie, and cummerbund with them in garment bag to change into after set-up.*** 5:30 P.M. • Leadership from all bands should check-in and go to Chorus Room. 5:45 P.M. • All remaining band members should check-in and go to Chorus Room. • ***All band members except Intermediate and Advanced Band percussion should be wearing their FULL uniform when checking in. They should have their instrument in its’ case, band book, and concert music. Percussionists should have their band music and book, sticks, and mallets.*** 6:45 P.M. • Band Room doors open for audience seating. Band Room will NOT be available for audience until 6:45. 7:00 P.M. • Concert begins 8:00 P.M. (tentative) • Concert ends. Check-out is in the CHORUS ROOM. 4/22/09 Music Department News Chorus Club The third meeting of chorus club is Monday, April 27 in the bandroom from 3-3:45. Spring Concert for Beginning, Intermediate and Advanced Bands Next Wednesday, April 29, the three concert bands of High Meadows will perform their Spring Concert in the bandroom of Alan C. Pope High School beginning at 7PM. Anyone is invited to attend. Music in the Morning Next Friday, May 1, each grade level from Preschool through 5, as well as the Advanced Band, will perform a short musical program in the Primary Commons beginning at 9:10AM. Parents, friends and family are invited to attend. The schedule is as follows: Kindergarten 9:10-9:25 Preschool 9:35-9:45 1/2 and 3rd 10-10:20 4/5 10:35-10:45 (General Music) 4/5 11-11:15 (Beginning Band) Advanced Band 11:30-11:50 Spring Family Picnic Next Friday, May 1, the three bands of High Meadows will perform for the Spring Family Picnic beginning at 6:30PM. Band Banquet On Tuesday, May 5, all band members are invited to participate in the band banquet to be held in the Primary Commons from 3-4:30. www.hmmusicdept.com 4/14/09 MUSIC DEPARTMENT NEWS Final Drum Club Meeting TODAY, Wednesday April 15 The final drum club meeting of the year is this afternoon from 3-3:40 in the bandroom. Chorus Club The High Meadows Chorus Club has it’s next rehearsal Monday, April 20, from 3-3:40 in the bandroom. Band Performances Earth Day: The Advanced Band will be performing as a marching band to kick off the Earth Day ceremonies this Monday, April 20. Spring Concert: On Wednesday, April 29th the Beginning Band, Intermediate Band, and Advanced Band will perform their final formal concert of the year. The performance will be held in the bandroom of Alan C. Pope High School, beginning at 7PM. Everyone is invited to attend. Music in the Morning: On Friday, May 1 between 8:45AM and 12PM, all three High Meadows’ bands will perform as part of the Music in the Morning performance. Details regarding performance schedule and location will be included in next week’s Meadow Messenger, as well as on the Music Department website beginning next week; www.hmmusicdept.com Spring Family Picnic: The three concert bands of High Meadows will perform at 6:30PM, Friday May 1, as part of the entertainment for the Spring Family Picnic. Eight Grade Recognition: The Festival Band will perform at the beginning of the 8th grade recognition ceremony on the last day of school, Friday May 22. General Music Performances Earth Day: All students in grades PS-5 will perform as part of the Earth Day ceremonies next Monday, April 20 Music in the Morning: On Friday May 1, from 8:45AM-12PM, all students in grades PS-5 as well as the Advanced Band will perform all types of musical selections for parents, family and friends. Look for details in next week’s Meadow Messenger as well as on the Music Department website beginning next week; www.hmmusicdept.com ATTENTION RISING FOURTH GRADERS AND OTHERS INTERESTED IN JOINING BAND AT HIGH MEADOWS In the next two weeks, information will be distributed via backpack mail, the music website (www.hmmusicdept.com), in music class, and in the Meadow Messenger regarding the sign-up process for new band members for the 2009-2010 school year. Masterclass Participant Advanced Band Member Jake Parker performed a snare drum solo on April 4th for Ted Atkatz, former Principal Percussionist with the Chicago Symphony. Jake and two college students each played a prepared piece for Mr. Atkatz and an audience of about 25 percussionists and enthusiasts of all ages and levels from around the metro area. Mr. Atkatz then offered ideas to each performer regarding technique and musicality in the public forum. The masterclass was sponsored by the Georgia Chapter of the International Percussive Arts Society. posted 3/29/09 March Music Madness Band News Last week, the HMS Festival Band participated in it's first Georgia Large Group Performance Evaluation. The band proudly received an overall superior rating in performance and a superior rating in sightreading. The Advanced Band now begins preparing for an Earth Day performance on April 20th, in addition to numerous other performances before the end of the school year. All 3 bands are preparing for their spring concert on April 29th, Music in the Morning performances on May 1, and Spring Family Picnic performances on May 1. Drum Club Only two more meetings of Session III Drum Club; April 1 and April 15. General Music News All general music classes, grades PS-5, are preparing pieces for performances on Earth Day on April 20th and Music in the Morning on May 1. Interested students in Grades 1-3 are auditioning in music class this week for 3 solo positions in their Earth Day selection "I Am a Small Part of the World." Third grade students are learning how to become a member of the High Meadows Band Program when they enter 4th grade, should they choose to do so. Details will be posted to the website and sent home via backpack mail after spring break. All-State Advanced Band member Jake Parker represented High Meadows School as a member of the Georgia All-State Middle School Band in Savannah, Ga. March 5-7. Jake is a 6th grade percussionist who earned the honor of participating in the All-State band by passing a district and state level audition to achieve second chair in the state. Summer Music Camps Information regarding summer music camps can be found in the bandroom and on the music website. posted 3/25/09 Tomorrow (Thursday) is the day we've been working towards...LGPE Festival Thank you for all your support and hard work in getting us to this point. A few points to know: All parents, friends and family are welcomed to attend the performance at Northview High School.
When picking up your student: Please note the change in pick-up location PICK-UP WILL BE AT THE SIDE BAND ROOM DOOR (The door is located in front of the Red Caboose)
posted 3/24/09 REMINDERS: -Tomorrow (Wednesday) is the LAST day to cancel you student's hot lunch. Please do so. Pizza will be served at 11:00 and hot lunch is delivered AFTER we will have already left for LGPE -Tomorrow (Wednesday) is the last day to deliver uniforms between 7:30AM and 8:30AM. It will be a visual check-in as it was for Pre-Festival. -Please do NOT leave your car unattended in the CST driveway when you are checking in your uniform. This is a very busy driveway for Roosters and can cause a hazardous situation for all. -We plan to be returning to HM from LGPE around 5:00PM it will take the students about 15 minutes to disembark the bus, gather their belongs and be ready to be checked out by their parent. ----If you will NOT be picking your own child up, please send a note or email letting us know who will be picking your child up and a phone number that you and your child's ride can be reached at. ----Please DO NOT park in the CST driveway as the afternoon Roosters use the drive to pick their children up at this time. ----We ask that you park in the lower parking lot while waiting for the bus to arrive. Once the bus has pulled in and unloaded the band members at the side band door (again to keep the drive as accessible as possible for the HM community) you can then pull up BEHIND the bus, we will be providing curbside pick-up from the side entrance of the band room (in front of the caboose). Students will be held inside the band room and released in an orderly fashion. Parents WILL need to sign for their students upon pick-up. As always please contact us with any questions you might have. Thank you for your support of this exciting event. posted 3/22/09 Dear Parents and Students, Our Large Group Performance Evaluation is THIS Thursday, March 26, at 2:15PM at Northview HS in Johns Creek. THIS EMAIL CONTAINS THE FINAL DETAILS NEEDED TO HAVE THE MOST SUCCESSFUL EXPERIENCE FOR ALL. *** PLEASE READ ENTIRE EMAIL*** Final 3 Rehearsals Tuesday, March 24, 7:45-8:25 Wednesday, March 25, 7:45-8:25 Thursday, March 26, 7:45-8:25 TIMELY ATTENDANCE BY ALL IS REQUIRED TO EVERY REHEARSAL. Uniform Check-In Tuesday, 3/24 OR WEdnesday, 3/25 7:30-8:30AM in the music room
To make sure your student has all the parts of their uniform, please refer to the concert uniform check-list loaded under Forms on the music website, www.hmmusicdept.com PERFORMANCE DAY SCHEDULE Thursday March 26 ALL STUDENTS WILL TRAVEL TOGETHER AS A BAND BY CHARTER BUS TO AND FROM THE PERFORMANCE. 7:45-8:25AM Rehearsal 11AM All members report to the bandroom for lunch, dressing into uniforms, loading of instruments onto bus, and final instructions. 12PM Depart HMS for Northview HS Northview High School 10625 Parsons Rd. Johns Creek, GA 30097 1PM Approximate Arrival at Northview 1-2PM Registration, warm-up 2:15PM LGPE Performance; parents are permitted in the audience of the theater like a regular concert. 2:30PM Group moves to sightreading room; only chaperones permitted in the sightreading room. 4:00PM Band departs for High Meadows ***Students will listen to taped evaluation, go over judges sheets, and discuss the performance on the trip back to HMS*** 5PM HMS ETA, depending on traffic Unload buses, gather personal gear, and students are signed-out by their parents. Everyone has worked very hard on many levels to create the best possible educational experience this Thursday. The band will deliver its' most polished performance of the year, while also enjoying and growing in all aspects of the LGPE experience that happens away from the stage. I trust that all families will understand the value of all students participating as a complete band from the moment we gather at 11AM until students are dismissed from High Meadows upon our return. Thank you for respecting this important component of our band's LGPE experience. Sincerely, Paula Williams Music Director, High Meadows School posted 3/15/09 Dear Festival Band members and families; Last Wednesday and Thursday your student was given a field trip permission form for our upcoming LGPE field trip on March 26th. THIS FORM IS DUE BACK TO THE MUSIC ROOM NO LATER THAN THIS TUESDAY, MARCH 17. As a reminder, our Advanced Band and Intermediate Bands are combining, and traveling to Northview HS in Duluth on March 26th for a 2:15 adjudicated performance. We will be leaving High Meadows at 12PM on a charter bus, performing at Northview HS at 2:15, and returning to HMS between 5 and 6PM, depending on traffic. Please continue to check your email and the website regularly for more details over the next two weeks. Thank you, Paula Willams posted 3/1/09 Dear Beginning Band Families Just a reminder that we have beginning band tomorrow morning, Monday March 2, at 9AM. We are still working on achieving our band goal of everyone bringing their instrument to band at the same time...for the first time this school year. Please help your students remember to bring their instruments to band on Mondays and Thursdays. Thank you, Paula Williams posted 2/25/09 BAND MEMBER HONORS Last weekend, Advanced Band member Jake Parker represented High Meadows School as a performer in the District V Middle School Honor Band. Jake is a 6th grader who won his position of second chair in the district by participating in a district-wide audition of all interested students in grades 6-8 from both private and public schools. DRUM CLUB JAM Today, Wednesday February 25, is the final meeting of Session II drum club. Parents and family members are invited to attend our final rehearsal from 3-3:40 in the bandroom. Feel free to bring your cameras. ***Look for Session III Drum Club flyers in backpack mail next week*** FESTIVAL BAND CAMP This Friday, February 27, the Festival Band will work under the direction of clinician Gary Gribble from 4-7PM in the bandroom. This special rehearsal is in preparation for the band’s performance next month at LGPE. BAND LEADERSHIP MEETING Next Monday, March 2nd, the Band Leadership team will meet from 3-3:45 in the bandroom. ALL-STATE BAND Next week, an advanced band member will be rehearsing and performing with the Georgia All-State Middle School Band in Savannah, Ga. MUSIC DEPARTMENT WEBSITE Please check the regularly updated music department website and calendar to keep up with all music program events. www.hmmusicdept.com posted 2/23/09 Dear Band Families; Thank you for your interest in the band yearbook. We feel it is a very worthwhile project for all involved, and look forward to seeing it come to fruition. We are going to put the project on the back burner for the next few months in an effort to focus our energies on all of the upcoming pressing activities in the music department. As with all undertakings of the music program, we want the yearbook to be of the highest quality, while still being student driven. We will resume work on the yearbook project this summer and into the fall. Please continue to check the website and calendar regularly for announcements regarding the production schedule for the yearbook, as it will be posted sometime after spring break. We will also send an email and announce it in class. Thank you again for your interest, and we look forward to resuming this important component of our program. Sincerely, Paula Williams Music Director, High Meadows School posted 2/22/09 Dear Beginning Band Families; Please remind your students to bring their band instruments to school each Monday and Thursday for band class. Unfortunately, we have NEVER had one rehearsal where every student had their band instrument. As we head into March, I encourage you to work with your student in helping them remember to bring their required class materials. posted 2/10/09 GISA Recap: Eight of our band members participated in the GISA Middle School All-Select Honor Band in Macon Ga this past weekend. Each of our students proudly represented High Meadows by modeling exemplary behavior, attentiveness and focus in rehearsal and performance, and helpfulness that exceeded expectations. We would also like to thank and recognize the parents who supported their students by spending the entire weekend in Macon. To each participant, our sincere thanks and congratulations on a job well done. First Time Event: Next Friday and Saturday, February 20th and 21st, a member of our Advanced Band will be rehearsing and performing in the District V (Fulton County) Middle School Honors Band at Milton High School. We are very excited and proud to have a representative at this event, as it brings recognition and honor to our High Meadows community to have our school listed alongside most other schools, public and private, in the region. JAMMIN: This afternoon, February 11, is the third and next to the last meeting of Session II DrumCLUB. The final meeting of Session II DrumCLUB is in two weeks, on February 25. We will be celebrating our finale with a DrumCLUB JAMM begining at 3:00. All family members and friends are invited to attend. You are welcome to bring your camera. FESTIVAL PREVIEW: Come hear the Festival Band in full swing on Tuesday, Februry 24th at 5:00 pm in the Primary Commons. Our Intermediate and Advanced bands will combine to form the Festival band, which will represent High Meadows at the District V (Fulton County) Middle School Large Group Performance Evaluation (LGPE) at Northview High School in March. The upcoming concert on Feb. 24th allows our band to benefit from a pre-event evaluation of their performance by Gary Gribble, Pope High School Director of Bands, and Dr. Chuck Jackson, Dodgen Middle School Director of Bands. The input of these two directors will allow our band to continue to fine tune their performance for the final evaluated performance on March 26th. Festival Band Reminder: The first morning rehearsal for Festival Band is on Thursday, February 19th at 7:45 AM. Festival band is comprised of both Intermediate band (which already rehearses Tues - Thrs @ 7:45am) and the Advanced Band that will join the Intermediate band on scheduled mornings beginning February 19th through the LGPE performance on March 26. Please check the music department website calendar frequently for a listing of all Festival band rehearsals and updates at HMmusicdept.com posted 2/4/09 This Sunday, February 8th, eight of our band members will be performing as part of the Georgia Independent School Association (GISA) 2009 All-Select Middle School Band at Tattnall Square Academy in Macon, Georgia. There will be two bands performing at GISA. The Wind Ensemble will be led by Dr. Mike Robinson, Director of Athletic Bands and Assistant Director of Bands from the University of Georgia. The Wind Symphony will be conducted by composer Rob Grice. Our eight students will be performing with 136 other musicians recommended by their Directors to participate in the GISA Honor Band from Independent schools all over the state of Georgia. Members of our GISA contingency are: * Andrew Michael: Trumpet, the only 5th grader representing High Meadows and the sole Intermediate band member. * Kate Beecham: Flute, 7th grade Advanced band member. * Sarah Borozan: Clarinet, 6th grade Advanced band member. * Nick Harrington: Percussionist, 7th grade Advanced band member. * Kieran McElvaney: Oboe, 7th grade Advanced band member. * Joseph Mittledorf: Flute, 6th grade Advanced band member * Jake Parker: Percussionist, 6th grade Advanced band member. * Rachel Sewell: Trumpet, 7th grade Advanced band member. Congratulations and Good Luck this weekend...We are very proud of you all!!! Next Wednesday, Feb 11th our young DrumCLUB members will be meeting to joyfully express their musical enthusiasm and dance to the beat of their own drums. Don't forget to mark your calendars for Feb 25th at 3:00pm and join our DrumCLUB members for their end of session JaMM. Bring your camera. On Thursday, Feb 19 the Intermediate and Advanced bands will join to form our High Meadows Festival Band. They will begin meeting at 7:30 in the morning on scheduled days throughout February and March in preparation for the District V Large Group Performance Evaluation (LGPE) Festival to be held at Northview High School in Duluth on March 26th. Keep an eye out here for more information on this much anticipated event. posted 1/27/09 We have officially entered our season of craziness here in the Music Dept. So much happening, so much yet to have happen......... Currently our second session of DrumCLUB is in full swing with our K-2nd graders meeting every other Wednesday from 3:00 -3:45 to celebrate their rhythmic enthusiasm through improvisational expression and by development of original "soundtracks" to accompany the folktales created by the DrumCLUB members. Our remaining meetings are on January 28th, February 11th and 25th with a DrumCLUB Jamm to finish off the session on the 25th. Family and Friends are welcome to attend the Jamm on the 25th which will begin at 3:00pm. This is usually a Standing Room Only event, and cameras are welcomed. Session II of DrumCLUB is slated to begin on March 11. Next weekend we'll have 8 of our High Meadows Band Members attending the Georgia Independent Schools Association (GISA) Honors Bands Performance in Macon Ga. at Tattnall Square Academy. These individuals, who were chosen based on Director recommendations, will perform with other private school band members from all over the state of Georgia on Sunday, February 8 at 2:30PM. Our Festival Band is currently hard at work preparing for our upcoming GMEA Large Group Performance Evaluation at Northview HS in Duluth on March 26th. The Festival Band is made up of members from both our Intermediate and Advanced Bands. This Thursday, Friday and Saturday Mr. Wright, Ms Williams, and Mr. Grimes are attending the state music educators in-service conference in Savannah hosted by the Georgia Music Educators Association (GMEA). They will be taking in clinics and in-service events to further discover fresh new approaches to inspire our student body musically and artistically. Keep an eye out here weekly for updates to see what all the noise is about.
HIGH MEADOWS SCHOOL Music Department Paula Williams, Director -- Patrick Wright, Asst. Director |