We have a busy performance schedule during the next few months – concerts, band summit, large group contest, jazz festival, and solo contest! This month we will be starting work on solos and ensembles for our optional contest on Saturday, March 4th, at UMS. If your child signed up to participate, they will be receiving music at their first lesson in January. Ask them to play for you at home, as regular practice will help them to feel more confident and successful when they perform. As we continue working through our lesson books, seventh grade students will also begin learning the concert C scale. Eighth grade students will review the concert Db scale and learn the concert Gb scale. That will leave only 3 more major scales and the eighth grade students will be able to play all 12! We’ll also talk about the benefits of practicing slowly first, then gradually increasing the tempo with subsequent repetitions. This is particularly helpful for difficult technical passages.

What are we working on in January?

7th and 8th Grade Band January 2017

Jazz Ensemble An after school group that will be meeting with Mrs. Schultz starts soon!

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Performances information about our upcoming performances

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UHS Band ’17-‘18 Information for 8th grade students thinking about signing up for classes for next year

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The jazz ensemble is a non-auditioned group for any UMS student looking to learn more about jazz. The group meets on Tuesdays from 3:15-4:00, beginning February 7. The final rehearsal will be April 4.

The sign-up sheet is on Mrs. Schultz’s desk, and anyone that plays any type of saxophone, trumpet, trombone, piano, bass guitar, and drum set are invited to participate. Please sign up for jazz ensemble by January 20.

Jazz Ensemble with Mrs. Schultz

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Tuesday, January 10 – 8th Grade Band with UHS Bands Concert Our concert begins at 7:30 in the PAC. 8th grade band students should meet on the stage for warm-up at 7:00 p.m. Students should be dressed in concert attire, and will need to bring their instruments and music. When they are not performing, students will sit together to listen to the other bands. As with all high school performing arts events, admission will be $5 for adults, $3 for students. Activity passes will be honored. Saturday, January 14 – CJC Jazz Festival at Indian Hills JH The UMS Jazz Band will need to meet in the band room at UMS dressed up with instruments and music at 8:30 a.m. Jazz Band will perform at 10:00 a.m., and participate in sectional clinics at 10:30. Parents are invited to attend the performance. We will return to UMS at 11:30. Please see the permission slip for more details.

Dates to mark on your calendar

Thursday, January 26 – 6th Grade Band, 7th Grade Band, and UMS Jazz Band Concert Our concert begins at 7:00 in the PAC. 7th grade band students and 8th grade jazz band students should meet in the high school band room for warm-up at 6:30 p.m. Students should be dressed in concert attire, and will need to bring their instruments and music. When they are not performing, students will sit together to listen to the other bands. As with all middle school performing arts events, no admission will be charged, but donations will be accepted.

Saturday, January 28 – Band Summit for grades 7-12

Students will begin the afternoon at 1:30 with a meeting in the PAC, and will showcase their learning in a concert at 5:30 p.m. Along the way – lots of fun, a chance to meet new students, and pizza!

All 3 of the UMS bands will travel to Norwalk on Saturday, February 11, to participate in the South Central Iowa Bandmasters Association large group contest. Although we do not have the schedule from Norwalk yet, sixth grade students will most likely perform in the morning, and seventh and eighth grade band students will most likely perform in the late morning or early afternoon.

Parents are invited to attend, either as audience members or as chaperones. Please mark this date on your calendar, and watch for details. We’ll send them out as soon as we know more!

SCIBA Large Group Contest Saturday, February 11

Upcom

ing performances

We are m

ost successful when w

e perform the w

ay that we practice – every student supports the team

!

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As the eighth grade students at UMS begin thinking about their high school career, I want to encourage ALL of the eighth grade band students to sign up for high school band. Many students have feelings of trepidation about the high school marching band, and many ask, “Do I HAVE to do marching band?” The answer is, “Yes, you GET to be in the marching band!” Every student in the high school band will be marching for the first 8 weeks of school. The remainder of the school year will be spent in concert band.

Since our middle school bands don’t have any marching experience, it’s difficult to make a decision that they don’t like to march – they haven’t tried it yet! I encourage every student to try it for his or her freshman year. Most of the high school band students will tell you that the marching band season is one of their favorite times in the school year. They eagerly anticipate the spring when they will get the music for next fall’s marching show. There is a tremendous amount of camaraderie that develops while participating in festivals that they will attend throughout the marching season.

I would also encourage middle school students to take the opportunity during the band summit to talk directly with the high school students about their experiences with marching band. No matter how much I tell them that it’s fun, it means more when they hear it directly from the source!

As you work through the process of scheduling for the ninth grade year, please let me know if you have any questions, or need help making classes fit in the schedule. If I don’t know the answer already, I have some excellent sources and will be happy to find the answer. I would never want a scheduling issue to stand in the way of your child’s musical development.

Music is forever; music should grow

and mature with you, following you right on

up until you die.

- Paul Simon

UHS Band for 2017-2018