Early Morning Rehearsal Schedule

Dear Parents and Guardians,

We hope you will join us in our excitement as we begin our instrumental music programs for the 2013-14 school year!  We are preparing to begin our early morning large group orchestra and band rehearsals.  These rehearsals are required for participation in the concerts.  However, we realize that things happen.  Transporting the children before our school day starts offers some challenges for some of you.  Children may miss a rehearsal for a variety of reasons.  We understand this.  However, in order to prepare the students for a successful performance, they do need to practice together.  To be fair to all, we have decided that each child will be allowed to miss 3 rehearsals and still perform in the Winter Concert at the PAC in January.  More absences could lead to that child not being able to perform.  This decision will be made by the FW Administrative Team along with the musical director, and will be based on the individual circumstances.  Hopefully, it will not get to that point.

Parents will need to provide transportation to the school on rehearsal mornings.  We do not have busses available for this purpose.  You are asked to drop off the children in the front loop of the school and come into the building to sign them in.  A sheet will be set up just inside the front doors for this purpose.  You can drop off your child starting at 7:00 a.m.  Please do not drop off any earlier than this as we will not have any supervision for the children until 7:00 a.m.  For safety and security reasons, our front doors will not be unlocked until 7:00.  From 7:00 - 7:15, the young musicians will assemble their instruments, tune, and warm-up.  Rehearsals will begin promptly at 7:15 a.m.  Please make sure the children are here by that time so they do not miss the beginning of these important rehearsals.

We understand how difficult it is to get the children up and moving at that time (sometimes equally difficult for us!)  However, their participation in the morning ensemble rehearsals is vital in preparing them for the upcoming concerts.  Participation in our morning, large-group morning sessions helps them to know the music better.  They become more familiar with the sound of their classmates while playing together.  Students that practice together should be more comfortable on “the big stage” at the PAC when they perform in the concerts.

            Please refer to the back of this page for the full Fall / Winter schedule in preparation for the January performances.  Note that Beginning Band and Beginning Orchestra will always rehearse on Day 1.  Likewise, Advanced Band and Advanced Orchestra will always be on Day 3.  If, for some reason, school is closed on a rehearsal day, the very next day will be the re-scheduled rehearsal.  This will also impact the remainder of the schedule, but we will send out a revised list of dates if this happens.  If we have a delayed opening, the rehearsal for that day will be cancelled.  If you have any additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact Mrs. Corvino, Mr. Mastin, or my office.

We look forward to a great season with your talented musicians!

Sincerely,

Mr. Johnson

Principal

Rehearsal Schedules

Beginning Band &                        Advanced Band &

Beginning Orchestra                    Advanced Orchestra

(Day 1)                                                                 (Day 3)

Fri., Oct. 11^th                                                       Tue., Oct. 15^th

Mon., Oct. 21^st                                                    Wed., Oct. 23^rd

Tue., Oct. 29^th                                                     Thu., Oct. 31^st

Mon., Nov. 11^th                                                  Wed., Nov. 13^th

Tue., Nov. 19^th                                                    Thu., Nov. 21^st

Wed., Nov. 27^th                                                   Tue., Dec. 3^rd

Mon., Dec. 9^th                                                     Wed., Dec. 11^th

Tue., Dec. 17^th                                                    Thu., Dec. 19^th

Mon., Jan. 6^th                                                      Wed., Jan. 8^th

Tue., Jan. 14^th                                                     Thu., Jan. 16^th

Concerts (at the PAC)

Orchestra

Dress Rehearsal and Winter Concert:  Tues., Jan. 21^st, 2014

Concert Assemblies:  Wed., Jan. 22^nd, 2014

Evening concert begins promptly at 6:30 p.m.

Band

Dress rehearsal and concert assemblies:  Wed., Jan. 22^nd, 2014

Winter Concert:  Thurs., Jan. 23rd, 2014

Evening concert begins promptly at 6:30 p.m.

(The Spring Schedule will come out after the Winter Concert.)

Please note:

If the district calls for a delayed opening on 1 of these dates, the rehearsal will be cancelled.

If school is unexpectedly closed on 1 of these dates, rehearsal will be held the next school day.

Creating Practice Space At Home

I recently came across violinist Claire Allen's blog.  She has written a wonderful post about creating good practice spaces at home.  Please take a few minutes to read it.  Having a good practice space can make a world of difference to your budding string player!

Creating Practice Space At Home

Welcome Back!

I am so thrilled that the 2013-2014 school year is now underway!  This week, string lessons begin and the students will be learning their first three songs!

Practice is essential in these early days.  For beginners, 10 minutes a day is perfect.  I'd much rather see each child practice a few minutes each day than an hour the night before their lesson.  Short periods over several days is crucial for correct muscle development.  Don't forget, if it is painful...STOP!

Here is a video highlighting the points we cover in our first lesson!

First Lesson Review

Our early morning rehearsal schedule will be handed out shortly.  We are expected to begin these rehearsals the second week of October.

If you have any questions at any time, please let me know!