This week in band at Hawley 8/27/2017

Dear band parents,

     Welcome back!  I hope everyone had a fun summer break.  Every week, I will send you a message like this with important information like what we are doing in band class this week, upcoming concerts and events, etc.  Here we go!


8TH GRADE BAND TO PLAY AT CREEDMOOR MUSIC FESTIVAL
     The Mayor of Creedmoor personally asked me to bring our band to the Creedmoor Music Festival on Saturday, September 16 (soon!).  This is a new opportunity for our kids to perform in the community, which is something I would really like to do more often.  I will send home a permission form this week with details, but we are performing around 9:00am after the SGHS marching band performs.


CONCERT CALENDAR
     Our concerts will be a little different this year.  First, the 6th grade band will perform on a separate night than the 7th and 8th grade bands.  This is because our band program and the SGHS band programs have gotten so big that the auditorium is too small to have everyone together on the same night like we used to.  Mr. Maston and I are so proud and grateful that you have made band so popular that we are dangerously overcrowded at our concerts (thank you!), but now we need to make some adjustments.  So, here is our concert schedule for the year:

October 26, 6:30, 8th grade only, at Hawley
December 12, 7:00, 6th grade only, at Hawley
December 15, 7:00, 7th and 8th grade, at SGHS audition
March 8, 7:00, 8th grade only, at SGHS auditorium
May 17, 7:00, 6th grade only, at SGHS auditorium
May 18, 7:00, 7th and 8th grade, at SGHS auditorium

     The other change with our concerts this year is that, as you can see, 8th grade will perform 4 concerts instead of 3.  I want 8th grade band to be about getting as much performance experience as possible.  This is a big step for our program, but we are ready for it.


INSTRUMENT STORAGE DURING THE SCHOOL DAY
     Students have the option to carry their instrument around with them all day, or store them on the shelves in the band room during the day.  They will be able to come by the band room at the end of the day to pick their instruments up, so they can go home and practice.


DO YOU HAVE YOUR INSTRUMENT?
     Parents, please help your child remember their instrument in the morning.  Please make sure it is in working order.  Clarinets and saxophones, please make sure you have extra reeds.


IN THE BAND ROOM THIS WEEK
     6th graders will receive their instruments this week if you signed up to rent from Hills Music Shop.  We will learn how to put them together, how to lubricate and take care of them, and how to make our first sounds.  We will also do auditions for percussion by the end of the week.  Please encourage your child to practice at home every day, just review what we did in class and try to get better at it.  The more you practice, the easier it gets.

     7th grade will jump into Chapter 10 of the method book.  It starts with a fun review of notes and rhythms we learned last year.  Then clarinets learn their lower register notes while other instruments review their upper register notes.  #10.06 will be our first playing test.

     8th grade has lots to do.  We will start learning our new Fundamentals routine.  We will review some of the music we learned last year so that we can play it at the Creedmoor Music Festival.  I will also distribute a new piece that we will learn for the Festival, as well as the music for our October concert.  Yes, we are jumping right in!  Our first test will be line #1.07 from Fundamentals.


THANK YOU
     Thank you, parents, for signing up your child for band.  You didn't have to do it, but you chose to do it, and I don't take that for granted.  Thank you for making music education important in your family.  Thank you for spending your money on an instrument for them to play.  Thank you for supporting me and our school band program.  I love my job and we are going to have a great year together.  Justin Dickson


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Welcome to 6th Grade Band at Hawley!!!

Dear 6th grade band parents,

     This is Justin Dickson, the band director at Hawley Middle School.  I am sure your child is excited about their first day of middle school next week, and I am so glad that they will be a part of our band program.  I just wanted to communicate a few organizational things to you before we get going next week.

1.  If you signed up to rent your instrument from Hills Music Shop, then your instrument will be delivered to the school.  You do not need to do anything.

2.  If you have not signed up to rent your instrument yet, you can call Hills Music Shop at 252-492-4116.  Please ask for Tiffany, she is the representative who works with our school.

3.  I have attached a class roster to this email, in case you cannot remember which instrument you are playing.

4.  If you have not already done so, please sign up to receive the 6th grade band text message announcements by texting the code@HawleyBa17 (it has to have the @ symbol) to phone number 81010.  Answer all the questions it may ask like your name and birthday, or you will not be signed up.  You do not need to download the Remind app to receive the messages.

5.  Detailed info about the band program and your instrument can be found on my website here, if you would like to review it:
http://justindickson.com/justindickson/band/5th.htm

6.  It is not too late for your friends to sign up for band, but it needs to happen this week.  We could really use more Trombone players to balance out the band musically!  Tell your friends to email me at DicksonJ@gcs.k12.nc.us if they are interested.

     Thank you.  Thank you for signing your child up for band, for getting an instrument for them to play, and for making music education important to your family.  I hope your child gets as much out of this experience as I did when I was their age.  We're going to have a good time. 

     Feel free to email me with any questions you may have, I'm here to help.  Justin Dickson