20180422

Dear band parents,

     This is Justin Dickson, band director at Hawley Middle School.  Every week I will send out a message like this to communicate what is happening this week in band class, upcoming events, and other announcements.


MORE 5th GRADER INSTRUMENT TRYOUT NIGHTS
     We have scheduled more "Band Parent Meeting and Instrument Tryout Nights" for incoming 5th graders for  May 14 and May 21 at 6:00pm.  Our original dates got snowed out.  Please help me spread the word to any 5th graders who may be coming to Hawley next year.  Thank you!


7th GRADERS CAN DO MARCHING BAND AT S.G.H.S. NEXT YEAR!

     Dear 7th grade band parents, next year, your child is eligible to be a member of the South Granville High School Marching Band as an 8th grader.  This is something that Mr. Maston (the band director at SGHS) has allowed for several years, and it is a great opportunity for our talented students.  

     Your child will need a ride from Hawley to SGHS after school, because they will be expected to attend all after school practices, as well as the home football games, parades, and Saturday band competitions.  This year, several of our 8th graders arranged a car pool with each other, so that is an option too.

      If you are interested, your child should attend the "Rookie Band Camp" at SGHS May 21-24 from 4:00-6:30.  This is not a commitment, this is not you signing up for marching band.  Think of it like how our athletic teams have "open practices" before tryouts.  Your child will get to know Mr. Maston and the student leaders in the band, they will be taught the basic skills of marching, and then they can decide if this is something they want to do next year.

      The 8th graders who take advantage of this opportunity quickly become the best musicians in our band program every year.  They learn so much and develop their skills on their instrument from playing next to the high school students, and the high school students go out of their way to help and teach the "rookies" everything they can.  The SGHS marching band has an incredibly positive, nurturing student culture that way.  I hope you will consider allowing your child to be a part of this award-winning band of dedicated, fun, caring, hard-working student musicians.  

      Feel free to contact Mr. Maston with any questions at MastonBM@gcs.k12.nc.us

YES, PARENTS CAN COME TO CAROWINDS.  PLEASE DO!
     8th grade trip to the Carowinds Festival of Music is Saturday, May 12.  Some parents have asked me if they can join us.  YES!  Of course, we would love to have you!  In fact, the bigger audience we have cheering us on, the better!  There is no additional $$ cost to attend the performance, you only need to buy the regular admission ticket into the Carowinds park like every regular person who is going to Carowinds that day to ride the rides etc.  You can just buy your ticket at the gate.  You may be able to buy tickets ahead of time online, too.  

JAZZ BAND SCHEDULE

     Here is a list of everything the Jazz Band is doing for the rest of the year:  http://hawleyband.blogspot.com/2018/04/20180419_19.html


MAKING UP TESTS IN THE MORNING

     My morning duty assignment has changed so I am in the cafeteria and then monitoring the hallway from 8:00-8:30.  As a result, I am not able to hear playing tests before school starts.  I also cannot hear them at 8:30 because first core class starts at that time, and students need to be in their core classes.  I cannot expect students to come make up work during other teachers' instructional time, and the almighty EOG exams are coming up so students really need to maximize their core class time.

      My recommendation is that students practice / study ahead of time so they are prepared to pass their test in class, so they don't have to worry about making it up.

E.O.G. PROCTORS NEEDED

     Speaking of the end-of-grade exams, our school needs many volunteers to proctor the exams.  If you are willing to help, even for just one day, please call the school at 919-528-0091.  Thank you!

IN THE BAND ROOM THIS WEEK
     6th grade will continue working on their third piece of concert music, "A Shaker Hymn".  Our goal is to be able to play this by the end of the week.  If your child did not pass off their playing test from last week on "Caribbean Delight," please make sure they are practicing at home and they can tell me when they are ready to try again any day.

     7th grade will take a break for a few days from our concert music, and explore some other material.  They are ahead of schedule with their concert preparation, and I do not want to get bogged down in monotony.  I am going to throw some Pep Band stuff at them, and maybe they can start to consider playing in our football pep band next year.  I will do the same thing with some Jazz Band music.  If your child did not pass off their playing test from last week on "Long Day's Journey," please make sure they are practicing at home and they can tell me when they are ready to try again any day.

     8th grade will learn a new piece for our upcoming concert this week.  And of course we will also continue "polishing" the other concert & Carowinds Festival music.  

     Jazz Band will keep working on "These Foolish Things" and "Autumn Leaves" this week.  AL is a new one I just finished this weekend, but I have not written many solos for it yet.  I will try to write a solo for everyone who wants one by the end of the week.  Practice, practice, practice!

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OLD BUT STILL RELEVANT INFO 
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PLEASE SIGN UP FOR TEXT ANNOUNCEMENTS
     If you have not already done so, please sign up to receive text message announcements from me via the Remind app.  You do not have to download the app.  Just sent a text message to phone number 81010 , and the text message should say...
     ... @HawleyBa18 for fifth grade, next year's sixth grade
     ... @HawleyBa17 for sixth grade
     ... @HawleyBa16 for seventh grade
     ... @HawleyBa15 for eighth grade

8th GRADE PERFORMANCE AT THE CAROWINDS FESTIVAL OF MUSIC!
     8th grade band only.  In case anyone needs it again, here is the paper with all of the information about the Carowinds Festival of Music event:  http://www.justindickson.com/band/stuff/carowinds-letter.pdf

TECHNOLOGY TO MAKE LEARNING EASIER
     By now, most of you know that I designed a free mobile app for my students called Bandmate Chromatic Tuner (www.bandmatetuner.com).  I highly recommend that you download it, or that your child downloads it on their phone / tablet if they have one, because it makes it so much easier for kids to learn their notes while they are practicing at home. 
     The Bandmate Tuner app is a big deal because it gives personal feedback to students while they learn.  It lets students see what note they are playing, so that they can check for themselves if they are playing the right note or not.  It has made it so much easier for my students to learn, and people all around the world have discovered it and are using it in their own music programs.  


FLUTES, CLARINETS, AND SAXOPHONES NEED A SWAB
     If your child plays a woodwind instrument (flute, clarinet, or saxophone), they need a swab so they can clean out their instrument every day before putting it back in the case.  You can order one from Hills Music Shop if you do not have one.
     If woodwinds are stored in the case without swabbing, moisture causes the pads under the keys to wrinkle and be ruined.  This costs $100-200 to fix, depending on the extent of the damage.  A swab costs $5.  Please make sure your child has a swab.


FACEBOOK
     Our band program has a Facebook page.  You can "like" it here:  www.facebook.com/HawleyBandRoom

9th GRADE BAND REGISTRATION
     Yes, it's already time for our 8th graders to start thinking about their 9th grade class registration!  Mr. Maston and I put together a document to help you understand which band classes are available to you at SGHS next year.  Just go to the "SGHS" page on my website (click here), and click on "Information about 9th grade band registration".


CONCERT CALENDAR
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 12, 8th grade only, Carowinds Festival of MusicMay 17, 7:00, 6th grade only, at SGHS auditorium
May 18, 7:00, 7th and 8th grade, at SGHS auditorium