THE Houston Band

Hello Houston Band family,

Congrats on an amazing marching season, capped off by our best performance yet. I'm so incredibly proud of the work ethic, drive, artistry, and enthusiasm I have witnessed over the last four months. The entire staff has seen incredible and inspiring growth across all divisions and levels of our ensemble. We had new color guard students with flawless performances, we saw upperclassmen brass students fill in large gaps left by the previous graduating class, we witnessed beginner woodwind players flawlessly playing their feature, and so many more moments of pride. Nothing in this profession is more gratifying than seeing students with huge smiles after they finish a performance, and I saw TONS of smiling coming off the field at Bandmasters.

Thank you also to everyone who made it out to support Mustang Football in their dominant win over Germantown, and thanks to everyone who woke up early the next morning to get to HHS to support the Germantown Education Foundation and Stang Fest!

I can't wait to see the effort, intention, and growth mindset displayed this marching season translated to concert band and winter guard. I can't wait to see our students' growth show up in All West and All State results. I can't wait to see our program's future. Let's keep working hard, making music, and having a great time as we head into this holiday season.

Please read this newsletter carefully for information regarding:

• Recruitment
• All West auditions
• Holiday Cycle rehearsals
• Holiday Concert
• Holiday Parade
• Color Guard Drill Camp/ Winter Guard
• Festival Cycle chair placements
• Next year's marching/holiday dates

With excitement and gratitude,

Mr. C

As we approach school/elective choice season this winter, please know that word of mouth is our best recruiter for the amazing band programs here at Houston High School and within the GMSD Bands. I hope you have seen firsthand the transformative power of instrumental music education and band as an activity.

If you have a friend, neighbor, family member, or ANYONE else in your life in 4th or 5th grade within GMSD, let them know about the transformative experience band has been in your students' lives. If you know an 8th grader that wants to be in a great band but doesn't live in Germantown, let them know about our academies. We are so excited to continue building our program's numbers back to more sustainable levels, but that takes work from everyone. Thank you for helping with that work!

If anyone has ANY questions about band at any level, I'm more than happy to field those questions.

All west auditions are in two weeks on November 22nd. Audition times will be shared as soon as the regional association has them completed, and typically range from 8am to 5pm.

There are a handful of students that will be given an alternative assignment to the audition based on their chair placement results last week. Those students will be pulled by Mr. Sims and Mr. Carpenter tomorrow to discuss that assignment.

If you need an alternative assignment to this audition due to a conflict, 1) please ensure you're keeping an eye on the calendar and planning ahead, as this audition date was shared in May and 2) reach out to me immediately with an explanation of that conflict.

Just to put this info out there ahead of time, your band dues pay for the audition fees but not the clinic fees. This year, All West will cost about $250-$275 for participation if you need to plan ahead for that. All State will cost similarly. We are also able to spread that out over the second semester if needed due to semester one dues/ trip dues.

Symphonic Band rehearsals begin on Tuesday. Wind Ensemble rehearsals begin on Thursday. Concert band rehearsals are mandatory and go from 2:55pm to 4:30pm.

Both concert ensembles are performing a combination of secular and nonsecular holiday music. If you have a reason to not allow your student to perform and/or rehearse secular and/or nonsecular music, reach out immediately. We will get a plan together for alternative assignments for your young musician if there is a religious reservation to participation in this cycle.

Our holiday concert will be on December 11 at 6pm. Per our syllabus, attendance and participation is mandatory without one month's notice of a valid conflict (college visit for example). After that, nothing aside from a proven illness or family emergency will lead to a full credit alternative assignment. Please respect the work of other students for these concerts and let me know by Tuesday if you have a conflict.

The annual Germantown Holiday Parade takes place on the second Saturday of December every year (rain date on the immediately following Sunday). This year, the parade will be on December 13th (rain date 12/14). Per our syllabus and multiple email communications dating back months, the ACT is not a valid conflict for this event. Our call time will be in the mid-late morning, and the parade festivities will go through the mid-afternoon. Please let me know if you have a conflict ASAP.

We will rehearse after school on December 14th, which will go as late as 4:45pm. Typically, we finish by around 4pm.

Note: Per our syllabus, if you have a conflict with the RAIN DATE you must communicate that ahead of time with one month's notice, just like any other conflict. "We have an event tomorrow" will NOT be a valid reason to get out of the rain date performance. Please plan ahead and reach out ASAP if you have a conflict with that rain date.

Color guard drill camp will take place on December 14th (or December 13th if the parade happens on the 14th). Information around time/expectations will be sent out by Mrs. Roberts. Basically, this is like a day of band camp for our color guard students in anticipation of their indoor season, which goes through Q3 and the beginning of Q4.

Our next ensemble auditions/chair placements will take place on December 15th and 16th. Those auditions will feature the following:

• an 8-24 measure excerpt from that concert cycle (released to students December 1st)
• a full range chromatic scale
• one (randomly selected) major scale
• a 4-8 measure sight reading excerpt

Those auditions will be fast-paced to get done in two days. Be ready!

July 13-18: Color guard and percussion camp

July 20-25: Full camp

July 28: Summer rehearsal 1

July 30: Summer rehearsal 2

August 6: Begin after school rehearsals (every Tuesday/Thursday)

September 12: Mini camp

September 19: Possible contest "0" (unlikely but possible depending on rest of season's schedule--leave open!)

September 26: Contest 1

October 3: Contest 2

October 24: Contest 3 or Film Session (do not schedule an ACT test)

October 31: Contest 3 or Film Session

November 7: Possible contest 4 (depending on Bandmasters scheduling, TBD by UofM football schedule)

December 10, 2026: Holiday Concert

December 12, 2026: Holiday Parade

December 13, 2026: Holiday Parade makeup date

All west audition date TBA by the regional association. We will send that Saturday out as soon as we have it!

From booster president Deanna Gilbert:

Our Booster Board is looking to fill some vacant spots and this is a perfect opportunity for some of our new families to join in behind the scenes of supporting the band. Specifically we are in need of a Booster Secretary (takes minutes at monthly Booster meetings and invites various admin, city leaders and school board to events), a Uniform Co-Chair or 2 (will assist Uniform Chair Erica McCarrens in getting our students ready for games and competitions), and a Publicity Chair (takes pictures at events, updates social media and assists in event promotions). If you are interested or have any questions please reach out to Booster President Deanna Gilbert at dlgilbert3@bellsouth.net.

It is extremely important to plan ahead for ACT dates when you are in band, as we often have Saturday events outside of our scheduling control. The ACT dates with no conflicts are (2025:) June 14, July 12, September 6, October 18, (2026:) April 11 for most students, June 13, and July 11.

That is more than enough dates to take the ACT an adequate number of times. Missing a band event for the ACT is NOT excused. We understand the inconvenience of not having these dates available, but all of these Saturdays are outside of our scheduling control. Our ACT date conflicts this year are: December 13 (Holiday Parade), February 14 (All West), and April 11 (for All State Students only). Please plan accordingly.

The road to all west starts today! The band room will be open to practice in the mornings from 7:00-7:45 and after school M/W until 4:10pm. If you want specific one-on-one help, ask Mr. Sims or Mr. C in advance for a free 20-30 minute lesson!

If you work at or own a business (big or small!), please consider sponsoring the band. Our booster president Mrs. Gilbert has created the following sponsorship document that is printable to present to interested parties. We are grateful to all businesses that support arts education in Germantown.

Our band dues will not be raised moving into this year. Last year, we reduced band dues by $225 to make band as accessible as possible to all students. It's important to participate in our year-round fundraisers to supplement that cost. If fundraising is NOT your thing, please consider just writing a check for $225 (or donating that amount online) to offset what students will typically fundraise over the year if they fully participate in everything. Please note that while there are no consequences to not participating in fundraising efforts, it hurts our band when lots of people don't.

Total mandatory dues: $500 (two payments of $250, one due on August 15th and the other due on September 15th)

Total booster requested donation: $225 by the end of the year - note that this is not a mandatory payment but greatly appreciated by our amazing boosters to alleviate some of the fundraising burdens they have.

If you are unable to pay dues on time (or in full), please reach out to Mr. Carpenter immediately. We will do everything we can to fundraise, provide scholarships, etc. Band is an expensive activity, and these funds are necessary for travel, staffing, instruments, repair, show design, concert music, and much more. Our dues are lower than many other municipal band in the area, and we are incredibly proud of that.

You can pay via check any Friday of the school year or via card on SchoolCashOnline.

Please note, students that miss rehearsals and performances without prior approval will be penalized with grade deductions. All you have to do is give us as MUCH heads up as possible, emailing me the reason for missing and (when relevant) a doctor's note. Please note that the closer we get to a date, the less likely exemption will be granted. Give us time to plan for other students' success when sending us your reasonable conflicts due to health, religion, family emergencies, etc.

Please look ahead in our calendar when scheduling routine doctor or dental care. Your appointment may have been scheduled for six months, but our calendar has been set for 18 months. If you have an immovable appointment, let me know ASAP, not the day before. The former will be exempt, and the latter will not.

Thank you for your understanding and commitment to our band's success!

Mr. Sims has created a list of some practice resources for students. If you have any additional resources that have been helpful for you, please feel free to share them!

• The Woodwind Fingering Guide
• "Fingering Chart by Tremolo" on iOS
• PlayScore 2
• Sight Reading Factory (see Mr. C for activation instructions at the start of band camp)
• MusicRacer.com (note that there are strobing lights in this game)

Additionally, students have reported having improved outcomes utilizing the Tonic App. I've heard comparisons to the popular running app Strava, but for music. Parents, please feel free to explore this option for your young musician but be advised that there is a social media element to this app.

Find upcoming dates for performances, events, and one-off rehearsals below. Note that regular rehearsals are Tuesdays and Thursdays, with sectionals on Mondays.

You can always find our full calendar (including Google and iCal integration links) here: https://www.thehoustonband.com/calendar

Upcoming Dates

• 11/11/25 - Holiday concert rehearsals begin (Tuesdays Concert Band, Thursdays Wind Ensemble)
• 11/22/25 - WTSBOA All West Auditions
• 12/11/25 - Holiday Concert (@ HHS, 6pm)
• 1/8/26 - After school rehearsals begin for CPA cycle (Tuesdays or Thursdays, depending on ensemble)
• 1/28/26 to 2/1/26- Spring Trip - Universal Studios!!
• 2/12/26-2/14/26 - WTSBOA All West Clinic
• 2/21/26 - CPA/Festival Mini Camp (@ HHS, all day)
• 3/12/26 OR 3/13/26 - WTSBOA Concert Performance Assessment
• 4/9/26-4/12/25 - TnMEA All State Clinic and Conference
• Possible Spring Concert Dates: April 30, May 1, May 5 (awaiting venue confirmation)
• 5/8/26 - Graduation

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