Hudson Hawk Band Updates

ALL are welcome to join us for the Advanced Band performances at the UIL Concert & Sightreading Evaluations at Rowlett High School next week. The students always perform better for a large audience! If you can take an hour off of work, you won't regret it - these kids sound amazing and we are so excited for them to show off everything they've been working on this semester. All performances are free and open to the public at Rowlett High School. The performance times and detailed itineraries for each band are below:

Symphonic Band - Wednesday, March 11th at 9:25am

Honors Band - Wednesday, March 11th at 2:30pm

Wind Symphony - Thursday, March 12th at 1:30pm

Please come out and join us on Sunday, March 22 at 2:30pm at Rockwall Heath High School for a preview concert of our Wind Symphony's Music for All performance before the band heads to Indianapolis. We'd love to have a large audience to support these amazing kids and the hard work they've been putting in for this performance all year!

If you can't make it to the preview concert, you can also watch the live stream of our actual concert on Friday, March 27th at 2:45pm on Box5 Media.

There are NO Hawk Select Beginner Band rehearsals the week of March 9 or during Spring Break. The next rehearsal is on TUESDAY, March 24th. After that, we go back to our usual Wednesday rehearsals until 5:30pm.

After spring break, all students will have 2 rehearsals with a piano accompanist to practice their solo with the background piano part prior to the solo contest. These rehearsals should happen during the school day, but a detailed rehearsal schedule will be shared just after spring break.

All Beginner Band students will perform their solo for a judge the evening of Friday, April 10th at Hudson MS. Students will need to dress up for this performance and will receive a rating based on their performance.

All Advanced Band students will perform their solo on Saturday, April 11th at Brandenburg Middle School.

The solo performance is REQUIRED for ALL BAND STUDENTS.

If you are interested in joining us as a chaperone on our spring trips, use the links below to sign-up. The Advanced Band trip is on Friday, May 1st from 11:00am-6:30pm and the chaperone cost is $20. The Beginner Band trip is on Thursday, May 7th from 8:30am-4:00pm and the chaperone cost is $45. There are a limited number of spots available. Once you have signed up, your student's Presto account will be charged for the chaperone cost and payment can be sent in or paid online.

You MUST be approved as a volunteer through GISD in order to chaperone the trip. Details on how to apply to volunteer are at the bottom of this Smore.

Beginner Band Spring Trip Chaperone Sign-up

Advanced Bands Spring Trip Chaperone Sign-up

Our best recruiting tool is word of mouth from our current and former band families. We hope you have seen the value that band can bring to a child's life and would be willing to share your positive experience with another incoming family.

If you know an incoming 5th grader that wants to join our band family, please share the flier below with them. The instrument fittings are at the end of April and we can't wait to meet some new band kids!

Our spring band fees are coming up and we wanted to remind everyone about them. We know talking about band fees is never anyone's favorite thing to do, but it is necessary for us to be able to provide your students with all of the opportunities and activities we have planned for them this semester. Here are the dates to be aware of:

February 6th - Spring Band fee payment deadline (or 4th installment if making payments) - this includes instrument usage fees for students using a school-owned instrument as well. Please check your student's Presto account to see how much is due - you can even pay online! (See the video at the bottom of this newsletter for a tutorial on how to use Presto)

March 6th - 5th installment if making payments

April 3rd - Final payment deadline for ALL band fees and instrument usage fees to be PAID IN FULL by ALL students

There will be a few Saturdays this spring that students have required band performance. Please make note of these now so you aren't caught off guard later on.

• March 21 - Music for All rehearsal for Wind Symphony students attending that trip (9:00-10:30am)
• April 11 - Advanced Band solo contest for ALL Advanced Band students
• April 18 - GISD Beginner All-Star Band auditions for some Beginner Band students
• April 18 - Jazz Festival @ Wylie East HS for ALL Jazz Band students
• May 2 - GISD Beginner All-Star Band Clinic/Concert for Beginner Band students who earned a chair after auditions in April

It’s never too late to reach out to corporate band sponsors! This year we have multiple levels of band sponsorships so potential donors can decide how they would like to support our band. Corporate sponsors in any of the five sponsorship levels will have their business logo included on our band website and in concert programs the entire school year. Please help us by reaching out to businesses in your life and sharing the flier below. Feel free to contact us at fundraising@hudsonband.org if you have any questions because we're excited about fundraising and the opportunities we want to provide our students this year!

March

• 11 - SB & HB UIL Concert & Sightreading Evaluation @ Rowlett HS (SB @ 9:25am, HB @ 2:30pm)
• 12 - WS UIL Concert & Sightreading Evaluation @ Rowlett HS (WS @ 1:30pm)
• 22 - WS MFA Send-off Concert @ Rockwall Heath HS (2:30pm)
• 25-29 - WS MFA Trip to Indianapolis (performance on 3/27 @ 2:45pm and will be live-streamed)

April

• 10 - Beginner Solo Contest @ Hudson MS (evening)
• 11 - Advanced Band Solo Contest @ CCBMS (time TBA)
  
• 12 - Roughriders Spirit Day
• 18 - Beginner All-Star Band auditions @ Bussey MS (morning) & Jazz Band Festival @ Wylie East HS (afternoon)
• 21-May 1 - Auditions for 2026-2027 HMS Band placements
• 25-26 - Instrument Fitting Drives for incoming 6th grade students
• 30 - Beginner Band after school rehearsal until 5:30pm

May

• 1 - Advanced Bands spring trip to Murchison @ UNT
• 2 - Beginner All-Star Band clinic/concert for students who earn a chair after April auditions
• 5 - Beginner Band after school rehearsal until 5:30pm
• 7 - Beginner Band spring trip to Epic Waters
• 11 - ALL Bands spring concert @ Sachse HS (Beginner concert @ 6:00pm, Advanced Concert @ 7:30pm)
• 18 - Jazz Band Concert @ Sachse HS - 6:00pm
• 19 - Percussion Ensemble Concert @ Sachse HS - 7:00pm

This document has ALL of the rules, procedures, itinerary, packing list, and required forms for the MFA trip.

There is a required MFA chaperone Zoom meeting on Monday, March 9th at 7:00pm. This meeting is put on by Music for All and the link will be shared with you as soon as I receive it from MFA.

All students and at least 1 parent must attend the trip meeting on Thursday, March 12 at 7:00pm in the Hudson Cafeteria. We will be going over all of the trip logistics, itinerary, medications, luggage requirements/restrictions, etc. There will be required paperwork to fill out at the meeting.

During our 3 days at the Music for All National Festival, there is a strict dress code that MFA enforces. Students must dress in business professional clothing, which may not include jeans or tennis shoes. For boys, this means things like khaki pants and polos; for girls, dress pants and blouses/sweaters, dresses, skirts, etc. They should dress as if they were attending a job interview. On our final night, we will attend a Student Gala and students can dress up as much as they want (business professional is the minimum). Many students will wear fancy dresses or suits and ties. That evening is our chance to celebrate our achievement in style.

Our bus ride to and from Indianapolis will be super relaxed and comfortable clothes are encouraged! There will be some down time for jeans and hoodies, but during all official MFA meals and activities, we will be dressed in business professional attire.

Since not every Wind Symphony student is attending the Music for All performance, we need to have some extra rehearsals with just the group of students going on the trip. These extra rehearsals will be very important for our preparation and must be attended. If you have a conflict with any of the scheduled rehearsals, please let Mrs. Becker know ASAP!

Please note that we will have rehearsal on Friday and Saturday at the end of spring break, as well as our send-off concert on Sunday, March 22. With how quickly we leave for MFA after spring break, these events are necessary to ensure we have the best performance possible in Indianapolis. Again, please let Mrs. Becker know now if you are unable to make any of these rehearsals.

Extra MFA rehearsal schedule linked here.

You can find all of the Beginner Band supply lists for each instrument on our band website. They're found on the handouts page, where there's also a list of our recommended music stores that can help you rent instrument or purchase necessary supplies. Don't wait to get your supplies ordered - it takes a few days for the stores to fill the orders and you don't want your student to miss out on the first sounds of the year with their class!

Much like the beginner band year, as students continue with band there are new/different/extra supplies that will be needed. Many of these are the same supplies that we requested for this past year, so if your student will be an 8th grader, they likely already have these supplies. Please make sure your student has these supplies when we start school. The supplies on the list have been linked to Amazon to try and make it super easy for you - just add to cart and check out!

As you are doing your back-to-school shopping, if you feel inclined to donate any items to the HMS Band, we do have an Amazon wishlist for our classroom. We are so grateful for any and all donations we receive, as well as just your support! Other items that we use frequently and would gladly accept any donations of are paper plates, bottled water (8oz bottles are wasted less than 16oz bottles), and reams of copy paper.

Rehearsal dates this semester are: 3/24 (this is a Tuesday), 4/1, 4/8, 4/15, 4/22, 4/29, 5/6

If your student did not receive an invitation to the Hawk Select Band this year, that DOES NOT mean that they are doing poorly in beginner class. It is a small group and we had to make very difficult decisions to narrow down our invitations. While ALL students are welcome in band and there is a place for EVERYONE, after the beginner year, some advanced bands will have a limited number of "spots" available on each instrument. Band can be competitive, however, there is a class and a place for EVERYONE! The students who did not receive an invitation now have more of an opportunity to become a strong leader in the Hudson Beginner Band.

All students who earned a chair in the TMEA Region 3 All-Region Bands are eligible to purchase

Plaques, t-shirts, and other items from Pepwear. See the attached flyer for details. You must select All-Region Band items (not Jazz or Orchestra) and select "Region 3" in order to get the correct items. You will also need to know the name of your child's all-region band for plaques (Wind Ensemble, Symphonic 1 Band, Symphonic 2 Band, or Concert Band). The usual event t-shirt and plaque combo is available for $35 plus tax with code TMEA25-26.

The sectional schedule for the Advanced Band students has changed to accommodate combined sections and to avoid as many athletic and robotics conflicts as possible. Sectionals begin the week of January 19th. Please see the tabs at the bottom to see each class's schedule.

Advanced Bands Spring 2026 Sectional Schedule

Braces have become such a common part of many middle schooler's lives. Just a few thoughts on the subject as we get into that season and many of you make plans to get them on or take them off this semester.

There is generally a 2-3 week adjustment period for all students when getting braces on or off that makes playing their instrument sometimes painful, but also feel very different. Even routine wire changes take a few days to feel "normal" for a musician. As you plan these appointments this spring, please look at the band calendar and schedule around those important performances if at all possible. Every student is very valuable to the ensemble and some are the only student (or one of very few) who play their part. With solo contests, auditions, and judged group performances this semester, the timing of braces is crucial. If you are planning that change this semester and have a time period in mind, please reach out and let us know so we can help your student to feel the most successful on their instrument after this big adjustment.

If you missed our parent meeting presentations on August 21, you can find them below.

Beginner Band Presentation
Advanced Bands Presentation
Wind Symphony Presentation
There are many links within the presentations. Please click through things and let us know if you have any questions.

The BEST investment you can make for your student's musical education is with PRIVATE LESSONS! We have the most wonderful group of private teachers around who are dedicated to providing quality one-on-one instruction to our students. Most of our teachers have been working with our students already this summer at our camps and have already told me how much they are enjoying getting to know your students. To sign your student up for private lessons, fill out this enrollment form and get it back to us ASAP. The teachers will schedule students as soon as they receive their enrollment form, so be first to get the most desired lesson time! Private lessons are $25 each week, payable directly to the private teacher. If you would like to contact the private teacher for your student's instrument, you can find all of our teachers' contact information on this page.

Starting the 2nd day of school, our procedures are as follows:

Morning Drop-off

The back door #11 (exterior band hall door) will open at 7:40am. Students may come in and drop off their instrument in their band locker. From 7:45-8:15am, students will be required to exit the exterior band hall door, walk around to the front of the school, and enter near the bike racks to sit in the cafeteria. After 8:15am, students will be allowed to leave the band hall and go inside the building to either the cafeteria or gym to wait to be released to 1st period. The only students allowed to stay in the band hall are band aides, students who have a morning sectional that day, or students who have a private lesson. On Monday mornings ONLY, the band hall will be open to all students for practice from 7:45am-8:40am.

**Students who are caught loitering outside of the band hall (exterior or interior door), will receive a warning the first time, a parent contact the 2nd time, a detention the 3rd time, and an office referral the 4th time. Student's placement in the band program will be in jeopardy if they reach a 4th time.**

Afternoon Pick-up

Band students are allowed and encouraged to come down to the band hall after school to pick up their instrument/binder and take them home to practice. Students will receive a sticker to place on the back of their student ID to identify them as band students. Parents can pick up band students at the back of the school (where the traffic is typically better anyway) outside of door #11. YOU MUST STOP IN THE LEFT LANE, WAIT FOR YOUR STUDENT TO LOAD THE CAR, AND ONLY USE THE RIGHT LANE AS A DRIVE THROUGH. Parents who repeatedly use the right lane to stop and pick up their student will not be allowed to continue using the back exit! Please be patient and cautious during drop-off and pick-up. STUDENT SAFETY IS OUR TOP PRIORITY!

PLEASE READ OUR MONTHLY SMORES! Most of the answers to questions we receive regularly are already in the Smore. We take a lot of time to try and keep you informed as much as possible. Please do your part by reading ALL of the information.

With a band program our size, it is important to follow a chain of command. If you have a question or an issue, please start by contacting the teacher of your student's class:

Mrs. Becker - Wind Symphony (Varsity), Beginner Flute, Oboe, Bassoon, Clarinet, Saxophone

Mr. Clark - Honors Band (Non-Varsity), Beginner Trumpet, French Horn, Euphonium

Ms. Ball - Symphonic Band (Sub Non-Varsity), Beginner Trombone, Tuba

Mrs. Manaois - Advanced Band Percussion

Mr. Tucker - Beginner Percussion

If your child's teacher cannot help, they will help connect you with the person who can!

The best way to contact the band directors is through email. Please know that we team-teach our classes and each of us only has one 45-minute conference period each day. If you haven't received a response to your message within 48 hours, please message us again. We all strive to respond within 24 hours, but that isn't always realistic.

We have turned off notifications on Parent Square and the Band App in an effort to disconnect from work while we are not at school. Through the Band App, you will have many parents who can chime in and help answer your questions there. We have a lot of families who are on their 3rd and 4th child in our program and who are great at helping answer questions.

We are all setting boundaries to leave work at work (as much as possible), so we can be more present for our families at home. We will not be responding to emails on weekends/holidays. We spend many extra hours and days with your students, who we love, but our families must come first. Thank you so much for your understanding and for showing us grace as we put these boundaries in place.

The BAND app is the quickest way for us to communicate with you and we use it often. You can sign up for the BAND app by clicking on the link for the group you wish to join: ALL Band Parents & Students, 25-26 Beginner Band, Symphonic Band, Honors Band, Wind Symphony, Jazz Band, Parents ONLY. We will send reminders about upcoming concerts, when practice records are due, sectionals, etc. Please sign up for this wonderful service!

This year we will be using a fine arts management program called Presto (the same program we used last year for our returning families). This program allows us to keep track of band finances, inventory, music library, uniforms, communicate with members, and much more. On Friday, August 15th, all new parents and students will receive a welcome email from Presto with details on how to log in. You will be able to see upcoming events, outstanding balances, make online payments, keep track of your student's school-owned uniforms and inventory, etc. This system works very well for our unique program needs and we hope you'll take the time to explore the program and watch the quick video tutorial below.

All band students will be issued a band locker on the first day of school. Band lockers are for storing band instruments and band binders during the school day. We expect all students to take home both their binder and their instrument EVERY DAY because consistent practice is the best way to improve on an instrument. We do have combination locks available to students who request one, but we do not initially issue locks with the lockers. We HIGHLY RECOMMEND students to keep their locker locked all the time. Students are welcome to bring their own locks, however, they are REQUIRED to either share the combination with the band directors or give us a copy of the key. We do our very best to keep things safe, but the best way you can help yourself is to lock your locker and LABEL ALL OF YOUR BAND SUPPLIES! I purchased THIS LOCK for my own child to use for ease of use and time constraints at the beginning and end of class.

Heather Becker - Director

Chris Clark - Assistant Director

Rachel Ball - Assistant Director

Sue Manaois - Percussion Director

Garrett Tucker - Sachse Cluster Percussion Director

Website: www.hudsonband.org

Phone: 972-675-3070 ext. 52218
Facebook: facebook.com/hudsonmsband

Instagram: instagram.com/hudsonhawkband