THE Houston Band

Hello Houston Band family,

I sincerely hope this was the hottest August of marching band I have the pleasure of teaching in my career. As a band that rehearses mostly in the morning, it was almost always 90+ degrees all month long. I am grateful for our students' ability to push through difficult things in search of great outcomes. I am excited to see what we are capable of under better conditions soon!

Our first spirit night was a roaring success at Baskin Robbins! Please plan to visit Zaxby's (near Houston Levee & Winchester) on a Tuesday night this fall. Find important announcements below about prop building, spring trip deadlines, our game on Friday (YES, this Friday!), and Mini Camp.

With excitement and gratitude,

Mr. C

Bench prop assembly will be completed tomorrow thanks to the hard work of band parent/booster co-treasurer Sara Hagan! If you are reasonably confident with a drill and relatively heat-tolerant, please reach out to Sara to help with the final steps of assembly. This is a great way to directly contribute to our band's success! Thank you for helping!

Email: sara.e.hagan@gmail.com

The deadline to register for the trip to Orlando in the spring is SEPTEMBER 14TH. Check the information in the "repeat announcement" section of this email to make sure you've registered and paid your deposit. If you have any questions about the trip, feel free to reach out to me.

Band trips are SUPER fun! We are so proud to offer some of the cheapest major trips of any activities in the school. I know it is a big commitment, but I still have wonderful memories of my high school band trips. I can't wait to go to Orlando with everyone!

Yes, it is mandatory for Varsity Band students per our syllabus. Please reach out to me if you have a conflict. Find important information for our 7/4 game v. Southwind below:

• KICKOFF is at 7pm. Spectators should arrive early for pregame festivities and to get a seat.
• CALL TIME for band students is 5:30pm.
• DRESS is tropical. Please be mindful of the high temperatures when planning your blackout outfit. Sections with an average calendar fundraiser raise of $150+ will get to wear our (very nice!) matching blackout cowboy hats from the Western Sky Sketches show three seasons ago.
• PICKUP is no later than 30 minutes after the game concludes. That is long enough time to get to the high school from the Mississippi river. Please plan your evening accordingly, so band staff can get home to their families.
• EARLY DISMISSAL from football games is not permitted unless approved prior to the game by Mr. Carpenter. This enables us to more safely keep track of all students and maintain the level of excellence our band is known for.
• EXPECTATIONS are clearly set around football games from both our school and band. Behave as you would if an assistant principal were standing next to you, and you will be okay! Representing our band at football games is a privilege, not a right.
• PERFORMANCES will happen at the Mustang Walk tailgate event (drumline only), on the field during pregame, and in the stands during all four quarters (no halftime).
• BREAK will happen during halftime. Students will report back to the bleachers with 2:30 left in halftime on the stadium clock.

We will host our annual mini camp on 9/12/26 (rain date 9/19/26). The start time for Mini Camp is dependent on show progress to that point in the season and will range from 7am to 9am. Attendance is mandatory for all Varsity Band members (including alternates). Students will be served lunch by parent volunteers; students with food allergies should plan accordingly. We will be finished no later than 4pm (though it will hopefully be earlier). We will send an exact schedule for Mini Camp by the middle of next week.

If you are available to help out (first aid tent or lunch service), please fill out the form here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C084DACAE2CA6F5C34-64527229-thehouston?useFullSite=true#/

ALL Houston Band students and their families are invited to join us for our 2027 Spring Trip to Walt Disney World! This trip is completely optional and is open to all music students and parents.

The band will be performing a parade in Magic Kingdom. The travel agent's package includes charter bus transportation, hotel (+breakfast), and three days of admission to three Walt Disney World theme parks. Students will have Field Trip (FT) absences for Friday, Monday, and Tuesday.

When registering, students should select the Quad Room option. Students should not register for Double or Triple rooms. All students, regardless of registration status, will be placed in a quad room.

Parents rooming with other parents may choose a Single or Double. Parents can select Double, Triple, or Quad rooms only if they plan to room with their child. (Double - one parent/one child | Triple - two parents/one child | Quad - two parents/two children). Students sharing a room with parents will need to select the double/triple option.

Please note that our travel package does not include Lightning Lane access and there is not an option to add it through the tour company. You are welcome to explore options on your own.

If you have questions about registration, rooming, payments, or other travel details, please contact our tour company directly. They can provide the most accurate and up-to-date information and will be able to assist you more effectively than I can.

QUESTIONS?

info@etadventures.com

866-273-2500

www.etadventures.com

A non-refundable deposit of $300 per person is required by September 14th, 2026 to reserve a space. This is a fast turnaround but enables our travel agent to minimize costs by purchasing things early, avoiding wasted bus space, etc. Because it's so close to our band dues being due, if you need to delay your second payment to go on the trip, please feel free to do so. That said, students who have not paid any band dues are not permitted to attend. Band dues partially cover costs of equipment, uniform cleaning, music, staffing, and more for this trip and all other public performances.

HOW TO REGISTER -

1. Visit our website at: https://www.etadventures.com/

Click the green text in the top section of the screen that says: "Customer Login"
2. On the next screen you should choose the option to "Access Account" and then you will be prompted to create an account using your email address or your personal Google account.
3. If you have previously created an account with ETA, you may sign into your existing account to make a reservation and you will not need to create a new account.
4. Once you are into your account, select Add a New Trip, and then enter houston27.
5. You should see your trip details at that point, and then select Make a New Reservation and complete ALL fields.

Third-Party Travel Agency Notice

As with many school trips, we are utilizing the services of a third party travel agent to set itineraries, collect payments, and disburse materials. Generally, this is a better option to ensure safe, organized, exceptional educational travel experiences for our students. In the same way we wouldn't want a travel agent teaching our students music, we don't want music teachers pretending to be travel agents. We leave it to the professionals! No money is collected for this trip by GMSD employees, and GMSD is not responsible for the trip.

There is optional trip insurance through ETA.
Trip cancellation insurance enables individuals to cancel their trip at any time due to a family or medical emergency and receive a full refund, or cancel for any other reason at least 48 hours prior to departure and receive a 70% refund. Some people learned in the snowstorm last year that trip insurance is VERY helpful! Trip insurance costs $160.

We will be selling Houston Pompoms at each home game this year! All proceeds benefit our amazing band program. We need 3 parents to help sell during Pregame and 3 parents to help sell during the First Quarter. Please click the link to sign up for this and many other volunteer opportunities!

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C084DACAE2CA6F5C34-64527229-thehouston?useFullSite=true#/

If you work for or own a company that makes charitable contributions to nonprofits, please reply and let me know. I'll put you in contact with our booster parents on how to make a tax-deductible donation to our HHS Band Boosters, a 501(c)(3) organization that supports our band operations!

The easiest way to pay band dues is by check (no cash) on any school day. Give the check to Mr. Carpenter with your member's full legal name clearly printed on the memo line. You can pay in full if you are able ($550) or just the first payment if needed ($275, due August 15). Online payments (with a significant processing fee out of band staff control) will be collected via SchoolCashOnline soon if you prefer that option.

If you registered later or this is your first newsletter you've received, please don't over-stress about timeliness of band dues. I don't expect everyone to be able to send a $275 check with four days' notice. If you're able to send them on time, please do. If not, just have a plan and reach out me (kevin.carpenter@gmsdk12.org) with questions!

Pit Crew volunteers help move equipment for the marching band at home football games and competitions throughout the season. It’s a great way to support the Houston Band Boosters, and meet other band parents, and be directly involved in your student’s band experience.

Best of all, helping the Pit Crew puts you right there with the band, where you'll have a front row seat for every performance! No experience necessary, just a willingness to be part of the team!

Please click on the button below to sign up. Thank you!

The Houston Band Pit Crew Sign-Up

Please read these few bullet points, follow the simple instructions, and make a huge impact on the future of a young musician and our band program!

Please know that word of mouth is our best recruiter for the amazing band programs here at Houston High School and within all 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 5th grade within GMSD, let them know about the transformative experience band has been in your students' lives. The HMS and RK8 band programs are some of the biggest activities on their respective campuses, and they immediately plug students into social and musical opportunities! JOIN THE BAND
• If you know a GMSD 7th or 8th grader that loves band and is considering private school options, please encourage them to reach out to me about our amazing band (along with curricular and extracurricular) offerings at HHS! We offer deeper, more diverse instrumental music opportunities than the vast majority of schools that HMS and RK8 students transfer into, and many families frankly don't know that's the case because of how much some schools highlight the more limited programs in their brochures.
• If you know a talented non-GMSD 8th grader that wants to be in a great school band program, let them know about our academies, which enable a limited number of non-Germantown students preferred-transfers into our amazing school district. Some of our most musically-talented, strongly-contributing, highly-involved members are part of our band through these life-changing academy opportunities! Academies often stay open until the beginning of the school year!
• If you are a freshman or parent of a freshman with friends in the RK8 or HMS band programs, reach out to those friends/family friends about continuing their band journey at HHS! Get the "band" back together! Your call or text can be the difference between a student joining and not joining. It is not too late to add the band elective if a student wants to participate.

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 GMSD Bands at any level, I'm more than happy to field those questions. Folks can email me at kevin.carpenter@gmsdk12.org.

They can also check out our info page about band here: https://www.thehoustonband.com/join

Any day during class when the weather is nice, we will be outside (including tomorrow)! Please plan ahead with sunscreen, water, and a change of clothes if needed. We will start with more transition time this week and build the skill of getting outside/ready faster as we progress into our first full week of school next year.

We will be out basically every day we can. Our class time is now our full rehearsal time because we have access to the field in the morning instead of the parking lot at 3pm. It will be much nicer but still HOT! Let me know if you have any questions.

If you feel like dues are restricting your ability to participate in band, please reach out ASAP to see what we can do for you to ensure you have access to our amazing programming!

Unless you need a hardship extension (email me!), band dues will be frontloaded to the beginning of the school year. We do this to open up the rest of the year for (optional) trip payments and to make sure we stay in a good financial position through marching season.

Payment 1: $275 due on August 15

Payment 2: $275 due on September 15

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 upcoming ACT dates with no conflicts are: October 17 and February 27, 2027.

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: September 19 (Mini Camp Rain Date), December 12 (Gtown Holiday Parade). Please plan accordingly.

As we get closer to next school year, we will know more dates that will/won't work with the ACT for the spring of 2027 semester.

If you're unhappy with chair placements or all west results, please consider asking about private lessons. Mr. Sims and I are happy to give all students a few free one-on-one lessons each year before or after school. We are also happy to provide recommendations for great lessons teachers in the area for students that want to push themselves further as individual musicians. Our core goal as a band is ensemble musicianship, and lessons are a great way to supplement that instruction.

Private lessons make a great gift and can help students secure potential music scholarships and honors ensemble experiences! All five of our All-State students this year are enrolled in regular private lessons.

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.

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