Andover Music Department

A new year is almost upon us and January is when we start to ramp up numerous different events in the music/band realm! From honor bands and music festivals to pep band and Winter Concerts - there is a lot going on...and don't forget about registration too! Take a look below to get an idea about what the next two months have in store!

The first portion of Trimester 2 has seemingly flown right by and so many things have happened! Let's touch on the big ones that happened in the classroom...

• The Music Department had a successful combined Holiday Concert - thank you to everyone who attended! This collaborative format has allowed for so many more possibilities across the entire music department and we hoped you enjoyed it. There will be many more concerts in the future and we hope to see you at those as well!
• Cafe On Stage was a success! From Musical Acts on the auditorium stage to the silent auction in the cafeteria, Cage On Stage was an extreme success.
• Below are just a handful of memories made since our last newsletter...

We would love for all current msuic students to continue their musical journey with us for all four years in High School! Each of the Band/Choir/Orchestra classes take up three elective spots in the schedule. If you are having trouble fitting your music into your schedule please reach out to your counselor, they know our registration process inside and out and have come up with plans on how to "move classes around" in your schedule to make it work! Here is a description of the music courses offered here at Andover:

BAND courses you can register for:

• Level I Band is made of mostly 9th graders and is designed for the beginning high school musician - they perform developing band repertoire. Musicians in this band will continue to develop musical skills, independence, and social maturity. This class can also serve as an entry point for students interested in learning how to play a woodwind, brass or percussion instrument.
• Level II Band is made up of 10-12th graders and is designed for the developing high school musician. This band performs developing high school repertoire. Students must demonstrate technical proficiency, musical independence, and social maturity. All students who are registering for band next year as a 10-12th grader should register for this class. Placements and auditions will happen later on in the year in early April.
• Honors Level III Band is made up of 10-12th graders and is designed for the advanced high school musician. This is the premiere performing band at Andover. Students must audition and have permission from the director in order to participate in this group. Students must demonstrate advanced technical proficiency, strong musical independence and social maturity. With their participation in Honors Events and Music Festivals, this group has the most active performing schedule.

CHOIR courses you can register for:

• Level I/II Choir is made of mostly 9th graders and is designed for the beginning high school musician - they perform developing choral repertoire. Musicians in this choir will continue to develop musical skills, independence, and social maturity.
• Level III Choir is made up of 10-12th graders and is designed for the developing SSA (Treble Voices) Choral Ensemble. It is an auditioned group that performs challenging choral songs and arrangements in a variety of genres, styles, and time periods. Students must demonstrate technical proficiency, musical independence, and social maturity.Placements and auditions will happen later on in the year in early April.
• Level IV Honors Choir is made up of 10-12th graders and is designed for the advanced high school musician. This choir performs advanced high school repertoire. Students must demonstrate technical proficiency, musical independence, and social maturity. All students who are registering for choir next year as a 10-12th grader should register for this class. Placements and auditions will happen later on in the year in early April.

ORCHESTRA courses you can register for:

• Level I Orchestra is made of mostly 9th graders and is designed for the beginning high school musician - they perform developing band repertoire. Musicians in this orchestra will continue to develop musical skills, independence, and social maturity.
• Level II Orchestra is made up of 10-12th graders and is designed for the developing high school musician. This orchestra performs developing high school repertoire. Students must demonstrate technical proficiency, musical independence, and social maturity. All students who are registering for Orchestra next year as a 10-12th grader should register for this class. Placements and auditions will happen later on in the year in early April.
• Honors Level III Orchestra is made up of 10-12th graders and is designed for the advanced high school musician. This is the premiere performing Orchestra at Andover. Students must audition and have permission from the director in order to participate in this group. Students must demonstrate advanced technical proficiency, strong musical independence and social maturity. With their participation in Honors Events and Music Festivals, this group has the most active performing schedule.

Aside from the big three (Band, Choir and Orchestra), we also offer other music classes that are non-performance based. These classes are offered in addition to the main music classes and can enrich your student's musical experience.

• Music Exploration - Looking to gain more knowledge on ALL things music? Music Ex does just that! It is offered as a one trimester class with topics that include Music Theory, Music History, Sound Engineering/Sound Design, and covers music from all over the world! No previous musical experience is required.
• World Drumming - In this one trimester class you'll be playing drums on the first day! You will be learning a lot about different styles of music and the cultures they represent as we play music from West Africa, the Caribbean and we'll even briefly look into the music of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. No previous musical experience is required.
• AP Music Theory - This Two Trimester, Advanced Placement course is for those who wish to dive deeper into the analysis of Music Theory.

More information about the Music Department at Andover High School can be found on our website LINKED HERE.

The Andover High School Music Department has FOURTEEN total ensembles:

• BANDS (6 ensembles): Varsity Band (Level 1 Band), Symphonic Band (Level 2 Band), Concert Band (Honors Level 3 Band), Jazz I/II and Marching Band.
• CHOIRS (4 ensembles): Cantabile (Level One/Two Choir), Bel Canto (Level 3 Choir), Concert Choir (Level IV Honors Choir) and Chamber Choir.
• ORCHESTRAS (4 ensembles): String Orchestra (Level One Orchestra), Sinfonia (Level Two Orchestra), Concert Orchestra (Level 3 Honors Orchestra) and Chamber Orchestra

The Andover Music Department has consistently been awarded the highest ratings at State Contest since the school was founded in 2002.

Over half of the Minnesota State High School League Triple A Award winners in the past 15 years have been involved in Music.

Music students frequently take multiple Advanced Placement courses, other honors courses AND can still get four years of a foreign language in!

We take trips! Just last year the entire department took a trip down to California spending two days in theme parks (one day at Universal and one day at Disney) and spent two days sight seeing which even involved some beach time! We are currently brainstorming locations and musical activities for our next trip set to take place the Spring Break of 2027.

• Does music meet a graduation requirement?

Yes! Taking music at Andover fulfills the Arts choice graduation requirement.

• What about sports? Can I be a leader on my team and still participate in music?

Yes! The Andover music program is home to multi-sport athletes, varsity leaders, and team captains. We currently have students involved with swimming, skiing, football, hockey, basketball, baseball, softball, Tennis, track AND cross country!

• Will developing my musical talent help me get into college or get a good job?

Yes! Colleges and employers know that learning music fosters creativity and helps you develop your thinking in unique ways through team work, problem solving, communication, self-expression, and analysis. With skills ranging from solo performance to writing and arranging new music to blending in a large ensemble and learning independently, music students are among the most employable of all.

• Electives & Math & Language & Music...Can I do it all?

Yes! Students at Andover are able to fit music into their four-year plan while also taking four years of world language, fulfill math requirements, and still take a variety of other electives!

Emotionally - Music provides a creative outlet and a break from the routine and rigor of the traditional school day. Students in Music Classes are among the highest academic performers and still report less stress and tension than their non-musical counterparts.

Academically - Research has found that learning music facilitates learning other subjects and enhances skills that children inevitably use in other areas including language development, spatial-temporal skills, pattern recognition, critical thinking and so much more!

Socially - Participating in music promotes self confidence, team work, social skills, social networking, a sense of belonging, self-discipline, a sense of accomplishment, cooperation, responsibility, commitment, mutual supports and friendships that can last a life-time.

Personally - Through music, students become better people, as they develop self-discipline, confidence, commitment, responsibility, good decision making, and personal pride. They are able to do this with the support of peers in a safe and risk-free environment.

Last names beginning "A-F"

Tonia Hufnagel - tonia.hufnagel@ahschools.us

Last names beginning with "G-K"

Tara Koschak - tara.koschak@ahschools.us

Last names beginning with "L-Q"

Mandy Johnson - mandy.johnson@ahschools.us

Last names beginning with "R-Z"

Joan Angell - joan.angell@ahschools.us

Pep Band is part of the band class where we play more popular music at different sporting events like basketball and hockey. Pep band is a fun and exciting atmosphere where we cheer on our team and get everyone amped for the game. The pep band traditionally plays before the game starts, during time-outs, between periods and at the end of the game.

Every member of the Andover Band Program (grades 9-12) is required to attend at least four out of the total eight regular season games. Though not required, members are always welcome to attend more pep band events for extra credit. Extra games such as section or state competition are not included in the eight scheduled games. If playoff games occur in any sport, students will have the opportunity to sign up on a game-by-game basis.

The schedule can fluctuate a little as games might get cancelled or change locations. Students are encouraged to sign up for their games ahead of time, this not only helps ensure students are planning ahead but also gives us an idea for what instruments will be at each game. Here is the most up to date pep band schedule (as of 12/18/2025).

• Friday, December 19 - Girls Hockey Girls vs. Hill Murray (ALUMNI GAME)
• Thursday, January 8 - Girls Hockey vs. Duluth Denfeld
• Friday, January 16 - Boys Hockey vs. Moorhead
• Friday, January 23 - Boys Basketball vs. Osseo
• Tuesday, Jan 27 - Girls Basketball vs. Elk River
• Thursday, Jan 29 - Boys Hockey vs. Blaine
• Thursday, Feb 12 - Girls Basketball vs. Blaine (STAFF Game)
• Tuesday, Feb 17 - Boys Basketball vs. Armstrong (COMMUNITY Game)

Locations: All Hockey Games are hosted at the Andover Community Center unless otherwise noted. We will meet at the ACC for those games. All Basketball games are held in our gym at Andover - we will meet in the band room and walk down to the gym together.

Student "Call Times": Since we play before the game starts, call times for students is 44 minutes before the game. For example, call time for a 7:00PM game is 6:16PM.

Attire: The pep band wears school colors (or something that says Andover Huskies on it) to our games. It is highly recommended that if students are attending a hockey game, they wear multiple layers or at least something warm. Our student section often organizes events on what to wear and sometimes we'll coordinate with them.

We understand that fitting four extra nights in your schedule can be tricky but we provide an incredible service at the games we are able to attend. As a member of the pep band students are able to: get into the games for free, play fun music, have a great time and provide energy and excitement to each game. If you are having problems fitting the required amount of games into your schedule please don't hesitate to reach out.

The Music students at Andover have the exciting opportunity to participate in our Second Annual Marathon Concert! There will be non-stop music from 10AM-4PM in our auditorium. The day will be broken up into three different shifts 10AM-12PM Orchestras, 12PM-2PM Choirs, 2PM-4PM Bands. This is a fundraising event for the entire music department and tickets will only be sold in person.

Event Details:

Date: January 10th, 2025

Time: 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM

Location: Andover High School Auditorium

Tickets: $10 Adults, $5 Students/Seniors - sold IN PERSON ONLY. Cash and checks will be accepted at the door, checks should be made out to "Andover Music Booster Organization".

While this is a performance for all of our music students - it is a little bit more of a relaxed/fun environment. Students will not be required to wear concert attire, but are asked to wear school colors or something similar (black, gold, grey, white, etc.). All groups will be revisiting some of our old favorites and the bands will have a fun/educational event at the end - you'll have to attend to see what we're up to!

Students are asked to attend their groups entire assigned time listed above. Students are also encouraged to attend the the other music ensemble performances of the day, but are not required - it is always nice to support their music-making peers! The doors will stay open from 10AM until around 4PM, listen to some good music and enjoy the Andover High School Music Community! We're excited to see you and your family at the school on Saturday, January 10th for our Second Annual Marathon Concert.

Looking to help out? AMBO is always looking for volunteers!

Each year, the MSHSL honors student-athletes who excel in Academics (3.0 GPA or better), Athletics (at least one MSHSL-sponsored athletic activity) and Arts (MSHSL-sponsored debate, one-act play, speech, visual arts, and instrumental or vocal music). The award is given to one senior female and one senior male in the state.

Each school in the state can nominate one senior female and one senior male student for consideration. Triple “A” Award recipients are selected through a multi-level process involving member schools of the league, the league’s administrative regions, and a special committee of educators, business leaders, and members from the fine arts and athletics communities.

This year Orchestra Student Wilson Lindberg recieved the Triple A award from Andover High School. Wilson has: been in Orchestra for four year (was section leader for three of those years), participated in Chamber Orchestra for three years (section leader for one year), was selected to participate in the NWSC All-Conference Orchestra his Senior Year, has lettered in Orchestra for two consecutive years and is expected to letter this year. Outside of music Wilson participated in Soccer (was Junior Varsity Captain in 2025 and awarded MVP that same year), he also participated on the Varsity Tennis team for 2024 & 2025 and is expected to play yet again in the upcoming spring season, Wilson is also a member of the National Honor Society. Throughout his time at Andover, Wilson has achieved a weighted GPA of 4.20 and an unweighted GPA of 4.0. Congratulations Wilson, you are a shining example of the music program here at Andover and we couldn't be more proud!

1/10, 10AM-4PM - Marathon Concert (All Bands, Choirs, Orchestras)

2/10, All Day - Instrumental Large Group Contest at Anoka High School (Concert Band/Orchestra Only)

2/19, 7:00PM - NWSC Preview Concert at Andover High School Auditorium (Concert Band/Choir/Orchestra Only)

2/23, All Day - NWSC Festival at Anoka High School (Concert Band/Orchestra/Choir Only)

2/24, 7:00PM - Orchestra Winter Concert at Andover High School Auditorium

2/26, 7:00PM - Choir Winter Concert at Andover High School Auditorium

3/2, 7:00PM - Band Winter Concert at Andover High School Auditorium

Trimester 2 is jam-packed full of music events. If you ever have any questions please don't hesitate to reach out via email. Whether it's pep band, regular concerts, or simply registering for next year - we genuinely want to make music fit into each student's schedule. We're looking forward to a strong, but busy, second Trimester.

Wishing you all a Happy Holiday Season!

Your Friendly Neighborhood Music Department,

Stacy Griffin, Blake Peterson, Josiah Telschow