THE Houston Band

Hello, Houston Band family,

I hope you are feeling well rested and ready to roll! The third quarter of band is one where we strive for perfection and achieve excellence! We have students auditioning for All West/ All State, participating in the University of Memphis Honor Band, competing with color guard, honing in fundamentals, and participating in Concert Performance Assessment. I love seeing students push themselves and each other in their technique and artistry throughout the third quarter each year, and I have a great feeling about this one!

Please carefully read the following announcements for important information!

With excitement and gratitude,

Mr. C

If you have a rising highschooler (9th-12th grade) in your life that lives outside of Germantown who wants to attend a fantastic school (and be in our band!), GMSD Open Enrollment has started.

https://www.gmsdk12.org/departments/student-services/enrollment/open-enrollment

Prospective students should apply for Open Enrollment AND either the Leadership Academy or Honors Academy. Tuition for Shelby County residents to attend one of the best high schools in TN is only ~$521.00. Tuition for out-of-county is ~$5,406.00. Tuition for out-of-state is ~$11,432.00.

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!

• MusicRacer.com
• The Woodwind Fingering Guide
• "Fingering Chart by Tremolo" on iOS
• PlayScore 2
• Sight Reading Factory (see Mr. C for activation instructions)

Mr. Sims is finalizing plans to collaborate with the Memphis Jazz Workshop, opening up our facilities as their "East" location for Wednesday evenings. Memphis Jazz Workshop is the premiere jazz education organization in Shelby County, and giving students more convenient access to instruction (rather than traveling to Crosstown or SWCC) is a fantastic experience. If your Wednesdays are open, this is a great opportunity to study with some of the best! More info soon.

If the snow is as strong as it is projected to be Friday, auditions will be moved to Saturday, January 18th. All times will remain the same. If you have a conflict with this potential date, reach out no later than noon tomorrow to try to work something out (changed audition time, exemption from assignment, etc.)

This is unfortunate, but the weather is out of our control. The WTSBOA board will typically lean towards the more cautious decision. Those not explicitly exempt will still be required to attend this audition.

This is a lot of info, and things have changed since last season. Please make sure you carefully read this section.

We have begun collecting band dues. Dues are MANDATORY and will be collected via SchoolCashOnline OR check. Checks will ONLY be collected Friday mornings before school. You can pay through SchoolCashOnline at any time. No cash will be accepted by Mr. Sims or myself. Dues checks should be made out to "Houston High School" with the memo being "Band Dues - <student legal name>".

• The first payment is due on September 1st ($250), final check collection August 30th.
• The second payment is due on October 1st ($250), final check collection September 27th.
• Our boosters also highly encourage a $225 donation that enables them to pay our world-class adjunct staff and take care of equipment emergencies that naturally come up when we regularly bring a half million dollars of equipment into the elements. While it would be great to send that money ASAP, it would be helpful to make that $225 donation no later than November 1st. This can be sent via the linked website OR via check made out to "HHS Band Boosters" placed in the dropbox in Mr. C's office W-F.
• We encourage those who are able to just pay everything ASAP, as this is the most expensive portion of our year. If you need extensions, please reach out sooner rather than later.

If you are experiencing financial hardship, please reach out to me ASAP. If you or a relative are in the privileged position of paying for another student's full or partial dues, please reach out to me about how to "Give the Gift of Band."

Winter Guard's schedule (practices and performances) has been posted in our band calendar. Remember, the band calendar is always available on our website! https://www.thehoustonband.com/calendar

Wind and percussion students auditioned for the upcoming concert cycle before this winter break. Our top ensemble has expanded to include a few more students in most sections.

Q3 Wind Ensemble

The students in this wind ensemble will be working this quarter on representing our band at the West Tennessee School Band and Orchestra Association (WTSBOA) Concert Performance Assessments (CPAs). These WTSBOA CPAs have been renamed this year from their previous names of "Concert Festivals" to more accurately represent what kind of event they are.

We will definitely be attending the Memphis area CPA, and we are exploring potentially attending the UT Martin CPA the following week, as well. Having impartial, expert band leaders critique our ensembles is great for students and for our program as a whole, as we continue to work on improving every single day.

Field trip information about these CPA events will be send out in late February/early March. The Memphis event will be on 3/6 or 3/7, and the Martin event will be on 3/13 or 3/14. The schedules (and our band's performance slot) will be determined by WTSBOA in early-to-mid February. Additionally, students in this ensemble are required to participate in our festival Mini Camp on Saturday February 22nd. This is an all-day event that will follow a similar schedule to our marching band Mini Camp that was in September.

Q3 Developmental Ensembles (Names in progress!)

Students that did not make the wind ensemble will be placed in various developmental ensembles throughout Q3 to ensure they are growing and ready for Q4's performance! Students will have ownership over the names of these ensembles. Wind students will work with Mr. Sims, and percussion students will work with Mr. Van de Vate and Mr. Todd to hone their skills and prepare for a really difficult (and fun!) last quarter of our year. Come Q4, all students will either be in the symphony orchestra (with Mr. Carpenter & Dr. Kang) or wind symphony (with Mr. Sims).

The spring trip will be April 2-5. We are going to Dallas to listen to some phenomenal band and orchestra music, and we can't wait for as many students as possible to join us! Find attached the flier with details about this trip!

https://tourbot.etadventures.com/customerweb/signin

Trip Code: houstonband25

Password: dfwtrip25

NOTE: There is an option for a 1, 2, or 3 person room on the website. DO NOT select that option, as ALL students will be put into rooms of as many students as possible. Select the 4-person room.

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 sustainable levels, but that takes work from everyone. Thank you for helping with that work!

If you are interested in private lessons, please reach out! We are happy to recommend teachers for students of all levels at any budget.

We will be hosting open practice time after school Monday-Thursday AND every day before school starts. The road to All West participation starts now, with a little bit of growth every day! We hope to see as many students as possible fill the band room each morning and evening to improve their craft.

As we wrap up our highly-involved competitive marching band season, please encourage your young musicians to pick a day each week to come practice with myself, Mr. Sims, and others on our incredibly talented band staff. Thank you!

Students can request lesson time with Mr. Sims or Mr. Carpenter after school, as well! We are here to help you get better at your instrument!

The end of our competitive marching season means it's time to begin preparations for concert band auditions. Our concert season will be divided into three distinct cycles this year, with a different makeup of students for each cycle.

• January 7-March 7: Concert Performance Assessment Cycle. Top "Wind Symphony" group with about three quarters of students and a "Developmental Ensemble" for others.
• March 10-May 6: Symphonic Cycle. Select students leave the "Wind Symphony" to prepare for a full orchestra collaboration with HHS Orchestras. All other students perform in the "Wind Symphony".

We have a new way of tracking band conflicts internally. 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.

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

There are several changes this year that I want to make you aware of right now, rather than surprising you once school gets rolling!

- Festival Mini Camp on Feb 22 is a Saturday event for students in the top concert ensemble.

- All State is changing from being a Wed-Sat event to a Thurs-Sun event. This is beyond our control; please plan accordingly if you generally make All State or get close. This year's All State is April 10-13.

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

• 1/11/25 - All West Band Auditions (required for all students unless they've made an orchestra)
• 2/13/25 - All West TN Band and Orchestra Clinic Begins
• 2/15/25 - All West TN Band and Orchestra Clinic Concerts Conclude
• 2/22/25 - Festival Mini Camp - Required for all students in the top concert ensemble
• 3/5/25 - Wednesday after school rehearsal for CPA
• 3/6/25 & 3/7/25 - Possible CPA Memphis dates (TBA by WTSBOA)
• 3/13/25 & 3/14/25 - Possible CPA Martin dates (TBA by WTSBOA)
• 4/2-5/25 - Dallas Trip
• 4/5/25 - Solo & Ensemble
• 4/10/25 - TN All State Conference Begins
• 4/13/25 - TN All State Concert Concludes
• 4/22/25 - HHS Symphony Orchestra rehearsals begin (Tuesdays/Thursdays)
• 5/6/25 - HHS Instrumental Concert
• 5/7/25 - Graduation Orchestra Rehearsal
• 5/8/25 - Graduation Orchestra Rehearsal
  
• 5/9/25 - Graduation! CONGRATS, seniors.
• 5/12-13/25 - 25-26 Leadership Camp (after school)
• 6/2-6/11 - June Guard Camp
• 6/12/25 - BAND STAFF SUMMER (limited email correspondence and facility access due to annual cleanings)
• 7/10/25 - BAND STAFF SUMMER ENDS
• 7/14/25-7/19/25 - Percussion and Guard Camps
  
• 7/21/25-7/26/25 - Full Band Camp
• 7/29/25 - SUMMER REHEARSAL (3-6pm)
• 7/31/25 - SUMMER REHEARSAL (3-6pm)
• 9/13/25 - Marching Band Mini Camp (all day)
• 9/27/25 - Contest #1 (TBD)
• 10/4/25 - Contest #2 (TBD)
• 10/25/25 - Contest #3 or Recording Session (TBD)
• 11/1/25 - Contest #3 or Recording Session (TBD)
• 11/8/25 - POSSIBLE Contest #4 if Bandmasters is later than typical (Depends on UofM football schedule)
• 12/4/25 - Tentative Holiday Concert Date

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