DRUMBEAT. The Aggie Band hits The District with epic results JUNE RETURN OF THE MARCHING AGGIES

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1 JUNE 2012 OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER OF THE BEAL CITY BANDS DRUMBEAT TWENTY-FIVE STUDENTS FROM GRADES 8-12 TRAVELLED TO WASHINGTON, DC IN EARLY MAY The Aggie Band hits The District with epic results RETURN OF THE MARCHING AGGIES INFORMATION ON PAGE 4 PROPOSED CALENDAR - PAGE 5 & 6 Late afternoon, Wednesday May 2, twenty-five Aggie Band students, four parents and Mr. Lowe embarked on a trip of epic proportions. Washington DC shone in our future the proverbial shining city on a hill. With trusty motorcoach drivers Doug and Jim, we arrived at our hotel on the eastern edge of The District. First order of business, picking up our guide, Princess and changing into some fresh clothes before heading into the Capital City. Due to our earlier than anticipated arrival, we were able to walk through Lafayette Square directly in front of the White House. We took in the White House Visitors Center before most of th group eating lunch at the Old Post Office and enjoying the view from its tower. After lunch, students had nearly five hours to visit the Museums of the Smithsonian Institute. Our students had nearly five hours to take in the historical and natural collections the Smithsonian had to offer. Students visited the Museums of Natural history, American History, American Indian History, Air & Space, the Castle and the National Gallery. Following the long afternoon on the mall, we got a group photo on the steps of the Capitol Building. After a brief walk through the National Botanical Gardens, we drove to an all-you-can-eat dinner at Buca di Beppo. We returned to our hotel to enjoy some pool time, relaxing and retiring early before Friday, our big day! Friday found us traveling directly to Howard University for our music clinic with John Newson, Director of Bands. We spent over 90 minutes playing and rehearsing with Prof. Newson, giving us some helpful tweaks and insights for our i m p e n d i n g p e r f o r m a n c e. Following lunch at the Reagan Building & International Trade Center, we arrived on the west end of the National Mall for our highly-anticipated performance on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Our Beal City Concert Band was the only group slated for performance - and what a performance it was. The ensemble of only 25 played like a group twice its size and with comparable emotion. Many 1

2 Capital achievements in Our Nation s Capital Aggie Band in DC Continued from Page 1 visitors stopped, inquired of our origin, enjoyed our performance and even asked if we took donations! Certainly a warm reception was afforded our students, especially since the temperature that day was in the high 80s with similar humidity! Following our exceptional performance, we ate at Union Station, not before some in the group had an opportunity to ride the Metro, DC s subway system. Following our dinner, we had yet another guide join us for our evening tour of memorials - we took the Vietnam, Korea, Lincoln, MLK, FDR, George Mason and Jefferson in just under 3 hours - all walking! Just an incredible day for everyone involved - one that will certainly be etched into the mind of every trip participant! Saturday morning we headed to Ford s Theater, the site of Lincoln s assassination. There we enjoyed a dramatic portrayal of the what two men who worked at the theater might have experienced, following Lincoln s death - a very powerful two-man presentation. Our adventures in the District were complete, we then headed for Arlington, Virginia. We were able to witness the Pentagon 9/11 Memorial - a moving space that After eating lunch at the Fashion Center at Pentagon City, we transferred to Arlington National Cemetery. With intermittent showers, we appreciated being able to take the tram tour, getting around the cemetery with relative ease and dryness! Our students witnessed the solemn Changing of the Guard ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, visited the Kennedy family grave sites, and took in the view from Arlington House, the former residence of General Robert E. Lee. We were scheduled to enjoy a military band concert, but for some reason we had reservations for an event that did not occur on a Saturday, so we elected to head home a little early. Certainly, this travel experience has moved our group forward with incredible music and life-long memories. We look forward to other new exciting opportunities in the years to come! My favorite part of the trip was going on a mission to find ice cream with Mr. Lowe which turned into a wild goose chase. We walked halfway across the Mall and visited every floor of the Museum of American History multiple times. Photo courtesy of Donna Horsley Elton Clark, trombone ABOVE: THE BEAL CITY CONCERT BAND ON THE STEPS OF THE LINCOLN MEMORIAL NEAR RIGHT: OUR STUDENTS GET A GROUP PICTURE IN FRONT OF THE WHITE HOUSE FAR RIGHT: WALKING TO LUNCH AT THE OLD POST OFFICE Photo courtesy of Donna Horsley Photo courtesy of Donna Horsley 2

3 29% of eligible high school students participated in District Solo & Ensemble Festival this year Of those who participated, 64% qualified for State Solo & Ensemble Festival with a First Division at Districts Of those who went to State Solo & Ensemble Festival, 71% received a First Division rating Green with envy! Solo & Ensemble results for the year Student(s) Event Results Ian Hoogerhyde Trombone Solo First Division - Middle School Lauren Beltinck & Hannah Steffke Flute Duet First Division - Middle School Larissa & Rachel Schwerin Flute & Clarinet Duet Second Division - High School District Mikaela Cotter, Maggie Kolb & Emily Schafer Alto Sax Trio Second Division - High School District Maggie Kolb Alto Sax Solo First Division - High School District; Second Division State Melanie Schafer French Horn Solo First Division - High School District; Second Division State Manisha Cole, Eileen Cotter & Hannah Neyer Clarinet Trio First Division - High School District & State Emily Steffke & Alexus Thompson Flute Duet First Division - High School District & State 3 Emily Steffke Piano Solo First Division - High School District & State

4 Everything old is new return of the Marching Aggies Based upon student interest, the Marching Aggies will be making a triumphant return to Frank A Schafer Field in the Friday, September 7, Buoyed by the experiment at Homecoming 2011, our students are embracing the spirit and fun that a marching band can be. Look for fun music of the Disco era highlighting Donna Summer and the Bee Gees and a pre-game routine that will have the football squad enter through a traditional tunnel. We will also try to take students to events where marching bands perform, so we can see what other group do and look forward to participating in full as we grow as an ensemble! Games before school starts will feature the Aggie Pep Band. GETTING THE BAND BACK TOGETHER: HOMECOMING 2011 SAW THE FLEDGLING MARCHING AGGIES RETURN TO THE STREET; SEPTEMBER 2012, THEY RETURN TO THE FIELD! REHEARSAL DATES Tuesday 8/14; Thursday 8/16 Monday-Thursday, 8/20-23 Monday-Thursday, 8/27-23 REHEARSAL TIMES 5:00-7:00 PM 5:00-8:00 PM 5:00-8:00 PM A trip across the pond the music of the British Isles Next year, the Beal City Bands will be embarking on another remarkable trip, and never leave the classroom. We will be exploring the music of the British Isles. Many gems of wind band literature are from across the pond as well as pop culture items for us to study. Along with the music, some time will be spent developing a background of British history and culture that will support the performance of pieces studied in class. Our thematic unit will run the entire year, highlighting pop culture favorites such as Harry Potter and James Bond, the music of the British Invasion in addition to the classics of Lincolnshire Posy and the First Suite in E-Flat. COMING SOON! Lincolnshire Posy by Percy Grainger First Suite in E-Flat for Military Band by Gustav Holst Linden Lea by Ralph Vaughan Williams King Arthur Suite by Henry Purcell The Music of James Bond The Music of the Beatles The Music of Harry Potter 4 NAME!!!!!!!!!! COMPREHENSIVE MUSICIANSHIP BATTERY Level Two Perform!!!!!!!!!!!! Eb Concert Scale - One Octave [Memorized] (Quarter Note = 96) C minor Concert Scale Melodic One Octave [Memorized] (Quarter Note = 96) Eb Chromatic Scale - One Octave [Memorized] (Quarter Note = 96) Play composition below Compose!!!!!!!!!!!! Write a 8 measure melody for your instrument. Use only the notes from the Concert Eb Major scale. Use a! or 4/4 time signature. Mind the number of beats per measure and direction of note stems. Write the finished product on the staves below. Objectives!!!!!!!!!!!! COMPREHENSIVE MUSICIANSHIP! Good posture and playing position! Full, rich, deep tone! Correct rhythms! Correct & steady tempo! Using correct notes & rhythms in composition! Writing on staff paper IN AN EFFORT TO INCREASE THE SKILLS AND APTITUDE OF ALL MUSICIANS, A COMPREHENSIVE MUSICIANSHIP BATTERY IS IN DEVELOPMENT FOR MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL BANDS Evaluate!!!!!!!!!!! On a separate sheet, answer the following questions in complete sentences in separate paragraphs. 1) What did you learn from composing this melody? 2) What would you like to learn more about? 3) Did you find this piece enjoyable to perform? Why or Why not? Teacher Signature:!!!!!!!!!! Informed instruction through assessment Over the past several years, increased awareness on assessment has nearly overwhelmed public education. Unfortunately, most of the time this occurs as standardized testing without significant relevance to content material. After attending the Michigan Music Conference, Mr. Lowe has entered a dialogue with Dr. Philip Hash at Calvin College in Grand Rapids and Prof. Kathy Wheeler at Central Michigan University in developing a series of assessments that directly relate to applicable music skills in the classroom and in the performance hall as well as the Michigan Performing Arts Standards for Music. The first ten levels of the assessment battery for high school have been developed and Mr. Lowe continues work on higher levels for high school students, as well as developing a smaller battery of assessment tools for the beginning and intermediate level musicians. The first ten levels is available on the Concert Band page of our website: bealcitybands.weebly.com.

5 PROPOSED BAND CALENDAR August-12 Mon, 13 TEMPO Meeting 7:00 PM Tues, 14 Marching Band Rehearsal 5:00-7:00 PM Thurs, 16 Marching Band Rehearsal 5:00-7:00 PM Mon, 20 Marching Band Rehearsal 5:00-8:00 PM Tues, 21 Marching Band Rehearsal 5:00-8:00 PM Wed, 22 Marching Band Rehearsal 5:00-8:00 PM Thurs, 23 Marching Band Rehearsal 5:00-8:00 PM Fri, 24 Home Football vs Sacred Heart 6:15 report - Pep Band Mon, 27 Marching Band Rehearsal 5:00-8:00 PM Tues, 28 Marching Band Rehearsal 5:00-8:00 PM Wed, 29 Marching Band Rehearsal 5:00-8:00 PM Thurs, 30 Marching Band Rehearsal 5:00-8:00 PM Fri, 31 Home Football vs Clare 6:15 report - Pep Band September-12 Tues, 4 Marching Band Rehearsal 6:30-8:00 PM Fri, 7 Home Football vs Evart 6:15 report - Marching Band Sat, 8 TEMPO - Bottle Drive 9:00AM-3:00PM Mon, 10 TEMPO Club 7:00 PM Wed, 26 Marching Band Rehearsal 6:30-8:00 PM Fri, 23 Home Football vs Pinconning 6:15 report - Marching Band October-12 Wed, 3 Marching Band Rehearsal 6:30-8:00 PM Fri, 5 HOMECOMING vs McBain Marching Band Parade 3:45 report - K of C Hall TEMPO Tailgate End of parade to game time Pregame 6:15 report Mon, 8 TEMPO Meeting 7:00 PM Wed, 10 GA Cookie Dough Sale begin All Ensembles Wed, 17 GA Cookie Dough Sale ends All Ensembles Sun, 28 Spook-tacular Concert 4PM Ensembles - 3:15 report November-12 Mon, 12 TEMPO Meeting 7:00 PM Wed, 14 Poinsettia Sales Begin All Ensembles Fri, 16 CMU HS Instrumental Workshop Concert Band Mon, 26 Poinsettia Sales Ends All Ensembles December-12 Sat, 1 MS Solo & Ensemble Festival (Winter) Site: Midland Jefferson MS Sun, 9 Carols & Candy Canes Concert - 4PM Ensembles - 3:15 report Mon, 10 TEMPO Meeting 7:00 PM

6 PROPOSED BAND CALENDAR January-13 Mon, 14 TEMPO Meeting 7:00 PM Sat, 26 MSBOA District 5 JH All Star Weekend Site: St. John s HS Sun, 27 MSBOA District 5 JH All Star Weekend Site: St. John s HS February-13 Fri, 8 CMU Jazz Festival Jazz Band Mon, 11 TEMPO Meeting 7:00 PM Sat, 16 HS Solo & Ensemble Festival Site: Owosso HS Sun, 24 Festival Winds Concert 4PM Ensembles - 3:15 report March-13 Fri, 1 MSBOA BAND FESTIVAL Site: TBA Mon, 11 TEMPO Meeting 7:00 PM Fri, 15 MSBOA BAND FESTIVAL Site: TBA Sat, 23 HS Solo & Ensemble Festival Site: TBA April-13 Mon, 8 TEMPO Meeting 7:00 PM Sat, 13 MS Solo & Ensemble Festival (Spring) Site: Perry HS Sat, 27 Swiss Steak Dinner 5:30-7:30 PM May-13 Mon, 13 TEMPO Meeting 7:00 PM Sun, 19 Spring Awards Concert 4PM All Ensembles - 3:15 report Thurs, 23 Commencement 8PM Ensembles - 7:15 report June-13 Mon, 3 TEMPO Meeting 6:00 PM OUR BEAL CITY BAND COMMUNITY SENT FIVE SEPARATE PACKAGES TOTALING OVER 100 POUNDS TO MEN AND WOMEN IN OUR ARMED FORCES WHO COME FROM MICHIGAN! Thank you! for your support of our Armed Forces At the conclusion of the Letters Home concert in March, we made an appeal to the audience to bring in care package items to send to our troops. Our community responded in force! We sent over 100 pounds of care package items: personal care items, magazines, dry food stuffs, games, books, snacks, chewing gum and countless other items. Five separate packages were sent to military units that hail from Michigan! We included pins made by Mrs. Courtright s fourth grade class as well as a personal invitation to all servicemen and women to be an honored guest at any Beal City Band function with a link to our website! THANK YOU FOR HELPING OUR TROOPS!

7 CONGRATULATIONS! to our graduates A tremendous legacy is left us by our graduates. For seven years, they have pioneered new activities, supported classmates, led sectionals, served class offices, played in small ensembles and honed their musicianship as an example for those who come after to emulate. Eileen Cotter is headed to CMU for business and dance; Jessica McBride will attend CMU for journalism; Adam Schafer is off to NMU for biological sciences and the ROTC program; Cicily Smith will study at MMCC before heading to Iowa for chiropractic schooling; and Alyssa Thrush heads to CMU for respiratory therapy studies. Congratulations and thank you for sharing your talents with us! The new heights we reach are because of the ability to stand on your accomplishments - The Beal City Bands wish you the very best! DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS FROM A COMMON POINT CICILY, JESSICA ALYSSA, ADAM AND EILEEN EMBARK ON SEPARATE PATHS, BUT HAVE THE BEAL CITY BANDS AS A COMMON FRAME OF REFERENCE