Crystal Lake District 47 Beginning Band Registration
Special Events for Band Recruitment 1. ELEMENTARY BAND ASSEMBLY In April, all 4th graders will be invited to an assembly for a live performance of their elementary school s 5th grade band. This is a perfect time to see the instruments up close and hear what can be accomplished in one year of lessons. 2. FIELD TRIP TO HEAR MIDDLE SCHOOL BANDS On Wednesday, May 3, all 4th grade students will take a field trip to their middle school for a live performance of the advanced bands. This is a perfect time to hear what can be accomplished in 3-4 years of music study and lessons. Lundahl Middle School will host Indian Prairie, South, & Woods Creek. Beardsley Middle School will host Canterbury, Coventry & Husmann. Bernotas Middle School will host Glacier Ridge, North Elem, & West. 3. STUDENTS TRY THE INSTRUMENTS During the week of May 8-12, all 4th grade students will have an opportunity to try two instruments with one of our District 47 band directors. You must return the enclosed yellow permission slip by Friday, April 21st in order to try the instruments. 2
Welcome to Band in District 47 Dear Parents of 4th Grade Students, Band begins in 5th grade. However, the registration process begins in May for our current 4th graders in District 47. Now is the time to order your band supplies and secure an instrument that is in good working condition for next school year. In this booklet, we offer our collective teaching experience, recommendations, and advice to help you carefully consider the most suitable instrument for you and your child. After reading this booklet, please let us know if you have any questions about our award-winning band program. Musically Yours, District 47 Band Department Band Director Email Address School(s) Mr. Adam Bell ACBell@d47.org Coventry, Husmann, and HBMS Mr. Keith Hulen KEHulen@d47.org North Elem, HBMS Mr. Terry Guynes TLGuynes@d47.org LMS Mr. Rick LoPresto RALoPresto@d47.org RBMS Mr. Mark Kahovec MKahovec@d47.org Canterbury, Glacier Ridge, Indian Prairie, LMS Ms. Kristina Melville KMMelville@d47.org West, RBMS Mr. Scott Sampson SGSampson@d47.org HBMS Mrs. Molly Sedivec MRSedivec@d47.org South, Woods Creek, LMS 3
1. WHERE? Please follow up with us and register for elementary band at the following location: District 47 CORE Center Central Office 300 Commerce Dr. Crystal Lake, IL 60014 815-459-6070 Elementary Band Registration 2. WHEN? Monday, May 22nd from 9:00 AM to 8:00 PM 3. HOW MUCH? District 47 charges a $35 yearly fee for participation in the band program. This band fee will be billed to you via ParentVue once you have finished the registration process on Monday, May 22nd. 4. WHICH MUSIC STORE? For your convenience, Music and Arts/Players Bench and Piano Trends will be present at the final registration. Please take advantage of this for all of your rental needs on these days. The school will take delivery of any band supplies (see page 6) ordered and will be issued at the first lesson, which is during the week of Sept. 5th. 5. SHOPPING AROUND? A quality instrument is crucial for successful learning. We strongly urge you to rent -to-own from one of the music companies at our registration event. If you choose to rent or purchase an instrument outright, please be aware that they may not provide you with repair/replacement opportunities. Also, it is usually best to choose one instrument and stick with it for the entire year. Please choose carefully and make sure the instrument you rent or purchase is in good, working condition before school begins. 4
Required Band Supplies 1. METHOD BOOK Everyone in band will need to purchase our method book, which is entitled "Standard of Excellence, Book 1." There are many different versions, so please be sure to get the book for your instrument. Also, Standard of Excellence is available in SmartMusic. To subscribe go to www.smartmusic.com. 2. MUSIC STAND Everyone will need a music stand for practice at home and rehearsals at school. I've noticed the chrome stands seem to work best. For some reason, the painted stands (black and other colors) tend to get stuck over time. Please avoid getting one with too many knobs as this becomes a physical challenge for the students during set up time. 3. STURDY 3-RING BINDER Everyone will need a sturdy 3-ring binder (that won't keep closing on you) to help stay organized. We punch holes in all of our handouts, especially sheet music for concerts. This helps us transition quickly between songs. It also helps to avoid papers falling on the floor during rehearsals and performances. Some students will appreciate having holes in the method book too. 4. INSTRUMENT-SPECIFIC SUPPLIES These are specific supplies listed with each instrument in the following pages. We listed recommended brands as well. 5
District 47 Approved Music Dealers & Music & Arts 907 W. Irving Park Road Itasca, IL 60143 (630) 285-1485 Players Bench 87 N. Williams Street Crystal Lake, IL 60014 (815) 459-8614 Music and Arts and Players Bench are now partners in serving the parents and students of Crystal Lake District #47. You can expect the same quality instruments, repair and service you have come to know from Music & Arts, but now with a hometown location! Music & Arts will continue their weekly visits to your schools. The owners and staff at Players Bench however, are also available to you! We all look forward to seeing you at the band recruitment! Piano Trends 35 Berkshire Drive Crystal Lake, IL 60014 (815) 477-4266 Piano Trends Music & Band is proud to serve & support our local school music programs. Locally owned and operated by Tim and Bobbi Paul since 1990. Piano Trends is open six days a week to serve every music need of your student. Our staff includes Phil McBride, school representative and band instrument repair technician. More info at PianoTrends.com 6
PLEASE REFER TO THE GUIDELINES ON THE FOLLOWING PAGES 7
FLUTE Recommended Brands Yamaha Gemeinhardt Required Supplies 1. Cleaning rod (included with the flute) 2. White hankie Physical Characteristics Your arms should be long enough to hold flute to the mouth and still cover the keys correctly. If you have a short upper lip or a bead of skin in the center of the upper lip, it will make it difficult to play the flute. 8
TRUMPET Recommended Brands Bach Yamaha Holton Required Supplies 1. Valve oil 2. Tuning slide grease 3. Mouthpiece brush 4. Cleaning Snake Brush Physical Characteristics Your lips should be thin to medium. If you have thick lips, you may be better suited for the Trombone, Baritone, or Tuba. 9
OBOE Recommended Brands Fox Selmer Yamaha Required Supplies 1. Silk swab (heavier swabs and feathers may get stuck) 2. Medium-soft cane reeds (beginners should use medium soft reeds) -- You will need at least 3 reeds at all times Physical Characteristics Your hands should be large enough to handle large stretches. The oboe is a woodwind instrument with a double reed. Its sound is haunting and it plays beautiful melodies. 10
FRENCH HORN Recommended Brands Yamaha Holton Required Supplies 1. Rotary valve oil 2. Tuning slide grease 3. Mouthpiece brush 4. Snake brush Physical Characteristics Your lips should be thin to medium. Thick lips may be better suited for the Trombone, Baritone, or Tuba. 11
CLARINET Recommended Brands Buffet Selmer Yamaha Required Supplies 1. Hite Premiere mouthpiece 2. Rovner dark ligature 3. Hankie swab (felt swabs may get stuck) 4. Cork grease 5. Rico Royal reeds (beginners should use a reed strength of 2.5) -- You will need at least 3 reeds at all times Physical Characteristics Your hands should be large enough to reach all keys and the flats of your fingertips should be large enough to cover the tone holes. The clarinet is a single reed woodwind instrument and is very important to the band. The sound is rich and strong. 12
TROMBONE Recommended Brands Yamaha Bach Holton No plastic trombones allowed! Required Supplies 1. Slide-o-Mix for the main slide (one bottle with black cap) 2. Tuning slide grease 3. Mouthpiece brush 4. Snake brush 5. Small spray bottle for water Physical Characteristics Your stature should be adequate to handle the size of the instrument. Your arms need to be long enough to reach slide positions. Your lips should be medium to thick. Thin lips tend to be better suited for the French Horn or Trumpet. 13
SAXOPHONE Recommended Brands Yamaha Selmer Required Supplies 1. Selmer C-Star mouthpiece 2. Rovner dark ligature 3. Hankie swab chamois, felt or foam swabs may get stuck 4. Cork grease 5. Rico Royal reeds (beginners should use a reed strength of 2.5) -- You will need at least 3 reeds at all times Physical Characteristics Your hands need to be large enough to reach the keys. When you get to middle school some of you will be asked to switch to tenor or baritone sax (school owned instruments) to maintain correct balance in the band. The sax is held with a neck strap that helps with the heavy weight of the instrument. The sax has a tone that carries very well in the concert band and for that reason, the number of saxophones is very limited. 14
BARITONE and TUBA Recommended Brands Yamaha Holton Required Supplies 1. Valve oil 2. Tuning slide grease 3. Mouthpiece brush 4. Snake brush 5. Bach 18 mouthpiece (Tuba players only) Physical Characteristics Your stature should be large enough to handle the size of the instrument. Your lips should be medium to thick. Thin lips tend to be better suited for the Horn or Trumpet. Tuba players may start on baritone and switch to tuba in middle school or rent a tuba now. 15
PERCUSSION Recommended Brands Pearl Ludwig Yamaha Required Supplies The standard percussion kit for beginning students includes a snare drum, practice pad, 2.5-octave bell set, and a tripod stand to hold everything. Also, it should include rubber mallets and 3B drum sticks. All percussionists will be required to purchase a metronome. Physical Characteristics Your physical coordination must be exceptional to play percussion. You also should be able to maintain a steady tempo while echo clapping four measure phrases. Previous keyboard experience is very valuable. Becoming a complete percussionist, involves playing all of the percussion instruments (snare drum, bass drum, mallet percussion such as xylophone, chimes and marimba, timpani, triangle, etc). A percussionist must have much self control, and be dependable and responsible. 16
Lessons at School Practice Expectations Rehearsals Performances 17
Expectations for Lessons, Practice, Rehearsals & Performances CURRICULUM Band is a dual curriculum, which includes lessons and rehearsals. Students will be pulled from class on a rotating schedule to attend their weekly lesson. With approximately six time slots for lessons, band students will not miss the same class more than once every six weeks. 1. LESSONS DURING SCHOOL One day per week, band students will bring their instrument to school for their 30-minute lesson during the school day. Students will develop music reading skills, improve instrumental technique, and receive detailed instruction on various musical concepts. 2. MASS REHEARSALS AT SCHOOL For 30 minutes each week all of the band members will join together for a full band rehearsal. This will begin in October or November, at the discretion of the band director. 3. PERFORMANCES & CONCERTS Beginning band students will perform in at least two full band concerts during the first year of instruction, along with an optional solo and ensemble performance in February. 18
4. PRACTICE EXPECTATIONS Parents are asked to sign a weekly practice journal in the method book and students should aim for 2 hours of band practice (120 minutes) per week. In the beginning, the ideal practice routine for everyone is 20 minutes per day for 6 days. We recommend short practice sessions, especially for brass players. Suggested Practice Routine: Warm Up - This is the time to soak reeds, buzz mouthpieces and physically blow warm air through your instrument. Long Tones - Your goal here is to build endurance, develop muscle memory, and strengthen your listening skills to recognize the pitches. Book Exercises - Complete weekly assignments to learn, reinforce, and master the fundamentals of band performance in a motivational way. Concert Songs - Your instrument plays a specific role in any given band arrangement. Sometimes you will have the main melody and other times you may have the background part or harmony. You can learn how your part fits with the rest of your musical group by playing along with CDs or working with SmartMusic. End On A Good Note - Play some fun or familiar to end your practice session in a positive way. 19
PROVIDE a quality instrument SCHEDULE a regular time for practice ESTABLISH favorable practice conditions. Parent & Student Responsibilities Find a quiet place with good lighting Get away from TV, video games, phone, etc. Use a music stand Sit in a chair that promotes good posture, poise, and playing position SET UP carefully and be aware of your surroundings. DEVLOP your musicianship and note reading skills IMPROVE your technique by playing slow at first REALIZE you may get frustrated at times OVERCOME to urge to give up WORK through the challenges & learn from your mistakes. ENCOURAGE ending on a good note CLEAN your instrument at home (not at school) and keep it in good, working condition. PACK UP carefully and avoid unnecessary repairs. REPAIR your instrument when needed. 20