Attendance Expectations

Unlike typical sports teams and other activities, we don't have a bench of players or a cast of understudies to fill in when members are missing. Each member of the Marching Minutemen has a unique and important role in our performances that cannot be replicated when they are absent from rehearsal or a performance. 

All activities listed in our schedule are required for all Marching Minutemen. Our regular season schedule is designed so that students have Monday and Wednesday afternoons for non-marching band activities, appointments, and other things. We have also incorporated a couple of free weekends where students have Saturday, and Sunday clear for activities and other events. Please mark your calendar with all of our rehearsals, performances, and other activities so that you don't miss something. Then, work throughout the season to stay on top of any changes or additional dates that might pop up. We will do our best to announce changes as soon as they're made, and to stick to the original dates that students commit to as much as we can.

If an absence is unavoidable, parents should notify the director with as much advance notice as possible.

We understand that sometimes life happens and students end up double-booked with appointments, family events, or other things that might conflict with the Marching Minutemen calendar. In the event that a student needs to miss all or part of a scheduled event, please use the following guidelines to communicate the issue to the director and to come up with a plan.

• • • • Summer Activities: Notify Mr. Satterwhite immediately

        • • These dates are extremely important to the success of our band and any time missed is critical for students to have the baseline understanding and technique for the rest of the season. If you have to miss Home Camp, Away Camp, or Transition Week, we need to know about it now. 

      • Regular Season Rehearsal: Notify the director at least 3 days before the absence

        • • Please schedule appointments and other activities on Mondays and Wednesdays to protect our rehearsal time.

          • Because our show grows and evolves with each rehearsal, absences can put students in a position to struggle or even fail in a performance setting. Any student absences leading into performances will be evaluated by the instructional staff, and students with attendance issues may not be allowed to march in performance that week.

      • Performance: Notify the director at least 2 weeks before the absence. 

        • • Avoid missing performances. Your contribution is not replaceable!

          • Every member of our ensemble is necessary for us to give great performances!

As a rule, members of color guard and percussion should notify the head director AND their caption instructor about all absences.

Summer Activities

June Pre-Camp Trainings

• • • • Tuesday, June 11: Leadership Training from 1–4pm

      • Wednesday, June 12: Full Band Training from 1–4pm

      • During this preview of our larger band camp experience in July, students will work through marching and musical fundamentals, including some new techniques and approaches that we will use this season. We will also begin work on our field show and much of the pep band/stands music that we will use for other performances. 

Home Camp

• • • • Monday, July 22–Thursday, July 25

      • 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM daily

      • During this part of the summer, we will learn fundamentals of marching, musical performance, and begin preparing our halftime & competition show for performance. We will also start the work of building our show's musical and visual impact, as well as develop camaraderie, teamwork, and friendship that will carry us through the rest of the work for our season.

Away Camp at Alta Mons in Shawsville, VA

• • • • Sunday, July 28–Wednesday, July 31

      • Returners take note: This is a departure from our typical Away Camp schedule. This was a necessary change based on availability at Alta Mons.

      • Away Camp is an incredible experience for our students, and the part of our season where we grow the most as an ensemble. Throughout the week, students will stay in cabins, eat together, and work on our performance materials for the year. We also spend time getting to know each other, having movie nights, skit nights, and other activities. Away Camp is challenging, but we make immense progress together, forge bonds as a group, and make memories that last a lifetime!

      • We need at least EIGHT parent volunteers to commit to traveling with us for Away Camp or we will have to cancel our plans and hold these camp days at LHS. Volunteers will assist with student supervision, keeping students hydrated, meal prep and service, and other jobs necessary for a successful camp. Contact Mr. Satterwhite ASAP if you'd like to travel with us.

Transition Week

• • • • August 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 9

      • 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM daily

      • This week of rehearsals allows us to continue the concentrated time of Band Camp, while transitioning to shorter sessions to get us ready for our regular after-school rehearsals. 

      • Note: These dates may change based on the Teacher Workweek schedule for our new band director. Expect an updated calendar in the coming months.

Regular Season

Rehearsals

• • • • Every Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday from 4:00 PM – 6:15 PM

        • • Starting August 13 and ending on October 29

      • Eighth grade students will ride a bus up from LMS for rehearsal and for performances.

Performances

• • • • This season will include a football scrimmages, home football games, regional marching band competitions, parades, our annual Band-A-Rama Fundraiser Concert, and other school and community performances that may come up. 

      • Some events and locations have yet to be determined. Please hold these dates for the Marching Minutemen, and more information will be shared later in the summer.

      • Two ways to access the calendar: here on MinutemenMusic.org and printable.

Bedford Christmas Parade

• We have three rehearsals specifically for the Bedford Christmas Parade, November 19th, December 3rd, and December 5th.

• The parade itself is Saturday, December 7th. 

• Commitment to the Marching Minutemen includes commitment to parade rehearsals. Students starting new activities for the winter season need to talk to coaches about honoring this prior commitment so that we can have a strong performance for our parade audience. Many members of our community only ever see and hear us at the Christmas parade!