Senior Wills

The Last Will and Testament of Chloe Bird

Ayup! Don’t want to get too sentimental so we’re gonna jump right in.

First and foremost, to the low brass. Timmy, Aiden, it has been a delight to play with you all, both in and out of class. You are both remarkably dedicated to your music and your people and are just fun to be around. 

Aiden, wherever you end up I have absolutely no doubt that you will succeed, even if it’s in an unconventional manner. I leave to you this envelope containing the sacred knowledge of an elder. Be wise in who you share this knowledge with. 

Timmy, you are a quietly hilarious individual and I look forward to the day when you will lead the Tubas in glory. To you I leave an envelope of similar knowledge. Carry it with you and you continue being awesome. 

Tucas, you are a menace. A humorous and incredibly skilled menace but a menace nonetheless. Keep doing what you’re doing mate :) 

Eddie and Paula! You two continuously work to improve yourselves and the band as a whole. You have gone so far past the days when Harrison would beg for more volume or swagger. You’re both creating a fantastic legacy for those to come. 

The trumpets are getting there. Y'all took a hit but you’re working on bouncing back to being the confident and loud section this band knows and loves. Keep it up guys. 

Saxophones! Yall are jazzy and incredibly laid back. You’re a cool section. 

French horns are clearly doing well for themselves, it’s been cool to see y'all grow as a section and as individuals. Your section will survive the purge. 

Aiden Q, I still have no idea what section you’re in or if you’re your own section. Either way, your talent is both a credit to yourself and a blessing to this band. I was gonna will you an energy drink just to see the chaos you’d unleash when overly caffeinated but since the fire alarms are finicky I figured I’d leave it. However! As a last act I will both Aidens to complete 50 pushups before the end of the year due to the variety of shenanigans yall get up to anytime you’re together–especially during concerts!! Non-negotiable–go!

The clarinetes are all fantastic, much love and respect for Lilly who’s setting a high bar y’all continually reach. I give you my love. 

Cooper, you’re doing great, keep going and keep gaining confidence in your abilities :)

Percussion, all y’all’re awesome! You guys are building up skill both individually and as a whole and it shows. I will to all y’all the motivation of organization so Harrison doesn’t go more insane than he already is. 

And finally, the flutes. Kisses to you both, with an extra kiss to Victoria. It’s fun to see your guy’s comradery. To Sofia I will three marbles so you may never lose yours while working with Tori ;)

To Tori I leave this little sketchbook for you to fill with doodles or your plans for world annihilation. Either or <3

Thanks for being an awesome band full of talented and skilled musicians. Take care of each other, encourage each other and keep the music legacy strong!

A special note to strings:

Y’all’re really cool. Not as cool as band, but still cool. It’s been lovely getting to know all y’all more, especially during state. Keep growing and being fantastic. 

And with that, I bid you all a very fond farewell.  

The Last Will and Testament of Izzy Brinson

Geoffreigh: 

Upon my leaving, I believe it is the first priority to establish the human family of Geoffreigh the Duck. I am leaving the key responsibility of parenting Geoffreigh and ensuring his safety to Gracie Harrison and Seaton Luce. The other two familial positions that will be filled upon my leaving, to make sure he discovers all of the things, are his two aunts, Amiah Van Hill and Madelyn Wright. The responsibility of establishing the Jeff family tree also falls upon all of the named familial relations of Geoffreigh. 

Chamber Orchestra 

I have been in this orchestra for four years, and have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly, but I can truly say that it has shaped the person and musician I have become today. This year has truly been the best that I have spent in this orchestra, and I am so grateful to have been able to play with so many talented and driven musicians my senior year. I have but one regret, and that is that I wasn’t able to become close with many of you until this year. 

VIOLINS- It has been a pleasure to see how far you all have grown even in just the last year, and I can’t wait to see how far you go. Now I’ll get more specific for everyone :)

AMIAH (SMIAG)- Wow, for real, you are so talented. You have great confidence in your playing (but not too much yet) and you are an amazing leader in the orchestra, with great musical knowledge that adds a new perspective. Keep writing stories for every piece you play, and document all the Harrison quotes. To you, I give a sticker reading “Violists are people too” to remind you that although we joke, violas are truly the heart of the orchestra. 

MADELYN (MADESYN)- I vaguely remember you as a little sixth grade youngling in violin club, which is really weird and makes me feel old. Anyways… I am constantly impressed with your playing ability. My one piece of advice- always play louder than Amiah. Now I will be a hypocrite and tell you that you don’t need to drink so much caffeine. To you, I gift an empty Red Bull can to add to your shrine. 

KAITLYN- I love the attitude that you come to orchestra with. You are always smiling and laughing (even when I tell you to fix your posture). Thanks for always being a good sport when I point at you to uncross your legs lol. To you I leave these grow dinosaurs as a reminder you can always find room to grow as you continue your musical journey. 

SIMONE- I also remember you as a sixth grade youngling, which again is weird and makes me feel old. You bring such a fun energy to the orchestra. Keep drawing in your music… it’ll help you convey the story better. Just please not on the originals lol Throughout your music career I hope you continue bringing fun to every ensemble you play in. To you I gift glow sticks to keep being the life of the party. 

ELEANOR and CHARLOTTE- I pair you two together because you are my children. I am sorry, I must go retrieve more milk, and I don’t know when I will be back this time. You two are so driven, and I love that. Even at Christmas time and with Harry Potter with the harder parts you guys really took on the challenge. No matter how good you might get, keep that drive to be better. As musicians, there is always something we can do to improve our playing, and finding those small details can sometimes be the hardest thing. Eleanor, I gift you this glow ball to remind you to keep being a bright light in the orchestra. Charlotte, I give you sunglasses for the same reason, your futures are bright. 

VIOLAS- I know I make fun of you, but you guys are seriously amazing. Keep on bringing out your parts and don’t be afraid to take on harder music (even if you can’t actually read the part i.e. Symphony No. 2). 

ANNE- You fulfill everything I want to hear from a viola solo in orchestra. I love your vibrato, and you can get such a great sound out of your instrument. I love the energy you bring to the viola section and the orchestra in general. I hope you find a piece to showcase your “harmonics that aren’t real.” To you, I give this poker set, to remind you to keep a straight face sometimes (not always because we all need a laugh in rehearsal) while you play. 

AUNE- Thank you for making Jeff his throne and always being the craftsy person for all of our orchestra needs. You are so cool, and I cannot wait to see what you bring in future years with your tech skills and music video editing ideas. Keep bringing your ideas to the orchestra, and be more confident in your playing! You are a talented musician. To you I give this guitar, you can again showcase your ability to make any quality of instrument sound good. 

JADYN- I know we didn’t talk a lot this year, but I do thank you for your duck contribution. Keep working hard in the orchestra, and keep working to become the best player you are able to be. You have much potential and a love of music that shines, so keep doing what you are doing. To you I give sunflower seeds to remind you to keep growing on your musical journey. 

CELLOS- I know I said you disappointed me, but that really was only that once (and because you guys had just shown me how amazing you are). Although there is more judgement coming from you guys than the first violin section sometimes, you bring so much musical knowledge and insights to the music we play. 

GRACIE- You are an amazing cellist and musician. It has been a great pleasure to see you grow throughout the years. Keep finding ways to improve and doing what you are doing, and be happy with your accomplishments, trying not to let other people dictate how you feel about them. I am so glad to have been able to talk to you more and get to know you better this year, seriously, you are so cool. To you, I give this my little pony, in case of the time where you are not taking care of Geoffreigh, she will be your responsibility. 

SEATON- It is truly incredible to see the drive you have to be a better musician. You are already an amazing cellist, and it’s been cool to see you grow throughout your years in Chamber. You bring good insights into every rehearsal, keep adding comments in rehearsal with new ideas about the music. To you I give this toy chicken, also, for the times you are not taking care of Geoffreigh, he will be your responsibility. 

LONDON- I cannot believe that you haven’t been playing cello longer. The dedication to musicianship that you have is incredibly inspiring. I don’t care what Eddie says… cello belongs in Jazz Band. You brought so many good vibes to every rehearsal you were involved in and it was so much fun playing with you. Throughout the years, no matter how hard or annoying it may get, continue to remember the love of music you have today. It shines so bright to everyone around you, and I hope you never lose that. To you I give a good vibes sticker. 

IKE- I love the excitement you show towards music, both inside and outside the orchestra. It is so cool to see you talking about music, and showing all of the percussion ensemble stuff too. I hope you continue finding ways to better show your personality in orchestra. Don’t be afraid to add your own ideas and always bring that excitement into orchestra. To you I gift this toy phone… it’s a little less of a brick…

PIPER- You are so sweet and nice to talk to! I know I didn’t have a huge chance to get you know this year, but you still contribute so much to our orchestra family. Don’t be afraid to make your voice be heard in orchestra, and be more confident in your playing abilities. To you I give this gem excavation kit as a reminder to keep searching to find a way to share your ideas and becoming a better musician. 

BASSES- I know sometimes you may go overlooked, but you guys are truly amazing, and I think one of the best bass sections we’ve had in a while. 

CADEL- You are such a talented musician. It is really cool to see how interested you are in obscure things musically, and that one bass solo you showed us seriously changed my perspective on what a bass is capable of achieving. Keep on sharing your love of music with the orchestra and bringing your interesting insights to rehearsals. To you I give these diving octopuses to remind you to keep a playful mindset.

KEIRA- You are so awesome! I remember when I first met you in a jazz band and just heard everyone talking about how talented you were, and over the last few years, I have begun to appreciate that more and more. You’re always so quiet in the back of the room, but you have such a knowledge and love of music, I hope you learn to share that more and make your voice be heard. Also would like to apologize for all the bad bass parts I wrote, hopefully I will do better one day. To you I gift a water gun as another way to “knock out your competition”

ELSIE- You are so cool. It’s so cool that you can play bass in orchestra, are a solid violinist, and pianist. Always remember you can learn things from everybody around you, even if you think you may have more experience. Keep on having a big appetite in music class, gathering as much insight and knowledge as possible. You have already established yourself as a talented musician and put in so much hard work so just keep on growing that. I leave you words from predecessor, “pounce like a puma.” I gift you air dry clay to remember you always have the say to form your own future in the music. 

ELIANA- I am so glad that you were part of our orchestra this year. It has been so much fun having a harp in our orchestra, and it adds so much musically to the pieces we play. I don’t know much about harp, but you are so talented and I love hearing you play! Thanks for dealing with my conducting, and interesting harp part writing. I hope you continue being a part of orchestras, because you are so fun to hang around and truly are a fantastic musician. To you I give a puzzle because you are the missing piece of our orchestra haha

JAZZ BAND

This ensemble has always been super fun for me, and this year is no exception. From the jazz music videos to the late night jams, I am incredibly grateful for the memories I made with you guys. You are all extremely talented, and this year has been so incredible. I hope you all continue playing and growing, and doing transcriptions (despite the huge amount of time the homework may take). Keep on passing down the knowledge you have gained throughout your years to the younglings, and keep the Charter jazz traditions alive. 

Christian: You are a great bassist, and it’s cool to see you already teaching another the tricks of your trade. Keep on telling everybody about your truck and firefighting. 

Gabe: Thanks for always reading my bad drum parts, like bass parts, I hope to one day be better at writing drum and percussion parts. You are an incredibly talented drummer and it is so cool to see you being a part of your band and in jazz, and your love to play music is so cool, I cannot wait to see how far your future takes you. 

Cruz: You are super talented. I appreciate you playing the vibraphone for wicked, and helping write parts for the full orchestra program. You are super talented in jazz, and I cannot wait to see where in the future you go. 

Symphonic Strings

I know I didn’t spend as much time with you all as I had hoped, but I was with you enough to see the significant growth you had over the course of the year. Thanks for letting me conduct some of your pieces and play with you guys sometimes. You are all incredibly hard workers and the music that you made this year is a showcase of that. Thanks for letting me lead some of your sectionals, and lecture to you about rhythm or posture, or whatever it was that day. You guys did such a fantastic job, so keep at it, and I cannot wait to see how far you all go in your future. 

Cadet Strings 

You guys are for sure wild. But, with the incredible growth that you have all had over the last year, you have helped me grow as a teacher and person as well. Your class was for sure one of the things I looked forward to everyday because of the energy and excitement you guys had to come in and learn about and play music everyday. Throughout the years, as you continue to grow in music, always try to keep that excitement in everything that you do, and every piece you play. No matter how hard or frustrating practice and homework may get, if you hold onto the love of music you have, and the reason you do what you do in any case, it will all be worth it. Never lose sight of why you play music, and every piece you play will have meaning, and your job will just be to tell your story to the audience. 

Mr. Harrison

Words cannot express my extreme gratitude for the effect you have had on my life. It is incredible all you do for all of your students, and you create the music environment that makes the Charter Music Program what it is. This year’s orchestra was incredible, and you are the reason we got to the place we did. This year especially has been amazing, and I am so glad I was able to spend time in as many ensembles as I was. You really fostered my love of music and teaching music, and showed me how to be a better leader and ensemble player. Throughout the year, you taught me so much about composition, and how I can make my music more interesting, and gave me more confidence in my ability to write music. In all of the years I have been in your classes, you have pushed me to become better, and as a result I am the musician that I am today. I will forever be grateful and indebted to you for the confidence you’ve given me and the foundation you gave me to love music the way I do today. 

The Last Will and Testament of Ashlyn Craigie

I, Ashlyn Craigie, fully understanding the nature and extent of all my property, do hereby make, publish and declare this document to be my Last Will and Testament. 

I devise my property as follows: 

Madison, I’ve loved being your stand partner for most of the year and I really love your determination and perseverance to become a better musician. You have so much talent, so let it shine and don’t forget to play louder. Keep being the amazing person you are. Also, don’t let anyone else read the stuff that you wrote on my music. To you, I leave a compilation of phrasal verbs, so that you can live up to your State Solo award and  recognize other verbs than “lock in” during rehearsal. 

Eliana, you’re the thread that holds this whole ensemble together. You complete us, and I don’t know what we’d do this year for all the songs we played if we didn’t have you. You are the most quietly talented person I’ve ever met, and I love how you’re always humble yet make everyone speechless every time we hear you play a solo. To you, I leave a collection of flower hair pins to commend you for your fabulous “Waltz of the Flowers” solo at the Christmas concert that also made my jaw drop.

Simone, I can tell you work so hard and that you really love this orchestra. I’m proud of everything you accomplished this year. Thank you for all the laughs. I didn’t know you were also a dancer! Whatever you did in the Under the Sea video was priceless. To you, I leave stingray temporary tattoos for the next music video where you dance like Moana’s grandma so you can look the part even more.

Katelynn, I love how you’re always such a good sport about everything. You’re always willing to do whatever, and you have such a great attitude when you play. You bring a lot to this orchestra in not just your playing, but also your willingness to smile and laugh during every class. To you, I leave your own posture duck to protect you when Jeff tells you to uncross your legs. He’s a fiesta duck.

Gracie, is there anything you’re not good at? Everything you do, you have a drive to excel in, and I really love that about you. You inspire this whole orchestra to achieve great things, and I’ve loved getting to play with you for the past four years. You are such a joy to be around, and I’m gonna miss you. 

Seaton, you’re an amazing person and player. I remember the first time I heard you play was when I was giving feedback to the symphonic strings and watched one of your videos, I think it was when you were in seventh grade, and I just remember thinking, “Wow, he is really good.” Even back in middle school, you had the same perseverance you have now. Your love for playing the cello comes through in everything you do, and you should know that that kind of drive will take you places. You know what you want and you don’t give up, even when it’s hard, which is an inspiration to me and to everyone in the orchestra, so thank you. You and Gracie are a dream team and you both work so hard to inspire others to achieve like you. To you both, I leave two candles to remind you to always burn bright and be a beacon for others to follow.  

London, your attitude and enthusiasm are so infectious. I don’t think I ever saw you not smiling this entire year; you lift up this whole ensemble with both your personality and your playing, which is so, so good. I really enjoyed getting to rehearse with you in Rosinance too. To you, I leave a subscription to your Youtube channel on both my accounts so you can bring your count from 79 to 81. 

Eleanor and Charlotte, you both are rock stars for working so hard to get into chamber as eighth graders. You guys made it look easy, but I could tell you always did the work to learn your parts and went above and beyond for everything, which I seriously admire. I also love that you guys have such a strong bond so you can support each other in your musical endeavors and encourage each other to keep going when it gets hard. To you both, I leave a box of Annie’s Bunny Grahams Friends to remind you that the sweetest part of playing music is the people you share it with.

Jayden, you’re so enthusiastic about everything and I love how you’re always down to do anything no matter what. You have an infectious smile and laugh, and to you, I leave a set of brightly colored gel pens to remind you to keep being optimistic for the orchestra.

Aune, I admire your perseverance and your determination to achieve your goals. I’ve also seen how hard you work with stage managing and AV to make all the concerts run smoothly. More than anything, you have an unfailing kindness to everyone you interact with. To you, I leave a sticker saying “In a world where you can be anything, be kind” to remind others to be just as much of an angel as you are.

Anne, I love your attitude about everything. You have a really nonchalant, casual exterior and reaction to everything, and you’re so easygoing, it’s so easy to talk and connect with you. You are also an amazing viola player, and I hope you keep up with it after high school. To you, I leave a “Not today, Satan” sticker to remind you to always face challenges with that same “can-do” attitude. 

 Smiag, I don’t know what we would have done without you for the past three years. I’ve made so many memories with you, from being stand partners for Hebrides to measure 99. Your love for music and for everyone in this orchestra shows every single day, and I’ve loved getting to know you better over the years. Your personality combined with your positive outlook make you a rarity, and I appreciate your kind and welcoming exterior to everyone you interact with. I’m going to miss you so much. To you, I leave a box of brownie mix so you can make them and show David the pervert what real brownies look like when they’re made.

Mr. Harrison, I don’t know how you do it every day with six classes and one of those being a room full of sixth graders. You deserve a break, so to you, I leave a mindfulness Buddha (it’s an Amazon choice “overall pick”) so you don’t forget to take a breath every now and then and decompress from the thousand things you’re doing every day. It also comes with 6 ambient nature sounds and color changes based on your breathing pattern so you have a gentle daily reminder to pause and focus on something other than middle schoolers asking for study lab passes.

Final Senior Will and Testament of Skyler Gessner

I’ve contemplated going all poetic and wise in this testament like seniors of years past, reminiscing and acting wise, but I don’t want to bore y’all with the shouldas and wouldas. Besides, that’s for you to discover on your own and learn the hard way. I'll keep my memoirs to a minimum.

So let's begin--how did we get here?? Seven years have gone by in the blink of an eye and I’m left here at the end of it all, sad that it’s over for me but glad that it happened. It seems like it’ll go on forever until the deadline has whizzed right past you. Hmmm....  Time flies when you’re having fun, and I blame that fun on all of you. To all the band: thank you.

Ok now I give stuff away don't I?

To Mr. Harrison:

I will my copy of PropellerHead Reason 2.5 software. You can have it back now. I never got around to dealing with customer service for the product code.

I also will to you my folder that I forgot at home, now with a new gash across the front from that one time I slid a stand across it.

To the Flutes:

Before there was flute proper, there was the recorder. I will to you my recorder that I got in 4th grade music class. May you always have better tone and tuning than this piece of plastic.

To the Clarinets and Saxes: 

I will this duck. Keep him with your section as and example of good posture and tone.

As an aside, I came up with this before Geoff was a thing.

Specifically to the one sax dude who thinks he's above the law (Liam):

Here's this duct tape. I give permission to anyone around you to tape your mouth shut at any moment. Please quit yapping and noodling during rehearsals. I also will to you 50 pushups that you still haven't done. 

That said, I'm proud of what you've managed to accomplish this year.

To the Bassoon:

Double reed instruments are scary. I give you my brother Conrad to teach you oboe.

To the Horns:

Bucas is cracked, but don't let him carry you. 

I give you Big Smug Jug. You can put Herbie the spit plant in him.

I also give you all the CAD files for the buzz mixer. It's your project now.

Specifically to Bucas: I will exactly 1 (one) bazinger. Use it wisely.

To the trumpets:

I don't have anything physically applicable for y'all, so you get compliments.

Hugh: I don't think I could have handled wind ensemble at your age. I'm super impressed and wish you the best on your musical journey, wherever it may take you. You've got the determination to go above and beyond, and I just know you're going to achieve greatness. Don't ever let yourself get complacent.

Greyson: To be quite honest, I didn't really think highly of you at all when you joined wind ensemble, but that has gradually mellowed. You've grown a lot. Keep on punching above your level. I will to you all my AV duties.

Oh, and I liked Zane’s solo.

To Percussion:

If I were to do it all over again, I probably would have picked percussion over French Horn. Anyways, your section is sadly the one I know the least. I will you the ability to cease making noise when Harrison is yapping, and this poorly designed noise machine. Sorry.

To the Trombones:

Paula: Again, I haven't got anything but compliments. You really aren't afraid to play out and add character to the ensemble. Keep on making Harrison give you the hand. You rock.

Edwell Bardmund: To you, I will this bottle of red 40 to maintain your hair with. Also, Remember the Eddie shoe fund? I will to you the Eddie shirt fund.

And last of the band, but certainly not the least, low brass gang:

I will to you a piece of my 2001 manual 1.8L VW Passat. Here's my reasoning:

You are the foundation of the ensemble sound, and sometimes I feel as though my bones aren't rattling enough from the bass in our ensemble. To help you with those pedal tones, I give you the third pedal from my car. It might just come in clutch. (Please laugh y’all. I put an unreasonable amount of work into these puns.) It's pretty dirty though so use it wisely or you run the risk of creating brown notes.

To Mr. Harrison again:

Did you really think I was just going to re-gift you that software?

You put so much work into the music program here that I don't have the words to properly thank you with. At one point, band was the only thing keeping me from leaving charter. Thanks for making charter that much more bearable and changing the lives of hundreds of students. We never give you enough credit.

Please remember to take care of yourself first before others. Sleep is essential. Don't shorten your lifespan by skimping on rest. Coffee and energy drinks are not a substitute. Here is this tea to help you relax.

I will to you a piece of music dedicated in your honor. It should appear on my channel before the week is out. I hope it helps you relax.

Final Remark to the Band:

I wish you all well on your musical journeys and all your life endeavors. Band isn't just technique and theory. It's about shared human experiences and conquering your habits. No matter how awful it feels to practice or to study, keep at it. You won't regret it. Go make mistakes and make sure you reflect and learn from them.

Once again, thank y'all for this wonderful experience. I'm so proud of each of you, and I'm so glad to have gotten to play with you.

Ad astra per aspera.

P.S. If you ever figure out the product code for Reason, please tell me!! Despite the fact that I let it sit on the back burner for 6 years, I’d still love to see what it can do!

The Last Will and Testament of Patrick B O’Callaghan

To the Band, you guys have provided me with some of my best moments in life. Some I hope to never forget and others I wish I could forget faster. The 7 years I have spent in the band have been 7 years well spent. And I leave to you my dreams of a future band. A future band of excellence. 

To the Flute Section, You guys are insane, on Harry Potter, on all those notes, I literally hid behind you guys trying to play the right notes. You guys are at such a high level it scares me. So to increase your ability to play lonnnng lines of unending notes I leave to you this boston's half filled free drink card, may your playing increase vividly. 

To the French Horn Section, You guys have some pretty crazy members, literally, someone might need to tackle Hayden, but I know that the band pressure goes hard. So, I leave this tire pressure stick to measure your pressure and to ensure you don’t crash out. Measure yourselves guys.

To the Trumpet Section, You guys have worked so hard this year and have been amazing company to keep, even though you're behind us. To help you reach new heights I give to you this tuner, because it is a recurring thing, but most importantly because I love you guys and the future that you will inevitably pave with your amazing trumpet skills.

To the Tuba section, you guys have made me really happy with your big toots this year. I hope that you continue to be the best tubas the world has ever seen. But it needs to have a leader after Chloe is gone so I leave you this quarter to head or tails the new leader of the tuba section. 

To the Percussion section, you are all uniquely talented in your own rights that it truly amazes me. Knowing that the future of the percussion section is in your tightly knit group hands leaves me confident. So, I leave to you with this physical representation of your bond, twine that I bought some months ago for a project. Cherish it well. 

To the Sax Section, you guys have been my best buddies this year and have made me truly happy with the jokes and laughs we made together this year, even if it was getting on Isaacs' nerves quite a bit. So, as a bit of irish luck, I leave to you guys my first reed, it has survived through many trials and tribulations and is probably still playable, with it may you have all the strength, luck, and good will you need to make it past the hurdles of life and into the paradise that is black belt heaven, where I must go now to live among the flowers and dance with the fairies.

To Josh, ma boh, ma Joshy, to have you next to me all year is a blessing I count. Although it has only been a year I have been so glad to know you and I’m sad that we won’t get to spend more time together, (don’t worry Ill be back for mah vaca), so I will leave to you the potential of the future. This card here is Dr. Michael Keepes card, now I know it's a lot of work and I know that it will probably drive you crazy, but one thing that I wished for was that I had started lessons earlier to fix all my bad habits, so I leave the decision up to you. 

To Liam, ma other boy, my little pookie, I have loved to hear your jazz improv all year in wind ensemble, it has made the rehearsals and long days much more fun. But with that I have loved to see you get new mouthpieces and reeds which truly shows me that you love your instrument. So, I leave to you this honorary black belt, don’t reed what it says and just see that it's black, use this in times of need when the french horns begin to overstep their authority, I leave you a great power so if I hear you have been misusing it, I will punish you.

To Cooper, mah estranged boy, You have been an instrument demon this year and have shown dedication to learn your parts and all that jazz. You have been a great joy and for that reason I leave this altissimo fingering chart so that you may exceed me in skill and become even better than before. 

To Eddie, who has been actively trying to kiss me this year, I love ya so much and I’m sad to be leaving you. You have given me so much joy this year with your funny antics. I will miss our jumping in the lake, the jazz sessions, the family meetings, and your moms food. You have so much love and for that reason I give to you this chapstick, may you use it well. 

To Paula, You are such a good player and great person following after your father, that I leave to you this blank sheet of manuscript paper, may you become an amazing composer like your father and may you please write me an amazing song so that I can make bank. 

To Lucas, mon frere, you have been so much fun to be around this year, and I’m glad you didn’t fall that deep into the hole that is brain rot this year. So to ensure that your mind remains clear and pure I leave to you this slimy, gooey, brain rot cleaning gel, stick this into your ear every once in a while so that you may not be tormented by brain rot anymore. 

To Lily, ma soeur, I’m frankly amazed at how you can play both the saxophone and clarinet so well, I’m over here as the one trick pony haha, but you are a master, advanced in two mostly different instruments, you inspired me to play better this year and for that I leave to you this inspirational cat poster. 

To Isaac, I love ya man and I’m sorry that you have had to deal with us this year, so I leave to you these ear plugs. 

To Aiden, the bassooner, your instrument shouldn’t work, but it does. Reeds were never meant to be double sided, but I digress, you are such an amazing person and musician that you went to all state and then all northwest, but that didn’t stop you and you went to the state solo competition too. I’m afraid that not everyone knows just how cool you are so I leave you these vandal glasses to swag everyone with. 

And finally to Mr. Harrison, you do so much for us and put in so much work each and every day, month, and year that it would give any person a heart attack. I don’t know how you do it, probs with all that Starbucks, but it is an inspiration to all students that if a teacher puts so much blood, tears, sweat, and soul into teaching us, then we should give back that same passion. I thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for teaching me with that passion. 

The Last Will and Testament of Jacob Bass

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Thanks for the fun times, good music, and shenanigans. If any of you break a bass I will come back to haunt you. I give any possessions I leave behind to Ike.

Last Will and Testament of Henry DePew

First, I would like to say something to the whole band. I have known some of you for many years at this point, and some of you for just one, but it has truly been a pleasure to play with all of you. Band is one of the most amazing experiences you can have at this school, and there is really nothing else like it. One thing I have learned over my past 7 years here is that inspiration is ridiculously important, especially in music. I encourage you all to listen to music that inspires you, play music that inspires you, and most of all make friends with people who inspire you, because there is nothing that will ever push you to be your best quite like peers who believe in you.

I will now present my individual gifts, starting with the percussion section.

Cruz, you are an exceptional percussionist. I admire your passion for four mallet playing, something I never had the courage to really delve into, and I believe that you will become a better four mallet player than I ever was during my high school career. I am leaving you with a pair of Salyers Earthtone ET50 mallets.

Joe, I appreciate you for your daring and humorous nature. You have the unique talent of making any rehearsal interesting, and we all appreciate you for that. I am leaving you with a bag of SweetTarts Ropes.

Mattis, your boundless curiosity about everything percussion is amazing. You have the rare ability to ask questions often, and I wish that everyone would follow your example. I could not imagine how difficult it would be to switch instruments and immediately get thrown in the deep end, but you have truly done an amazing job and you have been a great addition to the percussion section. I am leaving you with my washboard and two thimbles.

Now for my children.

To my first son, Edmund Bardwell, I would like to give a resounding thank you. Your radiant enthusiasm has had a very strong impact on this band in just these last three years, and I’m sure that you are going to lead this band to greatness in the future. You are funny, intelligent, and supremely cute, and I cannot imagine the last three years of band without you. In honor of your upcoming acquisition of a driver’s license, I am leaving you with my parking spot. Please use it well, and absolutely do not let anybody take it from you.

To my second son, Mason Curry, you are awesome. I am eternally confused at how you somehow manage to participate in a gazillion different things every day and still have time to be a very skilled trumpet player.

Because of your lack of ability to dress yourself, I am leaving you with two black dress shoes and one red tie.

To my third son, Lucas Wessels, I would like to thank you for being so odd. I think that you have been given a special gift in your ability to spice up other people’s lives in the most boring of moments, and I believe that you will be able to make the most of it in the future. To you I leave one bottle of shaving cream so that you may fulfill the prophecy and finally embrace the friar cut.

Garrett Johnson, my fourth son, I would like to thank you for being so insanely chill. There is no one who I have enjoyed jamming with after school as much as you, and I am very happy to say that your charismatic and incredibly funny personality will carry you far in whatever you do with your life.To you I leave one white undershirt so you can look professional 100% of the time.

To my fifth son, Milo, I would like to thank you for being so incredibly enthusiastic about jazz. You have introduced me to so many new groups that I never would have found without your help. You have an amazingly inspiring ability to listen, which is probably one of the biggest compliments a musician can get since it is such a rare skill to have. For you, I am leaving a CD of Time Out by the Dave Brubeck quartet.

To my sixth son, Lily, I would like to thank you for being so kind. Although you have only been one of my sons for less than a year, your humor and genuineness have added a lot to our family. For you, I am leaving a pair of sunglasses, so everyone can know how cool you are.

Finally, I would like to thank Patrick for being willing to proudly bear the title of ‘family rat.’ Even though we claim that you are our pet, I don’t see you as being any different to my other six children. You are an incredible friend, and I am glad to say that you have truly made my life better. In honor of your pet status, I am leaving you with a gummy rat.

Last Will and Testament of Nolan Oyler

Section:

Eddie: My little buddy, my sweet boy, Edmund, Ed, Eddie, Reggie, Big Eddie, Big Ed, Big Red, Edward, Edison, Edgy, Reginald, Regimen, I will miss being your section mate. You are a very strange little boy and you terrify me, but you are a fantastic musician, and you are not as actively annoying as the other people that I am about to mention. I think you have come a long way as a trombone player and can play on a very high level, but you are still unable to play too loud, like somebody I’m about to mention, and I think that is an essential trombone responsibility. Now that you are the highest ranking low brass member, I gift to you my red and brown belt. I also gift to you a milder preworkout so that you will not harm yourself with your current preworkout addiction. I also gift to you a shaker bottle for your preworkout consumption.

Paula: Paula, you are also a very good trombone player, especially for how young you are, and I think you have a great musical career ahead of you, but like Eddie, I must also explain to you your flaws. You also do not play as loud as you could and should and you are also a little strange. Despite your strangeness, I think you are incredibly real and will probably become a very normal person. Now that you are the second highest ranking low brass member, I gift to you my purple belt.

Lucas D: Mucus, or whatever your name is, at the beginning of this school year, I struggled to deal with you. I saw you as a mega goober, with an unjustified snarkiness, and very little musical skill. You constantly play too loud, which is something that Eddie and Paula can learn from you, but I do think it is important to work on being a better musician along with playing loudly. But as the year has progressed, I have found that you have a lot of musical skill in both of your instruments, and you have grown on me slightly. You are still a goober with unnecessary sass, but I just want you to know I don’t dislike you. Now that you are the most mid ranking low brass member, I gift to you my blue belt.

Aiden: Aiden, I don’t know you at all but you seem like a sweet little guy and I think you are a good tuba player but I’m really not sure. Now that you are the second lowest ranking low brass member, I gift to you my green and orange belts.

Chloe: Chloe, I also do not know you at all but you seem like a good person and a good musician, and as you are now the lowest ranking low brass member, I gift to you my yellow and white belts.

Extras:

Mason: Oh little Mingus, I love you so very much and you are such a silly little goober. I think you are great trumpet player too but that is not why I’m writing you a note. I am only confessing my deep, 

unbreaking love for you. Because of your lack of ability to dress yourself, I gift to you a black dress shirt.

Tucker: Tuc Tuc, I am extremely impressed by how you have made it this far in life, despite all of your severe mental and physical disabilities. You are my little trooper and I could not be more proud of the struggles you have overcome. One struggle you have not overcome, which keeps me up at night, is your reliance on Temu products, so to replace your fragile jewelry, I gift to you this chain I found.

Sam H: Sport, you have also impressed me with your overcoming of mental disabilities, and I think it is amazing how good you are at the saxophone with your unfortunate circumstances. You are one of the best jazzers I have ever played with, and it confuses me greatly. Although you are the most disruptive member of the band, I am choosing to gift you something that will increase your amount of disturbances. I appreciate you letting me play your sax. Not playing the sax is one of my biggest regrets and I’m grateful you let me make up for my childhood mistakes. So to pay you back, I gift to you my mouthpiece.

Bucas: Bucas, man, you are the biggest goober on the planet. You constantly surprise me with how gooberish you can be. I think you have improved a lot as a musician, which is really cool. I gift to you shaving cream, to take everyone back to a simpler time, when you had no hair and no brain rot.

Patrick: Rat, you really are a rat, you are just a scummy little guy, but you are a great musician, and a nice guy, but you are still a rat and I think it is only necessary that I gift you a rat. gift not provided

Helen: Helen you are my sister and that means that I live with you and am constantly around you so I don’t really have much to say but I think you are a great musician and I would appreciate it if you let me play your sax like sport does. I gift to you my trombone as an exchange for unlimited sax playing.

Last Will and Testament of Sam Garn

Let this be my final will and testament to the Wind Ensamble y Jazz Band of the Couer D alene Charter academy and establishment of the highest quality and with full regard…. Ha get pranked i will not be writing it like an actual will my children. But may I leave with you some warm words and harsh realities ehem lukas Withersac,

 let this be the willing section… hehe get it like section of the band cause like comedy

 First to the flute section ima be honest i dont know who you are nor have i acknowledged your presence the entirety of this year nor ever wanted to but i mean im sure your cool on an off day or maybe two, to you I will the animosity of exceptionalism aka,,,, nothing…. get pranked 

To your next door neighbors who are cooler then you but still semi nonexistent the clarinets, you guys are actually chil and I wont leave you much because your in very goodhands, Lilly is lowkey Cracked and i say that in the highest regard,,, ALso pretty sure shes on the roids… but any how yeah no you guys also get nothing

Low Brass, Edmund, my sweet sweet boy, I have always loved you and i always will , to you I give big Smooches and permission to dent paula’s trombone whenever you want and i will take the credit for your actions, tubas kept the miles legacy strong yes 16th notes are real I know this may be a shock  but before you come to that realixation you must first you must figure out the quarter note… BoOm roasted, TOokus your acutely kinda good at your instrument now that i think about it so thats kinda chill. so long gang keep honking away the day

To BOOkus and company, yalls kinda popped off this year, iMa be honest i was worried. GULP.

Bookus to you I will FEAR.  i will find you and you will receive the friar cut. To skayalr i will a microphone i snatched from AV boom roasted. ANd to the curlly short one be on time to rehearsal or harriosn might acutly beat you .

 Trumpets lets be real I the only one i wanna talk to is my darling Massarooni to you i will my pants, YOu wil never grow into them, but hey youll have pants next time you pull up to the concert, also give tuk tuk a kiss kiss. 

To the goobers in the back your a lost cause. Hanks gone and now your all cooked he leaves a big shadow for a little boy.

My dearest Saxes, to my little mister hines to you i give this littel flowery dream journal to write down all your dreams its sealed with a little note inside lots of smooches to you keep transcribing cause you gonna go far, dont get issac syndrome. To patty oh sweet boy i will miss your little cutie the mostest, to you i will the ability to not drop your saxophone on the night of the performance, and the power to keep you safe from keeps rage when you show up to your lessons you should definitely keep taking :0 wink wink, with a bite out of your salt onion that i chomped on while you wherent looking. To Helen my snack buddy and endless supply of super one jerky i will you my never ceasing hunger to dominate chop…. Pish get pranked i coulndt even keep it serious while saying it, i just will you hunger. Oh lukas withersac your a special one, to you i will this mirror for you to look into and see how bad you are ;), and not as in baddie but as in really bad, this touch love is needed cause you acut ely have mad potential if you just shut up everyonce and a while, big kisses love you .coop I give you this probably used reed.

Welp thats it my younglings lots of smooches around, so long world.

                                                                                             -SAMMY G.

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Dear Mister Harrison,

 This is a bit of a serious note. Thank you. I am a pain in the ass I never learn and I am incredibly lazy, I only treated you harshly for the majority of last year because i Couldn't get over myself and realize that I was in fact what needed to change. So for not just kicking me out of band i thank you, I truly love music, Its part of my life i wil never give up and never want to, you have helped me realize that, and not only realize that but realize how rewarding and giving it is to put in the work and do it the right way. If i say much more im worried ill some how turn it into a pity fest witch i don't want to do so ill keep it short. Thank you truly, you have changed my life, and I have never seen someone persevere through so much and truly make a change for the better in themselves in spite of at times everything not going there way, I will look up to that all my life. I am so glad that when I came in 7th grade I chose to do band. I wouldn't change it for anything, I tried to leave it for a semester and I came crawling back,  I never want a day to go by without music in my life and i Thank you for sharing that with me. I'm sorry for this format, its not the best and my brain just kinda threw up on the page but i hope if i convey anything that is is that i love this class and this part of my life and I give you 100 percent of the credit for that and I am so impressed with the standard of music you bring to charter, that is why i stayed here you where why i sayed and I am so greatful I did. So once more Thank you.

• Samuel Garn

Last Will and Testament of Alexa Sheppard

As is tradition for the seniors in the Coeur d’Alene Charter Academy music program, Alexa Sheppard has created a final will and testament dictating what will now be property of other students in the program following her departure.
First, a great thank you to everyone in the program who made this an enjoyable 7 years full of learning and growth as a person and musician. 

To Gabby: as thanks for the last two years of playing with you, getting to know you, and the joy that you bring everyday, Alexa gifts this hacky sack from Belize. Also chemistry flashcards to help if you take McCormack. 

Anne: thank you for always being good for a laugh and for brightening up all of the early mornings. For this and as a reminder to never change you are now the protector of this smiling pig and you also get a stone thing. 

Madi: your calm, sweet nature was always a welcome presence during many very stressful times Alexa had while being your stand partner. As a thank you for helping her through those days you get a slightly perturbed looking frog and a matching ish stone. 

Aune: thank you for always being a light in the room and for your quiet jokes/commentary. It was a joy to see your musical progress over the year and to see you blossom into the person you are today from the time she met you in elementary school. As a keepsake and reminder to never lose your spark you get this monkey keychain thingy mabob and a decoration from Alexa’s locker in seventh grade. 

This viola section was an honor to be a part of and one that Alexa won’t forget. Each one of you is an amazing person and will do amazing things. She hopes that you all have a great rest of the year and continue to find joy in whatever you do.
For everyone else in orchestra, thank you for being good people and for playing an important role in Alexa’s musical career and time overall at charter. Each of you can take a notecard with her signature in case she ever gets famous as proof that you knew her. (Any extras can be given to band kids who so desire to have one) 

Helen: it has been a pleasure and honor to know you these past years. As a token of her gratitude for your friendship and for something to remember her by, Alexa gifts her hair to you. And also a car. 

Last Will and Testament of Pius Bresee

Now I know I haven't been the most involved in this program but that does not detract from how much it means to me. I have had an amazing time playing in the Wind Ensemble.

First to the trumpets:

Thanks for being a better trumpet player than I could ever have been Issac, my guy. As good of a trumpet player as you are, you are an even better friend. Keep up the good work. 

Mason, my guy, I always knew you would be great. Like from the moment I met you, I thought, wow this guy has got potential. Keep up the good work. I would really suggest you stay in the Wind Ensemble as long as you can. 

Next, to Thomas: Dude! Sitting next to you was a blast. You are an amazing trumpet player and a great friend. Don't stop practicing brother, you have so much room to grow, it'd be a shame if you stopped playing. Like I said to Mason, I would encourage you to stay in the Wind Ensemble as long as possible.

Grayson, although I don’t know you the best as a person, I think it is fair to say that I can speak about you as a trumpet player. My man, you've come a long way. You've made some serious progress, please don't give it up. 

Tucker, my fellow N#$%$#, (please don’t censor this), I mean it when I say this, you're a top-tier friend to sit next to in band. It's been a blast talking with you throughout this semester. Please just keep your phone away, that was a huge distraction to my learning environment. 

To the rest of the band, we've come a long way, suffice it to say it has been a journey and a half. I really wanna stress the importance of this. Please please continue in the band as long as possible, it's an amazing program and yall won’t regret it.

Deuces, Pius 

Last Will and Testament of Piper Judd

Last Will and Testament

I, Piper Judd, a student of Coeur d’Alene Charter Academy, senior class, declare that this is my will.  I revoke all wills and codicils that I have previously made.  I play the violin.

I give my possessions to Elise Bell to distribute when the time is right.

To Elyse Westfall, I leave my 3rd chair, 1st violin position effective the first day of August that school is back in session.

To Amaiah van Hill, I leave my purple book so that she will never forget it at home, and a red balloon from the first spirit activity she held with Elise.

To Ashlynn Craigie, I leave my music editing pencil, an instrument often forgotten but necessary to the success of coordinated bowings and noting of Harrisonisms, to be collected post-Disney.

To Mr. Harrison, I leave a crocheted coffee cup adorned with a taco, a music note, and an anonymous strings instrument for him to throw about during “I likes and I wonders” that occur outside of school.

To Elise Bell, I leave my bag of Easter candy as payment for the snacks she brought for rehearsal.

If any provision of this will is held invalid, that shall not affect other provisions that can be given effect without the invalid provision.

I, Piper Judd, the testator, sign my name to this instrument, this 28th day of May, 2024, at 8:57 am. I declare that I sign and execute this instrument as my last will, that I sign it willingly, and that I execute it as my free and voluntary act. I declare that I am of the age of majority or otherwise legally empowered to make a will, and under no constraint or undue influence.

Signature: Piper Judd

We, the witnesses, sign our names to this document, and declare that the testator willingly signed and executed this document as the testator's last will.

In the presence of the testator, and in the presence of each other, we sign this will as witnesses to the testator's signing.

To the best of our knowledge, the testator is of the age of majority or otherwise legally empowered to make a will, is of sound mind and under no constraint or undue influence. We declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct, this 28th day of May, 2024, at 9:00 am.

Witness 1:

Sign your name: Emma Anderson

Print your name: Emma Anderson

Address: 4904 N Duncan Dr.

City, State: Coeur d’Alene, ID

Witness 2:

Sign your name: Emma Keith

Print your name: Emma Keith

Address: 4904 N Duncan Dr.

City, State: Coeur d’Alene, ID

Last Will and Testament of Miles Taylor

First I will address the band as a whole. Every year I’ve been a part of this program I’ve been inspired by our willingness to tackle tough pieces. How to Train Your Dragon, the Christmas Suite, As a Wind from the North, and At Kitty O Sheas have been just some of the pieces that at first seemed like too great a challenge, but by the concert we were able to competently perform. Our love for music brings us together to produce something greater than ourselves, and I’m honored to have shared that with you guys. 

To the low brass,

You guys make me proud every time I listen to you. As long as you continue to work you will be some of the finest tuba, trombone, and euphonium players this school has ever seen. Also, forte means forte!! You all should try to be more like Aiden when there’s an F on the page. 

To the trumpets,

You guys may be goofy most of the time, but you guys always clutch up and sound good at the concert. Don't be too much of a goon when Henry is leading rehearsals next year, or I will come in and personally give you push ups. 

To the horns, 

Horn is one of the most beautiful instruments. I want you guys to find your favorite horn player and listen to them often. I want you guys to bring back the legendary horn section sounds of Maria and Noah. 

To the saxes, 

Although none of you guys can keep your mouths, you're pretty good at your instruments and it kind of makes up for your constant talking. I'm really excited to see how the Jazz sax section develops over the next few years. (Yes Lucas Im calling you out, you should’ve stayed in Jazz)

To the high woodwinds, 

I’ve never understood how you guys are able to play all those crazy parts. The amount of work you put into the band is crazy. You guys are all awesome and definitely the most underrated members of this ensemble. 

To the percussion section, 

You should get more players. You’re definitely the best sounding section, but the band needs more!

Now I’m going to write a few letters to individual members of the band. I’d mention everyone, but then this list would be too long. 

To Mr Harrision  

Wow, what a ride it's been. It seems like just yesterday you were leading me into the low brass room to try the tuba. Every year since then you've guided me and encouraged me in my musical journey. The lessons you've given me over the years have allowed me to begin expressing myself through music. This truly has been one of the greatest gifts I’ve ever received. The ability to be a part of something larger than myself at such an intimate level makes me indescribably happy. Our best musical performances have truly been the best moments of my life. October and 1812 come to mind as moments so powerful that I still get goosebumps every time I listen to those songs. Thank you so so much for all the work you’ve put into this program. I don’t know if I'll ever understand how you are able to do what you do. Just Bach to Rock alone would be the biggest undertaking of most people's life, and you do it yearly with all the other craziness going on in your life as well. Again thank you so much for all that you’ve done for me and this amazing program. 

To Garrett Johnson, 

You are a seriously awesome dude. I can't remember any negative interaction I’ve ever had with you. Keep working hard. To you I give an overgrip so you can keep hold of your racquet when you go for the hulk smash. 

To Lily,

You have by far one of the best work ethics in the band. Your ability to pick up the saxophone and lead the section on an instrument you haven’t been playing very long is amazing. Also keep challenging Sam for that lead spot (he's very beatable, just ask him about his tennis record against me) So to you I give a drum with Sam’s face or it so you can practice beating him. 

To Lucas Witherwangus, 

You asked for my rizz, but I really don’t think I need to give it to you. I’ve seen you develop from kind of annoying, to a super funny and easy to talk to kid. I have no doubt that you'll find the girl of your dreams. So to you I give a Barbie doll, so you can practice rizzing her up. 

To Helen,

You have insane amounts of energy… sometimes too much. So to you I give some chill pills to stuff your mouth with. 

To Sam, 

Your saxophone skills are almost as impressive as your back. You are a great guy, and I could see you doing some pretty great things. Just make sure you keep your car on the road in the future, and don't try anymore automobile gymnastics. So to you I give a hot wheels car that you can throw around instead of your real car. 

To Lucas Wessley, 

I think you could learn a lot from your older brother Caleb. So, I suggest growing out your hair wearing Jesus sandals everywhere, and (Surfer dude voice) “just chilling out dude.” I give to you a surfboard so you can catch the waves of chill. 

To Issac, 

Man there's a lot of goons on this list, but you might top them all. You are fantastic at anything you put your mind to, but you don’t know how to keep your mouth shut. So to you I give some duct tape to keep your mouth shut. 

To Mason, 

I don't know what it is about the name Mason, but they always seem to be amazing people. I’m sure just like Mason Oyler by the time you leave this school you will be a living legend. So to you I give a diamond so you know what it feels like to be a diamond in the sky like you're elder Mason. 

To Nany Noljan,

You have such an infectious happy personality. You've been an amazing friend to me the past few years and have always kept rehearsals interesting. To you I give a Hershey bar for always being my snack partner. 

To Humongous Eddius, 

You are a giant among men. Your constant good attitude and smile make everyone's day better. However, the trombone is not a nice instrument eddie. So to you I give inspiration of this video, if you dare harness the power. https://youtu.be/vTDEVUlCClk 

To Chloe,

You are an amazingly sweet and kind person, who’s getting pretty darn good at tuba. Every time I listen to your solos I’m more and more impressed. I think you should also play louder just like Big Eddie. So to you I give liquid confidence (a rock star) 

To Aiden, 

Man if I gave you the same gift as Chloe I think you might cause a man made earthquake. There's no stopping you when you get going, and I wouldn’t want it any other way. Continue to refine your skills and you will do amazing things. I give to you the sheet music for super mario brother, to inspire future generations of tuba players. 

To Hanky Panky, 

I don’t really know where to start, but I'll start by saying this. I’m so thankful I got the pleasure of meeting you and calling you my friend. I don’t know what any of us band members did that got us in the same room as you because you truly are such an amazing musician and person. You’re already a legend and are going to do far greater things that I could every hope of accomplishing. So to you I give a hug. 

Remember to always continue to be inspired, and never lose sight of why we play music. This program is amazing, and I’m so thankful to have been a part of it for so long. 

I love you all, Miles 

Last Will and Testament of Garrett Heaton

I here do decree this following passage to be the final parting messages of Garrett William Walker Heaton to the CDA Charter Music Program:

Jazz Band

Trumpets: Y’all are a family. I must say these past 2 years have been the best I have seen the trumpet section in jazz band and the trumpet culture as well. All of you have incredible talent and skill. I have faith in every single one of you. I know the idea of next year might be scary, but it will be one of the best learning experiences you will ever have. If you need help, yall have my number too. To all of you, I leave an equal fraction of my ego.

Trombones: You guys have come a long way as well and I’m happy to see security for the future generations. All of you can play louder. I give to all of you, some preworkout to dry scoop before each jazz rehearsal.

Saxes: I have never seen a group of individuals learn this much in that short amount of time. You still have places to improve, but you guys should be more than proud. All of you are incredible musicians and all of you have potential. To you, I give sauce.

Rhythm Section: All of you are more motivated than I ever was. All of you make me sound better than I actually am both as a soloist and a lead player. To the guitarists, I give them the ability to realize THAT THERE IS A VOLUME KNOB ON THEIR INSTRUMENT AND THAT IT WORKS. And also the ability not to noodle. To the rest of you, I leave soul in R2D2 scream form.

Wind Ensemble

Highwoodwinds: I have never understood how you guys do what you do, and in spite of me making fun of you all the time, I have mad respect for all of you.You are a tight knit group and you are tiny but very very mighty. To you, I give more sauce.

Low Woodwinds(Including Alto Saxes): To Lucus Witherwax, the high five he has been waiting for for years. All of you are incredible and have great sound and love for music. You will have access to the Jazz trombone pre workout, but only under the condition that Sam stops playing out of turn. 

Lowbrass: The difference between last year and this year with this section is nutz. To have traveled this far in such a short time is astounding. All of the new members I can see have fire in their hearts. To you, I give the ability and right to restart the Fascist organization that this section once was, and to enforce however you see fit. 

Highbrass: Don’t be afraid of my departure. Take it as an opportunity to learn and grow as a musician. Skyler can play louder, but all of you are great. With the arrival of some of the best concert band musicians I have seen, I have all the more faith in every single one of you. To the leader of the trumpet section I leave the Taco Trumpet. This was my very first horn. With it, comes all of the credit, but all of the blame.

Henry: You have more musical knowledge than me at least 7 fold and I am proud to have called you a friend and a band mate. To you, I leave the horse Head as you carry the whole band as a house does his luggage (providing that you will lend it to the trumpets for the Holiday concert for Sleigh Ride). 

Orchestra:

Violins: You have more culture than I have ever seen in the orchestra all in one section. Your future is bright. To you I leave another R2D2 scream.

Violas: Believe it or not, this was my first instrument. I started in 4th grade and went through 5th. Then I swapped to the band cause I hated it. I admire your strength and I give you the ability to be happy.

Cellos: All of you have strong leadership abilities and I have no worries about any of you. Keep slaying

Basses: You are the grooviest but at the cost of your hands dying everyday. To you I leave super glue for you fingers.

Mesichial Harysomoan:

What you have grown here in this band program is not only unique, but mutually beneficial to all of its members. Even through the blood sweat and tears I put into this program, I don't regret any of it. In fact, the band program is one of very few things I believe I will never regret. Thank you for your patience with me, for the opportunities I have had, for caring about me as an individual, for providing vast musical knowledge, and for being willing to step in when you saw me struggling. I give you the motivation to keep saying “JAZZ O’CLOCK” every time we start warmups.

Last Will and Testament of Stephanie Saw

I, Stephy Saw, declare this to be my final message to the whole Chamber Orchestra. I suck at English so please bear with me. I will begin by leaving stuff behind for each person because that’s what last year people did. 

BASS:

Christian - You have been a very committed and hardworking person this year and I’m glad to have met you and got to know you a little for the first time this year. For you, I leave behind this random guitar pick I found in my house.

Keira - Although very quiet, you are very talented and super humble about it too, and I feel like you are very underrated in the orchestra. You have great fashion sense too and I’m glad you were able to share that at times with the orchestra this year. For you, I leave behind this cute dark purple scrunch.

Jacob - MISTA BASE although we haven’t talked much this year, I can tell that you’re very passionate about music and your instrument specifically. When we sight read Moondance earlier this year, your passion really showed through and I still remember it. For you, I leave behind some Swedish fish because I remember earlier this year you gave me one.

CELLO:

Gracie - You’re just so funny, and I love all the energy you bring to the orchestra. I’m so glad to have gotten more acquainted with you this year because you’re so talented and caring towards others. I can tell you’re a natural born leader and hopefully the orchestra in the future can depend on your expertise and guidance. For you, I leave behind this bracelet because you always wear a ton so I thought you’d like more.

Seaton - SHITON ohrmahguord you’re such a sweet guy and so hardworking. Your progress this year musically is astounding and I can’t wait to see how much you’ll grow throughout your future years in the orchestra - and alongside yarm :). For you, I leave this picture of coco because you always show him lots of love when he visits at school.

VIOLA:

Alexa - Thank you so much for being the best state roomie! You brought all our stuff with you when we unknowingly left them in the hotel room. You have missed quite a bit of class this year because of your NIC classes, but you are still just as valued in our orchestra. For you, I leave this tiny skincare sample as a memoir from our skincare train at state.

Karsten - KARKARRR it was so fun to meet and get to know you this year! You’re such a funny and humble person and a great secret santa. The growth you’ve shown on the viola this year was so substantial and I’ve never been more proud. For you, I leave behind this plush keychain as a thank you for the bunny keychain you gave me for secret santa.

Gabby - I’m sooo glad I met you for the first time this year because I would’ve never known how sweet of a person you are! Your commitment to orchestra, although subtle, has made a huge difference overall and the viola section would never be the same without you. For you, I leave behind this purple hair tie because you do lots of fun hairstyles.

SECOND VIOLIN:

Amiah - You are truly one of the most mature and talented middle schooler I’ve ever met. Considering you joined chamber orchestra in your 7th grade year, I just know that you’ll be the next great Abi Stephens. Your leadership and commitment to your instrument is unlike anything I’ve ever seen out of someone as young as you. For you, I leave behind this pin because you always advocate for things with a little cute pin on your jacket.

Ashlyn - I never took you for a crier beaver Ashlyn, you truly shocked everyone on the night of Bach to Rock. Besides that, you are one of the smartest kid I know and so sweet towards everyone. I love your attitude towards orchestra and your willingness to constantly improve. For you buddy, I leave this purple spiral hair tie so that you can freaking move your hair back each time before you play violin.

Malory - Oh Malory, such a quiet and sweet girl. The joy you brought to orchestra this year, alongside Sam, was truly unmatched. You’ve grown immensely this year in your musical skill and it really showed. I hope you and Sam continue to take orchestra throughout the years in order to bring the fun and energy that is needed each year. For you, I leave behind my old bow which you’ve been using for the majority of this year and never gave back even when you said you would countless times. Like seriously, just keep it at this point. 

Sam - (in a high wailing voice) SAMMY POOOOO ILL MISS YOUUUU. The laughter and endless jokes you brought throughout the year has been so joyful and I’m glad you decided to continue on from symphonic strings in order to experience the world of chamber. Just like the others, your growth this year was noticeable, even if you haven’t noticed it yourself. I really hope you and Malory take orchestra again next year, or at least consider it because it wouldn’t be the same without you guys. For you, I leave behind this box of tickle tacs so that you can share it with the orchestra on my behalf. (remember, you need 2 for maximum flavor)

Elise - You are one of the greatest bakers and multi-talented people I know. The positivity you brought to the orchestra alongside the treats you’ve brought on several occasions is truly remarkable and will never be forgotten. You are so incredibly sweet and determined, and I’m excited to see how much you’ll grow in orchestra these next years. For you, I leave behind these cute oven mitts I used to use so that they remind you of me every time you bake.

FIRST VIOLIN:

Jessie - To yarm, zaby, phrog, yassica, and any other silly nicknames we’ve called you this year, zommy and zaddy will miss you so dearly. I am so incredibly grateful that I got to know you these past 2 school years because I would’ve never imagined how intelligent and loving of a person you are. Although you’re basically professional-grade right now, I’m so excited to see where you’ll end up in the future because it is just so bright and filled with opportunities for you. Never give up on your dreams because zommy and zaddy will be watching you from spirit and we larve you so so much! For you my child, I leave behind this small claw clip because you always look so cute with your hair done! The curls be curling.

Izzy - GLIZZY (cue the open mouth thing we do when we greet each other) the whole orchestra is gonna miss you man especially since you’re going on foreign exchange next year. Your dedication to the orchestra is truly outstanding and the responsibility you took on this year is mindblowing. Although you constantly had a lot on your plate, you still showed up to orchestra ready and prepared which is remarkable. I hope you have lots of fun in Thailand and that you keep the orchestra updated on our discord! Finally for you, I leave a picture of this glizzy so that you’re always reminded of the legendary nickname I gave you.

Thus concludes all the goodbye’s that I needed to say to every member of the Chamber Orchestra. Oh wait I forgot Mr. Harrison hehehaha silly. Mr. H, throughout all the difficult times this orchestra has been through, you always showed leadership and perseverance when needed and that is what makes the music program so great. Working together as a team under the guidance of an energetic and passionate conductor is what motivates students to continue orchestra throughout their highschool years, and it would never be the same without you. On behalf of the Chamber Orchestra and CDA Charter’s music program, we thank you for all the work and effort you put into every performance and rehearsal that has taken place thus far. 

Last Will and Testament of Julian Conigliaro

It's been a long ride. In 6th grade, I came to Charter, eyes bright, unused to homework, and looking forward to all the learning that would happen. Here I am, 7 years later, a time unfathomable to 6th grade me. To say that these past 7 years have been easy would be untrue, but to say that they have not been worth it would be even more untrue. And a large part of what has made the past 7 years of torturous homework assignments, chapter surveys, and works cited pages worth it is the music department and Mr. Harrison. So, in order to really set the tone of my will, let me say thank you first and foremost to Mr. Harrison. Also, I would like to apologize for my excessive verbosity. It is, unfortunately, something that I am sure he has gotten used to over the years, in addition to some of the bitter truths I share, often against the will of those around me.

To me, orchestra has always been about the community. Even when I had no friends in 6th and 7th grade, I always had the orchestra family and our unwavering patriarch, Senor Gonzalez. And even when I did make my friends later on in my school career, they were through the band program. The upperclassmen that I met served as constant inspiration for me, and I can only hope to have had a similar impact on those who read this. An amazing thing about Charter is how easily freshman and middle schoolers can become friends with juniors and seniors, and I hope that all of the underclassmen reading this will try to cultivate meaningful relationships with those of all ages in the school. Only reflecting back recently have I realized the amazing impact that mentors in the band program have had on me, so I hope you all can appreciate them more than I ever could.

Now I suppose I should move on to the part that everyone came here for. I will preface this with the fact that I am awful at giving gifts. So, instead of physical keepsakes to remember me by that you will cherish forever, I will give you words of wisdom from an 18 year old. I know, exactly what you wanted.

Symphonic Strings:

To the cello section,

Thank you for letting me harass all of you about banana thumb and your awful practice habits. To you, I gift a mirror to always look at your posture and a drive for competition. Just ask Mr. Harrison to tell you about the ring of fire that existed when I was in 7th grade. Although cutthroat, competing for stamps was a super fun part of symphonic strings for me and I hope that you can continue to carry that on in future endeavors.

The the basses,

Thank you for not being too upset at me after I ignored you while working with the cellos. You guys are super solid and impressive. Keep up the good work and good vibes.

To the upper strings,

As a cellist, I am intrinsically predisposed to disliking all violin and viola players. However, you are a group of talented and driven musicians, so it is impossible for me to completely dislike you :) (make sure to read out the smiley face so that they know I am joking). To you, I gift tuners and shoulder rests that won’t fall off. I hope they serve you well.

To Symphonic Strings as a whole,

Thank you for letting me participate in your group this year. I know I can be overbearing and harshly nitpicky, so thank you for accepting the challenge and working with me and Harrison to create awesome music. For everyone, I recommend the use of a metronome and listening to professional classical musicians. It’s crazy how much listening to a click and people who are really good at their instruments can help your playing.

Now for specifics, 

To Gracie,

You are an extremely talented musician. Anyone who listens to you play can tell you that. My advice to you is to stick with cello even if you hate it sometimes. There is something amazing about our instrument that speaks to the soul and teaches us amazing things, and I hope that you can maintain a desire to play.

To Seaton,

I am so sad that I wasn’t able to get to know you more this year in Chamber. Keep up the good work. To you, I leave my characteristic Conigliaro confidence. Use it wisely as you infuse the cello section with strength. I know you can do it.

To Izzy,

Wow, you are so talented. I remember learning last year that you were a really solid pianist and now you play viola too! While I can’t approve of the latter instrument choice too much, it's clear that you love music and that you give a lot to the Charter music program. To you, I gift the ability to say no. You are way too nice sometimes, so I hope you will exercise this ability to shun annoying people and opportunities that you don’t want. Use it wisely.

To Little Morozov,

You are crazy. For real. I don’t know what to say. I’m sure you could give me a lot more musical advice than I could for you, so instead I gift you luck in your future pursuits. Whatever happens, I know that you have the capabilities to pursue whatever you want from both your substantial reserves of hard work and talent. Congratulations on all you have accomplished and I look forward to seeing you in the headlines soon.

To Sammy Garn,

To you I gift the ability to listen to authority sometimes. As a snotheaded 5 year old myself, I recognize the impulse to dismiss others who presume to know more than you. I can already tell you are learning to listen to others and have transformed from an unbearable little craphead (say shit if you want Harrison) into a likable, talented person that I am lucky to call friend. Thanks for lightening the mood during 3rd period and always taking a little bit of my lotus (I’m not actually thankful for that you punk).

To Nolan,

Thank you for skipping school to go skiing. To you, I leave the rightful title of “Head Bungler”, as is very well deserved. Keep up the bunglage. Thanks for being an amazing friend and kind soul.

And to Henry,

Despite what might be inferred from your diminutive proportions, you have had a colossal impact on my life. Every day, you inspire me with your dedication, talent, and kindness. I know for sure that you will find success in whatever endeavors you set out on and that everyone you have ever met will be cheering for you. Thanks for being a friend to me even when I am the most dislikable person on this planet. Even when I’m a butthead, you never reciprocate. Even when I take all of your folders out of your backpack, you don’t retaliate harshly. Even when we bore you to death by talking about food during the entire lunch period, you never left our table. Thanks for being a patient, intelligent person who enriches the lives of those around you. My life will never be the same because of you. To you, I leave something you already have: a desire to aim high. No matter how difficult, I hope that you will look for opportunities that will enrich your life, even if they are challenging. Once again, thank you for everything. I can’t wait to see what you do in life.

Finally, to Mr. Harrison,

I don’t know how you do it. I really don’t. You single handedly give an amazing, loving, challenge accepting, community to hundreds. Thank you for being an inspiration in my life and showing what someone who loves their work looks like and for all the incredible memories. From nerf guns, to suspiciously cult-like rituals, and stories of Senor Gonzalez and fun faucets, our time together has been incredibly memorable. My life has been enriched by an unknowable, yet incredibly significant, amount, and I owe a large measure of my success to you. I don’t want to repeat myself, so I will leave it at this: your love for music and education is contagious, thanks for making music and all of its gifts available to so many.

And with that, I guess goodbye to everyone. Thank you for making my years at Charter memorable and giving me something to look forward to everyday. I know Charter isn’t for everybody, but it has been an incredible experience for me. No matter where you all end up, I wish you the best of luck.

Sincerely, 

Julian Conigliaro

Last Will and Testament of Abigail Stephens

I'm not the best at writing my feelings down, so please forgive me as you read this. I think I tend to express myself a lot better through actions and impromptu/random splurges of words, and I hope I have done enough to show my love and appreciation for all of you. But here goes:

The Final Will and Testament of Abigail Stephens

JACOB,

Or shall I say Mr. Bass (pronounced like your instrument)? Do keep in mind that I came up with that, not Stephanie, so please don't mistake her for the creative one in this instance (I thought I was very funny and pretty genius when I came up with it, so I am pretty proud of it). Anyway, it has been amazing getting to know you for the past few years. Your dedication and practice really shine through in our orchestra. You remind me of a certain bassist I used to know when I was in middle school because you both have so much energy when you play (especially when there's choreography involved). Your excitement is praiseworthy and I hope you continue to play just as powerfully and passionately for the rest of your time in music. For you, I will a very cool smiley face because it reminded me of you. I hope you continue to bring fun and energy to the bass section and the rest of the orchestra.

KEIRA,

You are unbelievably talented! Underneath your quiet facade, there is a ferocious musician. I am glad to say I have seen that side of you whenever you play jazz. It is amazing to see you play so outwardly. It has been amazing to watch you step out of your comfort zone in the Hot Club as well as in our orchestra. I am very proud to say that I could hear you from across the sections! I wish we had talked more because you are such a cool person. For you, I will my fake positivity plants. I remember when I was your Secret Santa and I didn’t know you very well at the time, so I had to ask other people what you liked, Gracie said you loved plants so I gave you a flower, and I know that that flower is in better hands now (I would have killed it within a few days…). You are so sweet and so kind, and I’m pretty sure that plants grow better when they hear kind words, so I thought this was a fitting gift for you. Instead of you telling your plants kind words, these plants can tell you kind words and positive outlooks. Never forget to smile!

CHRISTIAN,

You are crazy talented! I love seeing your smile as you play your bass and guitar. I have no doubt that you are going to make it big no matter where life takes you. Your dedication and hard work are admirable. I loved seeing your love for music throughout this year. I know you will make a great leader in the orchestra! I hope you continue to play expressively and help others out of their comfort zones as well. I can’t wait to see what you will accomplish. For you, I will two of my key chains. I love and cherish my key chains, so I hope you’ll take good care of these. For some reason, these two give off Christian vibes, so I thought they were perfect.

SEATON,

You are absolutely amazing! You have grown so much and I am beyond excited to see your future because I know you will continue to work and strive for improvement. You are going to be such an amazing cellist and the Chamber Orchestra is lucky to have you. Also, thank you for sticking around with the Marine Science Club and for being excited about it every week. I will really miss your energy and constant knowledge. I also had so much fun with you at state solo and ensemble this year! Thank you for putting up with all of my shenanigans and for letting me do my skincare routine with you. For you, I will this wooden sculpture of dolphins because I didn’t have a sea otter one. I hope you continue to wonder and continue to grow.

GRACIE,

I have watched you grow up from a tiny five-year-old to the beautiful young lady you are now and it has been a wonderful experience to get to see your growth as a human being and as a musician. You bring so much to our orchestra with your ability to communicate with everyone and your amazing disposition as a musician. I remember a few particular memories with you in the last few years that have left an impression on me. I remember when you were in first or second grade and got to play with Lindsey Sterling, I was so upset that Harrison had not asked me to play with her (because I was literally playing and dancing to two of her songs at the time…) and I was very jealous of you. Now, I realize that I was being petty and childish, it is such an amazing opportunity for other people to have. I am glad that you got to meet her and experience the wonders of performing on stage at such a young age (hey that rhymes!). I also remember last year at state solo and ensemble when Harrison was wandering the halls on a call with you and he saw me and shoved his phone into my hand and basically ran away (for some reason?). I felt so privileged and loved by not only Harrison but also by you. It felt amazing to have such a nice conversation with you at midnight. I think that goes to show that I will miss our conversations and that I am so glad that I have been able to know you for so long. For you, I will a massive roll of fuzzy yarn. I know that you will find something fun to do with it, plus it's fluffy so why wouldn’t you want it? P.S. I know that you already have access to my (Harrison’s) IPad, but I would like to ceremoniously give my fingerprint spot to you, meaning that you now have the important task of taking attendance and playing the tuning note. I know that you will use this power for the good of the orchestra.

GABBY,

I have loved getting to know you this past year. You have so much energy and you never fail to bring a smile to my face, thank you. You are so fun and I have no doubt that you will continue to kill it on the viola. I don’t have anything tangible to will you, but I do have something else for you. I now dub you Gabriella “Dynamics” Hill! You are officially in charge of keeping the orchestra in check (when I visit there better be so much dynamic change). I’ve appreciated your amazing answer to my question “What is my middle name?!” for the last year and now I am proud to pass on this middle name to you. Use it well!

KARSTEN,

You are LOUD! But trust me, the violas have needed someone like you for a very long time, and I’m very proud to have been in an orchestra where the violas were told to be quieter multiple times. You are so eager to excel and shine, and I honestly wish I was more like you. You play so passionately and excitedly, and you never fail to bring energy and laughter to our orchestra. I hope you continue to be bright and I hope you become a beacon of light for those who need more sunshine in their lives or for those who wish to smile a bit more. For you, I will every single viola joke there is (whenever you hear or think of a viola joke, that is me telling it to you, I sent it to you via the universe). I also would like to give a job to you (that means you have to stay at Charter for high school). I officially give you the job of saying “from the top…” (“make it drop” - everyone else). I hope that you can continue to influence the orchestra for the better for the rest of your time here.

ALEXA,

I am so glad that you decided to stick with orchestra this year. I know that you had a million other things to do, what with college classes, preparing for college applications, and all of the Charter add-ons that do nothing but stress you out. I'm so happy that you took time out of your busy schedule to continue attending class and all of our concerts. I love your quiet dedication and constant presence. Also, I’m really sorry for the whole mixup at state, I hope that next year will be free of any bumps (and forgotten luggage) and that you’ll have a peaceful time down there. I really hope that you can continue with the orchestra next year and hold up the fort as the only senior. For you, I will a notebook and pen because, trust me, there will be a lot of planning needed for senior stuff, so a way to organize everything is nice.

ELISE,

You are the cutest ever! I love seeing you play because I can see your dedication and hard work and love. Chamber Orchestra is difficult, and I’m so glad that you stayed strong and decided to challenge yourself with us this past year. I am also very happy (although sometimes I feel jealous) that you are Dallin’s swimmer sister. It always makes me so happy to see you smile, and I’m glad that my brother gets to be around you to experience the joy that radiates off of you. I hope you continue to work hard and I hope you find music as rewarding as I have. For you, I will a box of cupcakes. I have always loved and been jealous of your baking skills. I bought them, so you don’t have to worry about them tasting bad…

SAM,

You have been an absolute blast to be around. I have had so much fun with you and I am really going to miss our bickering. So much laughter has stemmed from you and I am very grateful to have you in our orchestra. Although my neck always hurts after talking to you, I don’t think I’ve ever regretted doing so. For you, I will Kim Kardashian because we made her together and I expect her to stay in your folder for the rest of your time in orchestra. I also am willing you a toy car because I’m too broke to get you a real one like you asked me to.

MALLORY,

First off, an apology: I’m so sorry I made you cry all those years ago, I was probably too harsh on you as a sixth grader. And I’m sorry you were prepared to hate me at the beginning of this year. But I’m so glad you changed your mind! I have loved having you in orchestra. You are so fun and creative. You never fail to make the entire orchestra laugh. I think you should continue to shout “other” for the rest of your life because there is no truer answer to every question. For you, I will a frog because I have noticed that throughout this year, you have used more and more bow. It makes me so proud that you have grown and have started using your full bow (even if it wasn’t technically your bow). It would be awesome if you had this frog with you in class and could stroke it whenever Harrison mentioned using more bow. I know you will make an amazing leader and a musician to look up to.

ASHLYN,

I absolutely love hanging out with you! Over this past year, it has been amazing to get to know you through orchestra and during our free third period. You are so smart and so talented. I can’t wait to see what the future has in store for you. I hope you continue to play out, loud and proud. I know that you are going to continue to be a great leader in the orchestra. I’m rooting for you! For you, I will a sort of embroidered hear that I made. I’m not super artistic, so hopefully you can tell what it is when it stands alone.

AMIAH,

You are so amazing. I have never seen a child so dedicated and prepared as you are. You are a true inspiration for me, and I’m sure for others as well. You have been a constant reminder of who I used to be, and you give me hope for the future because I plan on being like you from now on. I’m so glad you loved I’m Fine as much as I did, thank you for giving me a second chance when others wouldn’t. For you, I will a crown because you are an absolute queen and I just know you are going to reign over all of the other musicians one day. I’m excited to see that.

IZZY,

Ever since you first joined Chamber it has been one thing after the other, and don’t get me wrong, I am really proud of you for taking on everything at once what with jazz, orchestra, rosinance, pit orchestra, and teaching the sixth graders, but I am glad that you will have a year of (hopefully) really fun new experiences outside of just the Charter music program. I hope Thailand serves you well and that it’ll be a nice break from the chaos that is Charter. You have been an astounding musician, and I hope you continue to love music as much as you do now. For you, I will my old and very destroyed piece of rosin. I remember you saying how much you hated how I created a canal in my rosin, so I saved it just for you (and I promise I didn’t break it on purpose, that kind of just happened). Also, since it is small it won’t take up much space in your luggage if you decide to bring your violin to Thailand. P.S. I very much expect some pictures of cute Thai boys when you’re down there, so you better not forget.

JESSIE,

Where do I even start? You are my child (my Zaby), so how can I put into words the amount of love I have for you? I guess I’ll start by saying that you are my favorite child. I am so happy that we have become such great friends. What would I do without you in orchestra? Honestly, this year has been ten times more fun because you have been my stand partner for most of the year. I’m very happy that I wasn't the “stereotypical first violinist” as Julian once said because otherwise I never would have grown to love you as I do now. You are the most talented person I know. I know that you are going to make it big (despite how small you are), and I know that you are going to inspire future musicians for the rest of your life. You are such a light in a dark world. I am eternally grateful for the smile you share with the world and the smile you bring out in me. You are so incredibly amazing, and I want you to know that I love you so much. For you, I will a massive bag of candy for a few different reasons. One, because you are the sweetest little human being that ever walked this earth. Two, because I always find it so fun/funny whenever you eat sugar and get the zoomies. And three, so I am your favorite parent, though possibly the most irresponsible.

HARRISON,

I’m going to try to tell you how much I love you (but I don’t think I’ll be able to do that), so in case that doesn’t work I think you know me well enough to fill in these blank lines: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________.

No singular person outside of my family has ever made such a massive and distinct impression on me. You have influenced my life beyond words (but like I said, I’ll give it a try). Music, especially in the orchestral setting, has become a point of healing and community that I desperately needed. It was you that made me stay at Charter these past seven years, and so it is thanks to you that I have had the opportunity to challenge myself academically and socially. You made me realize that music is the language of the soul and can be spoken universally. It has shaped who I am as a person, and as much as I hate being labeled as “Abi the Violinist”, I can’t deny that I am a musician and I am not afraid to share that talent with the world. These past eight years with you have been instrumental (haha) in my development as a person and as a musician. You have been my safe place and confidant in times of hardship and trial, my source of inspiration in times of boredom, and my source of joy every single day. It is so hard to say goodbye, but I can promise you that the music you have taught me and helped me learn to love will never leave, and that I will continue to play and to share what you have given me with those around me. For you, I don’t exactly have anything to will to you, but I do have something I will do: I promise that I will finally buy Tonal Tuner like you have been asking me to do for the past six years.

Last Will and Testament of Shire Conlan Engle

I, Shire Conlan Engle, of Spirit Lake, ID, declare this to be my Will, and I revoke all Wills and Codicils previously made by me.

Article 1: Declarations

Marital Status - As of the date of this Will, I am unmarried

• Children - As of the date of this Will, I have 8 children, namely: Helen Oyler, Garrett Heaton, Ethan Madrid, Garrett Johnson, Abigail Johnson, Miles Taylor, Isaac Hines, and Samuel Garn. All references in this Will to “My Children” are to them. In addition, all references in this Will to “My Issue” are to My Children and to all of their respective descendants.

Article II: Executor Provisions

A. Executor - I nominate my friend Michael Harrison to serve as Executor of my estate and to carry out the instructions in this Will.

Article IV: Gifts at Death

• I give to my child Garrett Johnson all of my interest in My very first flute. Gold plated and detailed. If, however, Garrett Johnson fails to survive me, this gift shall lapse

• I give to my child Abigail Johnson all of my interest in My Ukelele. If, however, Abigail Johnson fails to survive me, this gift shall instead be distributed to Abigail Johnson’s descendants who survive me by right of representation, or if no such descendants survive me, this gift shall lapse.

• I give to my child Ethan Madrid all of my interest in My sincere admiration and adoration. If, however, Ethan Madrid fails to survive me, this gift shall instead be distributed to Ethan Madrid’s descendants who survive me by right of representation, or if no such descendants survive me, this gift shall lapse.

• I give to my child Helen Oyler all of my interest in My most prized possession (Unopened, mint condition, 1st Edition, Wario Amiibo). If, however, Helen Oyler fails to survive me, this gift shall instead be distributed to Helen Oyler’s descendants who survive me by right of representation, or if no such descendants survive me, this gift shall lapse.

• I give to my child Isaac Hines all of my interest in A wet willy. If, however, Isaac Hines fails to survive me, this gift shall instead be distributed to Isaac Hines’s descendants who survive me by right of representation,

• I give to my child Garrett Heaton all of my interest in €5. If, however, Garrett Heaton fails to survive me, this gift shall instead be distributed to Garrett Heaton’s descendants who survive me by right of representation, or if no such descendants survive me, this gift shall lapse.

• I give to my child Miles Taylor all of my interest in €10. If, however, Miles Taylor fails to survive me, this gift shall instead be distributed to Miles Taylor’s descendants who survive me by right of representation, or if no such descendants survive me, this gift shall lapse.

• I give to my child Samuel Garn all of my interest in 0 euros. (Sorry Sam, I subtracted €1 from a pool of €10,000 every time you played out of turn. Coulda had a good chunk of your college paid for buddy...In fact, I think you owe me.)

Funeral Wishes & Instructions for Shire Conlan Engle
Designation of agent(s): I designate the agent(s) below to be responsible for carrying out my instructions regarding my funeral and final resting place.

My First Choice is Michael Harrison.

My wishes for my funeral service are:

I want to be attached to a burning motorcycle and sent toward Spokane because screw Spokane.

My wishes for my body and final resting place are: Spokane

Personal Statement for Shire Conlan Engle

I have spent many years in this wonderful program, and it wasn't until after graduation that I truly understood how much it meant to me. Mr. Harrison and Charter as a whole provided me with the best memories and friends a man could want. These ‘Old Ties and Companions’ will forever be cherished in my heart as the golden days that I spent with my favorite people. This program gave me a family away from home. This program had people I loved more than myself. I would sacrifice anything to go back and do it all again. We made such beautiful music, from Aztec Fire to El Camino Real; from March of the Irish Dragoons to Arabesque. Music is so integral to the human race, and to my happiness as a man. Making it with you all was such an honor. I love seeing the torch being passed on to the younger generation of musicians, It’s what music is all about

Michael Harrison, I will forever be in debt to you. I will never forget that time you discreetly gave me breathe mints before I had my first kiss with a girl. It’s these moments that I will remember until the day I lay dying. We fought hard sometimes. There were moments when I wanted to give you a piece of my mind. But in the end, you are my hero. I have never looked up to anyone more. Your leadership skills are beyond that of anyone I’ve ever encountered in my time, and you inspire me like no other. I hope that you understand the impact you have on the lives of the kids you teach, they will never forget you. You did right by us every step of the way, no matter how idiotic we were or how hard times got. Your perseverance has had an effect on me and my life. While it’d be a stretch to say you’re the reason I moved to a foreign place to give life a real shot, you definitely inspired me to do what I love to no avail. You have helped cement music into my soul, and I will keep playing music until my hands no longer work, and every time I do, I’ll think of you. I am sorry for not doing my chop, or my smartmusic, and for being late to jazz, but life goes on. Thank you again for everything you did for us, and thank you for being a superior role model. How else was I supposed to learn bad words? Love ya man. (I won’t read this out loud because I will cry.)

This past summer of 2022 has been incredible. It gave me a ton of time to just think. Thank you guys so much for every moment of laughter, every moment of awe, and everything in between. I will miss everything here in America, but I will miss you guys the most. I love each and every one of you guys, take it easy on Mr. Harrison, and remember that Charter is what you make of it, so make your time the best it can be.

Final Will and Testament of Shane Neirincxk

It’s weird to think I’ve been in this thing for over a third of my life now.  I’ve been a part of many groups but none of them even come close to sharing the same level of wacky camaraderie which can be found in Cpt. Harrison’s rag-tag crew.  Even though it has been roughly seven years since the first time I picked up an instrument at the Petting Zoo, it feels like yesterday; and yet, I’ve been a part of countless band concerts and cult initiations (which is something I never thought I’d do), and I am even a founding member of The Stompers and the North Idaho Jazz Institute; lol.  For these memories which I am forever scarred, I thank all of you.  I hope you all realize that you are a part of something special that you cannot find anywhere else on the planet; so you should savor the time you have left in the band program (and practice your parts).

Now…*cough* *cough* (read in the language of old (and some French)(and you’re welcome for not putting this in a fancy font))→) iT is tIMe foR ThE oRNameNTS of mY rEIgN WHiCH I sHAll iMPaRt unTO Thee WitH tHIne PasSinG… 

First, to MY GREAT APPRENTICE Ethan Madrid:

When yee first approached thine self twa years ago, it is not a fallacy that I begrudgingly believed yee were an abundance of toasty rrrrubbish, but since those wretched times, your relentless resolve has reshaped my previous judgments.  Yee have thoroughly impressed thee for several fortnights, and I do believe you are now worthy to become my successor.  To you, I bestow my respect and the soul pride de ‘La Clarinette Section.’  Ye shan’t let the spirits of your forefathers hellbound.

Jessalynn Adams:

Although I was previously unaware of your existence for much of ye’r time spent in the dungeons of Percussia, I truly believe yee has the presence of God on your side.  After all, “a wheel with such constitution which is also not squeaky does not need to squeak because it is not broken.”  You are truly a part of the greater confounds of the machine which keeps this endless journey moving hastily onward.  To you, I give thee what little grace I possess.

Edmund Bardwell:

Fallen from Olympus–charading as some mortal being, I cannot understand how someone can be so tiny yet so pungent.  “Keep living dans onze.”  To you, I relinquish my ability to sound at the highest decimals one can achieve.

Chloe Bird:

I know what you have done… Je ne raconterai pas d'histoires mais crois-moi...je sais.

The Trumpet Section:

Joseph Emehiser, Isaac Hines, and Garrett Heaton… Although yee nay have the stature of Atlas, I pray so that you keep reliably holding ye’r section much like you do thine world and all’s balanced in the universe–just do not let the consummation of pride get the better of yee like many trumpeters have.  To ye, I gift what little riches I have to offer after purchasing the university student status: -0 quid.

  The Stompers:

It may sound quite perplexing, but I have not much to say to thee.  I believe we are bound by the strings of fate and being in Le Pientineurs, I shan’t make this a farewell.  Considering we possess the season to perform even more than in previous times, this shall be the birth of something much greater.  I bestow thee with the hope that Monsieur Harisson will purchase un sousaphone, and I also bestow unto thee the will to execute the competition at next year's Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival in the most righteous combo group to date.   

The Saxophone Section:

Sam Garn, Patrick OCallaghan, Shaunessy Neirinckx, and Lucas Witherwax… Although you all confuse thine divine self to the highest of heavens, I wish you all nothing but the greatest.  I gift thee my ability to transpose, my will to practice, and the ability to seek only the best equipment for your saxophones.

Nolan Oyler:

I gift thee the ability to surpass sir Caleb and his lethal, treacherous trombone sounds.  For Tartaru’s sake, I implore thee not to make a weapon of such an instrument by going even further and beyond, but I hope you will surpass him by tuning immaculately and blending with the ensemble.

Skyler Gessner:

I can tell you hold much knowledge and technological wizardry at your very fingertips.  Also being the future of the horn section, I gift to you the ability to show more of your strange videos on YouTube Fridays.

Flute Gang:

Garrett Johnson, my dearest apologies.  I believe Abigail Johnson to be a wolf in sheep's clothing who may turn to be some sort of Edridge atrocity.  If ye’r soul hath not been consumed by the time of this reading, then it is imperative yee must seek refuge immediately.  To yee both, I gift the ability to deal push-ups to violators of the posture and noodling standard. Use this power wisely but also for the love of all that is holy please utilize it. 

Last but certainly not least…Lily Wessels and Alyssa Robinson:

Yee have been a part of the greatest clarinet crew I could have asked for.  Yee both have come such a long way but please never stop ye’r lust and yearn for power.  A place to begin your journeys in my absence can be found in the wisdom that has been passed on from generation to generation throughout the clarinet sections of old.  Please heed these words extremely carefully.  Ethan Madrid shall carefully inscribe these words onto a manuscript as Cpt. Harrison reads them to ensure the safety and preservation of these words: “I do not permit doing cocaine but sometimes you have to make Giant Steps if you want to catch the Coltrain.”  I have abridged these words for the sake of vanity, but I am sure you both understand.  When the time cometh where yee hast to smith yee’r own wills, you may add to these wise words–Ethan too.    

Thanks Harrison for changing my life for the better.  I hope you don’t mind me hanging around your class on my days off.  See you around.

Final Will and Testament of Emma Bird

I, Emma Bird, being of sound mind and body write my last will and testament. 

I will begin by addressing the band as a whole before breaking down and talking about different sections and people. 

The Band

To the band that I have played with since the 9th grade. You are all amazing people with the skills to push beyond the boundaries of Coeur d’Alene Charter Academy. I want you all to know that I wish you the best of luck with finishing your time at charter and wherever you go beyond, and I hope that you remember the lessons and skills learned throughout your time in band. Staying in music throughout high school is not an easy task. Sometimes there seem to be bigger and better things to do, but let me warn you, there is no family out there like your band family. Do not make a rash decision to leave music behind only to realize later that you made a mistake. Mr. Harrison has made a family in the band, and the family takes care of each other, remember that. Now that I have addressed you all as a group, I will continue to the different sections of the band.

The Sections 

To the Flutes, I want to give you the power of noise. You are one of the loudest sections if you want to be and not that it will just be the two of you next year I want to hear from Mr. Harrison that you are pushing the boundaries of dynamics. It has been so much fun to watch and listen to the competitions and jokes played by Shire on you guys. I truly hope that you will continue the tradition that Shire has put into play. 

To the Clarinets, I want to give you the gift of confidence. This year you will be losing a big part of your section and I want you to know that it is okay to play confidently even if you aren’t. You are an important part of the band and no piece of music that we ever play would sound right if you are a part of it. So play like no one is watching, and never let the fear of being wrong control you. Let your confidence shine. 

To the Saxophones (Soprano, Alto, Tenor, and Bari), I give the gift of silence. The saxophone can make beautiful music when played correctly, but more amazing is silence. It is okay to be quiet sometimes and it is not necessary to always have your mouth running or playing on your phone. There will always be a reputation of the sax section of being the troublemakers, but I want to challenge you to try to go against the reputation and be different. 

To the Trumpets, to you, I have nothing to give but to tell you to never change. As a section, you can all play with confidence and volume, and that is something I hope you never lose. I loved sitting in front of you and listening to the younger members grow. Never lose that spark for music, nor the willingness to have fun as a section. I know that you all will go far in your music.

To the lonely French Horn. Skylar, I want to give you the position of being the first chair French horn. You will be the only one next year you had been in this band before so the responsibility to teach, and guide the next generation falls to you. I give to you the first chair not only because you will be the most experienced next year, but also because you earned it. I have watched you grow in your music and I know you will succeed in the French horn. Never let the younger kids coming up even have a chance at your chair. Fight, win and succeed in everything you do. 

To the Trombones, I want to give you the gift of pitch. I know that the trombone is a hard instrument to stay in tune with, but I want to give you a little more of a chance to hit that note just right and as a section soars above the band with beautiful music. Never forget how powerful it can be to have a good toning note.

To the Tubas, I give you the power of the on beats. You are powerful as a section and one of your most important roles is to keep time for the band. I wish you the strength to make the on beats so loud that the band has no choice but to follow you. You are the backbone of the band and we need you, but remember with great power comes great responsibility. 

To Percussion, I give you the gift of multiplying. The percussion section seemed so lonely this year with only two, sometimes three, percussionists, and I want to see the percussion section grow. I always love to hear how a piece of music can be changed by the percussion section. Without you, music would be plain and bland. I hope that you will be able to grow the section and find more people to have in Percussia next year. 

Now comes the time that I need to address each and every member of my band family, you are all important to me and I want to make sure that you all feel the love that I have for you. 

To Abigail, you have made me laugh by watching Shire push you to be the best flute player you can be. Never let anyone push you around and never be afraid of playing the hard solos. You are going places. 

To Garret J, I have enjoyed seeing how you have grown as a musician, and take on the difficult instrument of the piccolo. I know that Shire is leaving the band in good hands with you taking care of the piccolo parts. 

To Ethan, you are being left in charge of the clarinet section and that is a great responsibility. Guide the younger children, don’t bully, but push them to become the best that they can be. Also, maybe try playing the bass clarinet sometimes, a good leader should be willing to do what he is asking others to do. 

To Lily, I want you to take over the first chair. I know that you have the skills to push Ethan off the throne of first chair and it is your time. I want to hear next year that you have taken the challenge I laid before you and won. Life is a race, win it. 

To Alyssa, I know that speaking in front of people can be stressful and I understand that. I was in a very similar situation for several years, having panic attacks right before I went to play my solo and never having the courage to speak up in class. But what I have learned in my time in this music program is that the people who play music with you are not going to judge you. Everyone wants you to succeed and no one has a goal to watch you fail. You are a good clarinet player and I can’t wait to see where you will grow in your time at Charter. 

To Sam, I’m not sure what I can say. You and I have butted heads when it comes to music and how a musician should act in a band. What I am hoping that you will remember is that now you will have younger kids looking up to you and coping with what you do. Now might be the time to challenge yourself to be a positive influence in the lives of the musicians that you interact with. 

To Patrick, I have not gotten to know you well because of only being in a band together, but what I have realized is that you are serious about the music that you play. Never let the world around you change how you see the music that you play. 

To Lucas, having only one year in a band is not nearly enough time to get to know someone, but what I can tell you is that you care about music. If you did not care about music then you would not have worked your tail off to make it into this band. Never let that work effort die and always push yourself to become the best musician you can be. 

To Shaunessy, you have loyalty and be a great person to talk to about anything. I have listened to the amazing strength you have to play the tenor saxophone and I hope that you keep with it. Never forget the courage it takes to take that first step into the world of solos and to push yourself beyond your limits. 

To Garret H, I have enjoyed having you play in the French horn section and listening to you rock out on the trumpet. It is amazing to watch you take on a difficult solo without fear and by the time it comes to performing it, it is amazing. I have no doubt that you will go far in the music world if that is what you want to do. Never lose the strength you have in dynamics and the courage to make a mistake proudly. I know that you will be a great leader for the trumpet section and I can’t wait until you get your black belt and make a mark on Charter music history. 

To Pius, you are a silent giant in the trumpet section. You are one of the people who will let the freshmen know that they can have fun around you, but when it comes time to play music it is all professional. I have enjoyed sitting in front of you and learning how powerful you can be in a section when you put your mind to it. Never change and embrace the power of the trumpet. 

To Issac, I am not sure what the change was in the second semester of school, but you went from a quiet boy to a young man who wanted to make other people laugh. Even as I am writing this I can think of the jokes you have told me and I start laughing all over again. Music can have a part of that laughter and I hope that one day you will find a way to make people laugh with music. Don’t stop playing trumpet and pushing yourself. 

To Joey, I have had a hard time figuring you out. I know that you are a great trumpet player who is not afraid to play a solo that is a challenge, but what I don’t know is how you are going to make your mark on the band. There comes a time in every musician’s life when they have a chance to do something or say something, that the band will remember forever. Joey when that time comes make sure to not let it pass you by. 

To Skylar, you are now the last French horn in the section. You are going to be in charge of having sectionals, working with the younger kids, and having loud enough dynamics that Mr. Harrison will want you to not play so loud. It will be hard, but you are now the person that the French horns will look up to and I have confidence that you will show the next generation of musicians how cool it is to be a French horn. Never give up and don’t let anyone take the first chair spot from you. Push yourself and see where you can go. 

To Nolan, don’t lose the volume in the trombone section now that Caleb is graduating. Having one less person in a section can make a big difference in how the section sounds, and now it is your turn to take the place of section leader. Get your black belt, challenge those in your section and never let someone take your chair. 

To Eddie, you have impressed me with the skill that you have with the trombone, and I know that the challenge is to make it in this band before making it to high school. Never stop challenging yourself, and the world will be open to you. I can see that you will go far in this world of music, and I want to see you play a state-level solo next year. Push yourself and never give up. 

To Miles, you are a person that many people look up to, including me. I had never given a thought to what it takes to be a conductor until I saw you conduct American Overture and I saw that something that Mr. Harrison makes look so effortless can be a challenge. I fully expect you to one day become a famous conductor and tuba player, and whatever you do in the future make sure to put the same amount of effort into it as you do in your music and you will succeed. Keep playing, and stay the course. 

To my dear little sister, Chloe, you are a wonderful person to have as a sister. I know that this year has been a challenge for you, but you have made it. You are in Wind Ensemble and you have not given up. That is one of the greatest accomplishments that you can have! I know that you can play music at home because the windows rattle when you practice, but I want you to have the courage to show the band how much power resides in you. Us Bird girls might be small, but we are mighty, and never let the band forget that! Keep playing and become the best Tuba player you can be. 

To Henry, I see so much skill in you. You have gone from a quiet little boy who would play percussion instruments to a young man not afraid to play three solos at once. I know that you will lead the percussion section with skill and kindness, and you are a living example of how sometimes the greatest leader is not the loudest person in the room. Sometimes a great leader is someone who is quiet and will listen to what others have to say. Lead with that great power you have and never give up. 

To Jessalynn, I have had so much fun working in the library with you, and I now have the reassurance that the library will not fall apart in my absence. Now I won’t completely leave you to the library without help, so I will give you my solom promise that I will come back durning holidays an hep you  with anything that you need help with. 

To Mr. Harrison, 

I can remember the first day that I met you at the musical petting zoo in sixth grade. I was so sure that I was going to play cello or bass and never any other instrument, but you knew that there was a French horn player inside of me. Thank you for encouraging me to try a brass instrument and pushing me to go outside my comfort zone. I don’t know where I would be without the encouragement you have given me throughout the seven years I have been here. It has been through my time at charter, and specifically in the band program, that I have grown the most as a human being and I know that I have you to thank. 

It has been a whild journey through my time at Charter and throughout it all I knew that I could alway rely on you to provide something constant in my life. I cannot count how many times that I have been in such a dark place and it was only through the music that we played in band that I was able to pull myself out and start to see the life. When asked during the senior interviews why we keep coming back to band, I inow for me that if I had not continued going to band I would be six feet under the ground, or hiding in my closet crying. The power of music has shown me so much and I am so thankful that you were the one to show me that power. I know that this moment in your life is a hard, dark time, and my only hope is that you will be able to listen to the music played in class and let it take to someplace better. I know that I can never express how grateful I am to have such a wonderful band director and I only hope that if you, or your family, ever need anything that you would reach out and ask. 

Words can not express all that I want to say, and I know that this senior will is silly, but in all seriousness I would never have become the woman that I am today without you and for that I am so thankful. Thank you Mr. Harrison for the time you have spent teaching me and all the music students at Charter. You are more loved than what you might realize and Charter would not be the same without you. Thank you

Final Will and Testament of Sophie Pennings

1. To all the newer players/younger players in the band: You are worthy of being here. Trust Mr. Harrison when he says you are good enough to play in this ensemble. I didn’t believe him for years, but now, looking back, I wasted a lot of stress believing I wasn’t skilled enough. If you are trying, you are doing a good job, and I am proud of you. 

2. To Sam Garn: You are a literal and figurative G and I am glad that the sax section is being passed onto you. You are super chill and an overall good egg. Advice: sit up. Love you bro.

3. To Nolan Oyler: You are also a huge G. You try, you have musical skill, and you are funny as hell. Keep it up and train the future trombone players to be as good as you and Cable. I leave the duty of wreaking general havok and being disruptive to you now that Joe and Cruz and the rest of us are gone. 

4. Trumpets: Listen to Garret. He is talented. (Big hugs Garret. You're a hilarious sweetheart nerd and I'll miss you)

5. Isaac Hines: My god, you are shockingly good at the trumpet. You are gonna do a lot in the future, I can feel it. I have great hopes for you and have had a great time getting to know you a little bit this year. 

6. Shaunessy Nierinckx: It was great getting to sit next to you this year. You are much more normal than Shane, and you can tell him I said so (i love you Shane). Don't be afraid to mess up and know you have real skill. 

7. To the flutes: I expect to see flutist nonsense in future years. You guys have a lot of tomfoolery to complete now that Shire has departed, I wish you luck.   

8. To the french horns: I don't understand your instrument. It's weird and it scares me. 

9. To the general saxes: The saxophone is the easiest instrument in the band to learn. Think about that when other people are playing better than you. 

10. To Mr. Witherwax: Your last name is the coolest last name I have ever heard in my life. I hope you spend everyday trying to live up to that name. I meant it when I said I think you are going to be really good at sax. Keep at it and know that MESSING UP MAKES YOU COOL AND RELATABLE. ( not at a concert tho…learned from experience)

11. Tubas: MILES you are a god. You are kind and funny and very good at music. When you smile, other people smile. Keep teaching the younger generations and growing your section because you can never have too much bass gang. Also, sorry for hitting your car, not a very baller move on my part tbh af.

12. Euphoniums: ???? literally who. 

13. Clarinets: Now is your chance to make the clarinet section cool. I leave this task mainly to Ethan, but also to Lily because I know the nonsense gene runs in your family (see Cable for proof).

14. To the whole band, I have loved playing with you so much. I know this year you saw a lot of senioritis from me, but truly you guys and the band program have been my chosen family for these last seven years. Respect each other, make fun of each other, cause a ruckus, and be dumb. That's what band’s about. If it's not fun, something isn’t right. I love you all, and I mean that. 

 I am also immensely grateful towards Mr. Harrison for believing that I would put in the work to catch up, on multiple occasions. Mr. Harrison is a good conductor and a great man. He will try to be the police of the band and lay down the law, but first and foremost he is your friend. When you respect what he is doing for the band, he will respect you. When you put in half the effort he does, you will be working harder than most. Keep it up and cut everybody some slack: each other, yourself, and Mr. Harrison. We are all learning. That's why we’re at school. 

Forget me if you want, but never forget your band memories. They’re gonna carry you through a lot of your post-thirties angst. 

Gros Bisous,

Sophie Pennings

Tenor Sax & Alto Sax

Final Will and Testament of Sydney Garn

I, Syd Garn, do declare this to be my last will and testament to the Music Programs of Coeur D’Alene Charter Academy.

To Boocus I leave this unknown metal object (he will probably commence his strange giggling once the gift has been bestowed).

To the Youngblud Issaac I leave a belt for usage during his reign as first chair (in the near future).

To Bear I leave these really cool Pokemon card covers.

To Ethan I leave this guitar pick, I have mad respect for you and I will one day get a unicorn tattoo in your honor.

Hank doesn't need any bestowing of items because he is way cooler than me.

To Garrett Heaton I leave that jenga piece, he gets special privileges and has already received his gift. Said jenga piece can assist in receiving divine band revelation daily and lends magical powers to the musician in proximity. 

To Nolan I leave the privilege of wearing my hat and officially decree it as uniform. So let it be written so let it be done.

To Miles I leave the sacred duty of spritzing The Essence of Bassoon Water weekly during the recitation of the creed. 

The Proceedings of Basson water are as follows: Once the creed commences the designated will remove said cup from the chains of purity. He will then flick bassoon essence upon each member of the Wind Ensemble and Chamber Orchestra (with the exception of Chloe I will spare her as long as she holds the Lid of Deflection). The sanctity of the bassoon water and container will continue as it will never be changed nor cleaned throughout the year, only replenished once the essence runs out (optional replenishments include my bassoon children adding their water or just the fountain when unavailable). The designated will choose more representatives to carry on tradition in the Wind Ensemble and Chamber Orchestra. 

To Chloe I leave the lid of my basson water to shield her from the mists of bassoon. 

To Sammy I leave a bath bomb to use in da tub.

To Helen I leave this swag necklace so everyone will know how swag she is.

To My dearest Jules I leave this strip of velcro to keep himself and his bow together.

To Abbi (redhead idk last name) I leave this hotwheels car because I lost my remote control one.

To Anna I leave this fruit roll up.

To Jess I leave a very small velvet bag of wonders, no explanation necessary.

To Lex I leave this regifted used ass wipe courtesy of Jobesh to wipe your tears as being part of a very small viola population.

To that one baritone player in Concert band rock on. 

To the Jazz Saxophone Section I give the most holy blessing of these sacred sticky notes so when your keys stick you must put the shameful thing on your forehead. And good luck.

Shoutouts to Abigail, Garrett Johnson, The Tall Pius, The 2 (almost) Mighty Clarinets, Ms. Piano Lady, Big Eddie, and everyone else--I really like you guys and I wish I had more useless objects to give out as gifts.

Finally to my Bassoon Children I leave these signed Joker Cards as reminders of your unique wildcard abilities in the band because bassoon is the most alpha instrument ever. I also leave the exciting battle to decide who gets to play my bassoon next year. 

Not to be cliche, but Friedrich Nietzsche said Life without music would be a mistake and I’d like to add Life without making music with you guys would be a mistake. 

Final Will and Testament of Chance Turnbull

Dear Band - it has been a great run with a lot of you, and those of you who came in this year it was fun to get to see you all play. I wish I got to know each one of you better, but thanks for giving us a great senior year.

Concerning the woodwinds - You guys are all pretty chill for the most part. I appreciate your ability to play runs. I don't know a lot of you, but keep it up. 

    To Ethan - stop noodling <3

Concerning the brass - I think your future section is in good hands, and you guys are all solid and fun too. 

     To Pius, I suggest you pray to God every day that Harrison doesn't pick on you to play in           front of the class. It was brutal this year.

     To Isaac, I never really talked to you but whenever I did, we clearly confessed our love for  each other, so I guess that means a lot. Love you.

     To Miles, you are so talented dude and your hard work shows. I'm glad I got to know you           better this past year and thank you for letting me sleep on your lap on the bus home from All State. Keep up the good work.

To Henry, who completed me and the percussion section - I love you. You are far more hard working than me and it was always something that inspired me. I am so happy that we became close especially in these last couple years, and I won't ever forget the good memories we have shared. Keep up the amazing work, sir. Finally, I leave you with the request of when you are famous to let me come over to your mansion and hang out with you. Don't forget about me hehe. 

To Mr. Harrison - thank you. Thank you for all of the memories and hardships and laughter. Truly something I will never ever forget. I leave you with the power to direct, because I truly have never seen somebody take on as much as you with as much patience and skill as you. I love you, and I will see you around.

Final Will and Testament of Maggie Osterberg

I’m not one for too many words, so I won’t waste any time with an introduction. Here are your gifts and thanks.

Garrett Heaton: I grant to you my title. To be honest, you were more of a leader than I could have ever been, so now you can become the official and practical section leader, at least in jazz band. (You might need to take a day to crank out some belt challenges to surpass Pius.) I wish you luck with the twenty new trumpets from Concert Band. Although you did not succeed in my challenge of hitting double Gs at will, I have a new one for you. Play the Haydn next year for State solo and be better than me. Shouldn’t be too hard. Have a roll of duct tape. 

Pius: I grant to you the responsibility of the trumpet section. I do not trust Garrett with this. He is too wild. With this balance of power, I know the trumpets won’t be left in shambles. Also, don’t let Garrett take away your chair next year. The last thing he needs is a boost to his ego. Challenge him at his own solo and play the Goedicke. It will be a great challenge for you. Have a roll of duct tape. 

Joey: My only desire is for you to blow everyone’s expectations away. Keep chipping away at those challenges and try to outdo those around you. You might catch some of them *cough* Isaac *cough* sleeping, and might be able to surpass them. Good luck. Have a roll of duct tape. Miles: Good luck being the only band black belt next year. Thanks for keeping the tradition alive. To members of the General Ensemble: Some of you might remember that my brother used to take quotes. I did too. As a lasting legacy, my gift to you is a collection of these quotes, that we both collected. Some of these quotes are even before my time. You can also add your own in the future. May these quotes bring good memories back. 

Harrison: I still have it. I still have the pencil. Use it for the better part of the future band program. I guess if you want your Allen Vizzutti back, I can give it back to you. I wish you the best in trying to continue without us. Also, consider playing Inferno again, it was fun.

Oh and Isaac: You are talented and have potential, but sometimes you just need to shut up. Hopefully, the duct tape I gave the others will teach you that. Also, stop playing the lick, I will come back to haunt you. 

Sayanora, Maggie, a Black Belt Elder 

*

Ryan

I’ll keep this short.

To Harrison I give my thanks.

To Izzy I say pounce like a puma.

To Henry I give Joeseph.

To all of you I give my love and appreciation for allowing me to be the musician I am. 

Stay strong. Stay confident. 

I’ll see you sometime.

Final Will and Testament of Jacob Unruh, 

I hope you are doing well. I am writing this as I lay in bed the night before I move in for college. It's late, I know. But I wanted to make sure everyone knows how meaningful my time in Chamber Orchestra has been. 

I remember being kicked out of Symphonic Strings in 7th grade and joining the high schoolers in the high school lunchroom. I sat near the back of the second violins and faked my way through some of the music. It was my first experience in an orchestra, and it was a little intimidating! I always looked up to the students sitting in the front, especially Alex Hastings. I realize that many of you don't know her, but she was an amazing violinist. One day, in a sectional, Mr. Harrison walked by and told me that if I kept practicing, I would be at Alex's level by the time I graduated. "Really?!" I said in disbelief. How awesome that would be! Throughout the years, I moved closer and closer to the front of the orchestra, inspired by those around me. I hope I've inspired some of you. 

My biggest hopes for you are these: I hope the next band retreat is double the fun (and trouble) of last year's. If not this year, then next year. I hope you venture outside of your comfort zone, whether it's musically, socially, or intellectually. Being an old man (and once an old woman) for years in a row was certainly outside my comfort zone. And finally, I hope that you strive for perfection, but be grateful that you'll never get there. We're all human after all. The fact that we can learn from our mistakes and failures is far more beautiful than a moment of perfection. 

As for the "will" part of the senior will, I bequeath to whomever earns the position of first violin the lyrics to the song "CCCO" ("CDA Charter Chamber Orchestra," sung to the tune of "YMCA"), written in the Southern dialect by yours truly, Harvey the Old Man. They are attached below, but they are only for the eyes of the concertmaster. So, Mr. Harrison, you can't post them on the senior will page and you can't read them out loud. Treat them like they are classified. Also, please burn the edges of the paper on which the lyrics are printed to make them look older. Yellowish paper dipped in vinegar would be preferable. Maybe change the font to something mysterious. If the concertmaster wishes to share the lyrics with the other section leaders, the concertmaster may do so in a discreet manner. If someone else becomes concertmaster, they now own the lyrics. That's it for bequeathing. Happy practicing!

Jacob

Final Will and Testament of Lawson Vest

I’ve been looking forward to writing this ever since Mr. Harrison read the senior wills from last year. I went home that summer and brainstormed all the epic roasts I’d use in the following message. However, I no longer have the desire to roast all of you, and I’ve instead decided to write something pleasant to each one of you. Some of you will get a lot more than others just because I know you better. It’s nothing personal.

Firstly, all the eighth graders: I don’t know how many of you there are, but I can confidently say that you’re here because you’re good at your instrument for your age. You belong in this band

To all the freshmen: keep working hard. These challenges are tough, but I promise if you keep working at it, it’ll pay off.

To all you sophomores: ...

To all the juniors: You are the best musicians in the band, seniors included. Keep at it.

Individual messages:

Alex Kinney: Keep working hard. Don’t give up. Get a profile picture on band.us

Ava Lehosit: You’ll be the next Rachel Callister in due time. You’re an extremely talented musician, and your passion for it compliments that skill. Keep at it.

Caleb Wessels: Your comedic attitude during PIT kept me alive. I appreciate your talent on trombone, and I anticipate a complete list of all plague dances with videos attached. A few examples to start might include the Bubonic Boogie and the Smallpox Samba.

Chance Turnbull: You have an amazing talent with playing tambourines loudly. You might be able to make a career out of just that. You also might break a world record for the loudest a tambourine has been played, with some practice.

Cole Keighley: You are an excellent trumpet player. I look forward to seeing you in first chair next year, and I hope you anticipate that as well. Don’t let Maggie or Garrett sit in it for one second! I appreciate your comedic remarks, even though they may be scarce.

Cruz Alliano: You have a good sense of humor. Don’t lose that. Practice.

Emma Bird: You are a talented French Horn player and a wonderful human being. Keep it coming.

Garrett Heaton: You are an excellent trumpet player. I look forward to seeing you in first chair next year, and I hope you anticipate that as well. Don’t let Maggie or Cole sit in it for one second! I admire your meme knowledge and your appreciation for the Star Wars Prequels. You have a better range than I have on trumpet, and I expect very soon you’ll be a better trumpet player than me. Take first chair and work as hard as you can to keep it.

Hadley Lewis: I think you’re probably pretty good at your instrument. If you aren’t, get better. If you are, get better anyway. My advice doesn’t change.

Henry DePew: You are a really good tennis player and drummer. Keep practicing each of them.

Jack Rigg: Sorry to hear you broke your arm at the end of the year. That’s really unfortunate. Nevertheless, your French Horn skills are top notch, and I can’t wait to hear you grow. Also, I

still don’t know if you were fond of that crazy caroling idea. I kinda feel bad that you missed the meetings and didn’t get much of a say in what we were doing. I hope our idea wasn’t too weird.

Jordan Gallegos: I anticipate the next “sexy sax-man” out of you. You’re an incredibly talented sax player, and you’re really friendly. Get a profile picture on band.us.

Josiah Desrochers: Remember that time you walked into my house unannounced cuz Elijah told you our house’s password? We had to change it (obviously) and I don’t like the new one. It’s all your fault. In all seriousness, that memory makes me laugh now. As a change of subject, your baritone skills are quite developed, and I look forward to hearing them develop even more.

Keegan Riggs: You have a great personality, and I think you’re good at clarinet. I don’t recall ever hearing just you play, but I assume you’re pretty good.

Kian Chrispens: Play louder. You have the coolest instrument in the band. Use it. You’re a good musician, but I can’t hear you a lot of the time (despite sitting next to you). Get a profile picture on band.us

Laurel West: I still feel bad for not being able to help you on that Life Science problem 3 or 4 years ago. If it helps, I know the formula now? K = C + 273.15

Luke Kellner: Practice? I don’t even know who you are.

Luukas (Scarborough?): Your last name isn’t on band, so I took a guess. You are a good percussionist. Keep practicing.

Man this is getting repetitive.

Maggie Osterberg: You are an excellent trumpet player. I look forward to seeing you in first chair next year, and I hope you anticipate that as well. Don’t let Garrett or Cole sit in it for one second! Thank you for warming up to Fun Dip. I assume that you’ll be first chair at the start of next year, so I leave him to you. Treat him well. More on this later. Sorry I wasn’t that great a section leader my first year. Thanks for sticking with the band as I learned how to challenge y’all and myself. Thanks for putting up with Merrick’s tyrannical reign, however short-lived that was. Thanks for putting up with my corny ideas to motivate y’alls (I’m specifically talking about the Princess Points). If you want to proceed with some point-system with a more politically correct name, please do so. My only request is that you keep the numbers irrational/imaginary for smaller rewards.

Maria Aguiar: You’re an excellent horn player (obviously). There's no point telling you to keep practicing since I know you will. I considered giving you my gun in my last will and testament, but I decided not to since I bought it locally and I may not be able to find another one where I’m going. So instead I encourage you to go to Sunset Bowling Alley with a few bills and buy one yourself. There's no guarantee that you’ll get the same one, but some of the other things in that machine are even better, so hopefully they’ll make a decent compromise. They have a bill->quarters machine in the arcade if needed. Buying that gun was the best investment I’ve made besides Minecraft and LEGO Batman (the original. DON’T BUY THE SECOND ONE. I’ve heard it’s terrible).

Mason Oyler: You’re an excellent percussionist (obviously). There's no point telling you to keep practicing since I know you will. Enjoy your senior year.

Did anyone ever tell you how much you look like Napoleon Dynamite? In case you’re confused, that is in fact a compliment.

Megan Moore: You’re probably good at flute, but I’ve never heard you, so I can’t honestly give my opinion. ...keep practicing? Oh, and get a profile picture on band.us

Michael King: You play the coolest instrument in the room. Use it. Get a profile picture on band.us

Miles Taylor: It’s been a privilege to sit next to you and listen to Tubby roar. I have seen you grow so fast the last two years. If you keep your current pace, you might be better than Michael Harrison by the time you graduate (college). I’m going to miss your friendly attitude and appreciation for music.

Natal Davis: You’re probably good at flute, but I’ve never heard you, so I can’t honestly give my opinion. ...keep practicing?

Nate Hammond: I don’t even know what instrument you normally play, but I do know that your guitar skills could kill the coronavirus. Also, your taste in music is solid. Keep it up.

Nolan Oyler: I’ve seen you improve a lot this past year. Keep that up and you might be as good as Trevor McKinley some day.

Owen Harro: It might not be such a fond memory for you, but I will always remember the day you dropped your mouthpiece in the middle of a song in concert band last year. Understand that I am not insulting you, rather (as Master Harrison would say) “laughing with you.” If you are not the individual who dropped his mouthpiece, sorry. Got the wrong person. But I’m pretty sure you are.

You’re probably good at flute, but I’ve never heard you, so I can’t honestly give my opinion. ...keep practicing?

Ryan Eaton: I lost the game. As of the time I’m writing this, I haven’t lost it in ~2 months. Naturally, I’ve decided to immortalize it in my senior will, so every time you read it (which better be often, bucko), I expect you to lose the game too.

On a more serious note, you are an excellent saxophone player. Keep up the good work, Stay motivated, and figure out how much energy it takes to change a circular orbit to an elliptical one (if you recall, that’s the last conversation we had. Dang, it sounds super sad that way).

Sam Garn: Go easy on Master Harrison. He has a lot on his plate. Get a profile picture on band.us.

Shane Neirinckx: You have a great personality, and your skill at bass clarinet reflects that. Keep practicing, and work hard.

Shire Conlan: Did you actually put your phone number on band.us? Nevermind. Over the years I’ve seen you grow a lot. I actually didn’t like you when you initially joined Wind Ensemble, but as time passed and your flute skill finally caught up with your ego, I began to like you as a person. Keep up the good work. From now on when you join PIT, make sure to whisper “Bruh” into the microphone during a really intense moment once per tech week. That was a legendary moment.

Oh, and one more thing. I was planning to actually give you this, but I don’t think the coronavirus will let me give tangible objects yet. So, instead, I am asking you to buy some headphones. Even when you’re actually playing good music, you don’t need to play it for the world to hear.

Sophie Pennings: You are extremely confident, and I admire that about you. Keep up the good work, and practice.

Sydney Garn: You are playing the coolest woodwind instrument in the band. I understand that it’s hard to play loudly on a bassoon, but it is really cool when you do. Keep practicing. Victoria Gonzales: Somehow, I know almost nothing about you. Sorry. From what I have seen, you’re a great human being, and your clarinet skills compliment that.

Zachary Kim: You’re a good baritone player. Keep practicing, and play loud.

Trumpets: It all just disappears, doesn’t it, everything you are, gone in a moment, like breath on a mirror. Any moment now, He’s-a comin’. --Who’s comin’ --the section leader --you. You are the section leader. --Yup! And I always will be. But times change, and so must I. We all change, when you think about it. We’re all different people, all through our lives. And that’s okay, that’s good, you gotta keep moving, so long as you remember all the people that you used to be. I will not forget one line of this. Not one day. I swear. I will always remember when the section leader was me.

In case you didn’t notice, that was Matt Smith’s Doctor’s regeneration speech. Obviously I tweaked it a bit to fit the scene.

Trumpets, I expect you to continue our traditions. I will find a way to leave Fun Dip at the school for Mr. Harrison to give to the section leader next year. Also, Merrick entrusted in me a tradition that stems back to his and Andre’s days, and perhaps days before those. I don’t know if I ever found the time to continue the tradition, since our year was cut short. This tradition is the “Stop Talking” tradition. It’s not as scary as it sounds. You only have to do it during a concert (side note: don’t forget to rub Fun Dip, too). Whenever Mr. Harrison goes on one of his rambles between pieces at a concert, you must whisper to each other “stop talking.”

In addition to these traditions, I will see some chair challenges next year. You may recall that I told you all you’d do a great job in first chair next year. Don’t make me a liar. I expect to see you all next year in first chair at some point.

Mr Harrison: I emailed you this document with 3 or 4 others. Hopefully you haven’t opened the other ones yet, because they’d be very confusing without an explanation. Attached are my comic books. Everything is a sketch, and the handwriting looks like chicken scratch, but that’s the way it is. All of the superheroes and supervillains get their powers from musical instruments (or something music-related). They’re science fiction. I’ve completed four comic books, but as of the time I’m writing this, I don’t think I’ve scanned the last one. I can’t scan it now because my dad disconnected the scanner from the computer to make a workspace for himself during the quarantine. If I didn’t include it now, I’ll get that one to you later.

I hope you’ll upload these comic books on your website or something so that students may read them. I’m warning that they are PG-13 because of blood and gore.

If I ever decide to try to make a living off these comic books (astronomically unlikely, but I’m preparing in case it happens), I may request that you remove them from your website. As I said, this is extremely unlikely, but I like to be prepared in case it happens.

Right now, I have light plans to take this series very far. Everything sci-fi in it stems from Stephen Hawking’s A Briefer History of Time and The Universe in a Nutshell. I invite all who wish to read my comic books to read the first one so you can follow along with the ideas. That book is simplified way down so that it even somewhat makes sense to me, a high-schooler. The second book is much more difficult and it’s taken me 6 months to get to chapter 6, so I don’t usually make my comic books depend on theories from that one. The first idea that I’m implementing in that book will be in book 5 of my series, and I’ll explain the theory in my comic book when that happens too, so you won’t need to worry about reading that. I hope you all enjoy my comic books. You have been warned

Insert conclusion here Stay fresh, cheese bags.

Final Will & Testament of Olivia Chang and Katelyn Koch 

Dear younglings, we have decided to do something a little different for our senior will. We understand that times have changed and many of you may be reading or listening to this in your facial coverings. Strange times. We’ve banded together to award each of you for your endeavors and to ensure our chaotic weirdness will never be forgotten. We have made paper plate awards for many of you that we deemed worthy. 

Miles-Thiquessst Sound

Victoria-Best Multitasker

Ryan-Most Likely to Noodle in Class

Mason-Most Likely to be the Next Baaaaaach

Sophie-Most Likely to have Phone Out in Class and Get Away with It

Maria-Most Likely to have Type 1 Dyabeetus

Jordan-Most Likely to Deserve First Chair But Get Second Chair and Most Likely to Get a White Girl Tattoo

Keegan-Best One-Arm Clarinet

Caleb-Air Support of 1000 Men Award

Shane-Most Likely to Have an Alto Clarinet 

Michael-Most Likely to Have Zero Belt Stamps

Cruz-Most Likely to Forget His Pants

Maggie-Biggest Heart Award

Shire-Most Likely to Be Irish

Sydney-Best and Only Bassoonist

Emma-Best Bob Ross

And Last And Certainly Not Least

Herbie the Dog-Ugliest Sweater Award

To Harrison

• The Jesus Candle-because you need Jesus and some sanity in your life

• Off-Brand Spam-because spamwich

• Salty But Sweet Sign-I don’t think this needs to be explained

• Dice of Doom-to punish those who are weak and are annoying in a creative and random way

• Goal Digging Headband-I also don’t think this needs to be explained, and saving the best for last:

We decided as a senior class to present you with a punching bag for our gift so that you can let out some steam...properly :)

All in all, thank you for all the good memories and laughs, it has been quite a wild and strange journey. We will definitely miss all of you.

Final Will and Testament of Lauryn Keith

First to Victoria I give to you the confidence to be a loud and amazing player. You are already a great musician and I see the dedication you have, just keep it up. I also give you the responsibility of wearing cool socks and cute earrings. Please honor me during spooky season and invest in some especially spooky socks.

Secondly to Shane I give the responsibility of teaching the new clarinetists the ways of being the best section. I trust you will continue to play loud and with attitude, which is what every clarinet needs. Keep looking for random and weird instruments although I do not know how you will top the Russian clarinet.

Next to Mason I just want to say holy cow. If I am not older and listening to your music on the radio I will be shocked. You are going places kid.

To Jordan, be greedy and take solos. You are a great player and deserve them.

To Sydney: I have massive respect for the beast of an instrument you play. Only piece of advice is maybe stay in uniform? At least until you are a senior and can pull off an Evan Cameron (show up in a tshirt and jeans).

To Harrison, thank you for all of the time and effort you put into the program. I know you care about each and everyone one of us and I really appreciate that. Thank you for making the classroom fun and a place to speak our mind. Some of my favorite high school memories are quotes from you or experiences we had on road trips and stuff. I am sorry for the stress we have caused and the health problems you are bound to acquire as a result of sleep deprivation. Maybe in the future they’ll make a Starbucks I.V. to be inserted right in the bloodstream for those no sleep concert weeks (Katelyn and I’s future doctor selfs will look into it).

To everyone else all I have to say is keep being awesome. We have created quite a special music program whether you realize that or not. My advice would be to never compare yourself to others, unless you are looking at them for inspiration or else you will only doubt yourself. Do not get so caught up in belt stamps and deadlines that you lose sight of why you play music. Playing music is about how it makes you feel and should above all give you joy; if at one point it isn't, then you are doing something wrong.

P.S. Totally not sorry for pelting you with water balloons and throwing you off a balcony. There is no way you are topping that (at least not without actually injuring someone).

Final Will and Testament of Brandon King

Well this has been a very eventful four years. Band will always have a special place in my heart and through all the ups and downs I had, I am glad to say that sticking it out was worth it. There was a time where I threatened to quit band altogether, and I’m glad past me made the right choice to not be a little whiny dumb-butt. Now I have left some messages for you guys, I hope you like what I have to say:

To the jazz band sax section: Stop growing. Please. Stop growing. And if it does, you guys should find a way to rotate players so there are only 5-7 saxes at one time (7 is pushing it). Also a tuner is always a nice little addition.

To the jazz band brass section: Grow. Please grow. The saxes have become an unstoppable tumor that will refuse to stop growing. A bigger brass section is the cure to the cancer that is the overpowered sax section.

To the jazz band rhythm section: Keep doing what you're doing. You guys are in my opinion probably the most competent section in the band. And also none of you are graduating this year. Next year’s rhythm section is gonna be f****** amazing, believe me.

To the wind ensemble: I was never extremely involved with you guys except for using rubber band technology on a kmart soprano, but I’m sure you guys will continue the same level of superior musicianship that you guys always produce.

Now to address certain individuals:

Jordan: Get 1st chair alto in the all-state jazz band to keep the tradition of a charter kid getting that spot. If you do, it will be the 5th year in a row that happens (I think at least).

Tug: Keep doing what you're doing with your tenor. You were 5 times better lead tenor than I was my junior year, and I can’t wait to see how good you are next year.

Shire: If I hear one more stupid a** smash reference come out of your mouth, I will drive back up to charter just to discipline you.

Miles: Keep up the hard work. You’ll be one hell of a lead trombone when your junior and senior year rolls around.

Michael: Please practice for the good of all of us.

Maria: Lead that trumpet section to greatness. (Or horn depending on which band). The trumpet section would be non-existent if it weren’t for you,

Caleb: Get in a trombone war with Miles, it will only result in a good outcome for the band. Two strong trombones is much better than one.

Ryan: Every so often in the middle of the night I sometimes can pick up a faint noise throughout the black night that turns out to be you noodling on the piano. Sometimes a single note, or sometimes an entire riff that causes me to wake up in a cold sweat. Keep that down to a minimum the best you can.

Josiah: Maybe do a little more studying on your theory. Also make sure for your solo and ensemble performance that it isn’t the first time you’re looking at the music

To the other Michael: Could you check my belt sheet? I think you’re missing a stamp or two. Also my offer remains to sell you a brand new Meyer 6 Jazz Alto Mouthpiece. If you are interested, please contact me.

(The belt sheet thing is obviously a joke, but the mouthpiece is up to you).

Welp, that pretty much wraps this up. This has been an unforgettable experience for me. Also I’m sorry if I forgot you, I don’t have a list of everybody’s name in front of me. Anyways, enjoy yourselves while it lasts.

Final Will and Testament of Dylan McCaughan

● Saxophones: For the section, I leave the unsettling horror that Ryan might be in charge. For Ryan, I leave a mute button for both your instrument and your mouth. Oh wait, there already is one on your piano. You just don’t know how to use it. For Jordan, I leave you the power of using physical force to provide discipline on anyone in the woodwinds. For Nathan, I leave you control of the Bari sax section. I don’t know the rest of you, but you can have some milk to grow big and strong. 


● Clarinets: You are too quiet and irrelevant. No soup for you. 


● Flutes: You are the most annoying instrument and even you know it. The world would be 
 a better place without your migraine-inducing screeches. For Shire, I leave the big boy powers. With them you can physically dominate your opponents. For the other flutes, I’m giving you milk and growth hormones. Some of you could use it. 


● Trumpets: You guys are ok. 6/10 to be honest. Not as cool as low brass, but you’re getting there. Whoever is first trumpet, I grant you the power of cockiness. You will be able to play as loudly and obnoxiously as you want and Mr. Harrison will praise you. The rest of you have to wait your turn to be obnoxious, but you’ll get there don’t worry. 


● French Horns: I like when you guys do the rips. They’re pretty cool. Otherwise you’re just a slideless trombone that sucks. To Maria, I leave the power of enforcement. With it you will be more confident in your ability to punish wrongdoers. For Michael, I leave the power of file embedding. It’s this cool thing where you don’t make everyone download your files and then have them be extremely disappointed in the quality. Now you can embed your videos just like everyone else, so they can be disappointed faster. I don’t really interact with the other people, but I respect your ability to tolerate and function around Michael. 


● Percussion: I like you guys. You give me snacks and are usually tolerable with one exception. I admire your ability to hit things with a stick and convince everyone else that you’re playing music. For Mason, I leave the parts for Vociferation. Make me proud. You can also enforce discipline through physical violence on whoever you want (You know who I’m talking about). For Chance, Thanks for the snacks, you may slap Josiah twice. For everyone else, rock on. 


● Low Brass: You guys are top tier. You are easily my favorites to punish, and you have developed excellent discipline. For Miles, I leave my Willie Wonka costume as well as an opportunity to play trombone instead of tuba and increase your charisma ten fold. For Kian, I leave you the ability to stand up faster than everyone else. I also leave you under the protection of Miles in case Caleb becomes corrupt from power. For Zach, I leave you the power of playing solos because we both know Josiah never will. I also give you the power

of playing loud so people can hear you. For Josiah, I leave you with 100 pushups, but not for you. You may distribute these to whoever you want in the band. I also leave you the ability to get above a 70% on your theory test. For Nolan, I give you growth serum, so you can touch the floor when you sit. I also give the powers of a freshie. You will be slightly less annoying than an 8th grader, but still a freshie. Finally, for Caleb, I leave you in control of the trombone section. I also leave you with the task of establishing the Low Brass Republic (LBR). I have written a Constitution below that creates a fair balance of power in order to ensure that none of you corrupt absolutely. If you ignore my advice and create a dictatorship, I give Miles permission to form a rebellion. Your job is to create a prosperous nation that not only thrives in your time, but it will have stability to last for a thousand years.

———————————————————————————————————————

Low Brass Republic Constitution

■ Article 1: The Republic will be divided into three separate but “equal” states: Trombonia, Tuba Land, and Baritonia. The leader of their state will have the ability to create rules for their state. These rules may cover any topic that the Republic as a whole does not have a rule for. Any rule made by the Republic will have higher authority than a state rule. The leader of each state will be decided by the highest chair unless another member of the state has considerably higher charisma which will be decided by the Charisma King. In the event of a charisma challenge issued by the Charisma King, The two parties must create a 60 second routine of any kind showing off their charisma and charm. After Both parties have finished their routines, the Charisma King will decide the winner.

■ Article 2: One week before each school quarter, the leaders of the three states will be voted on for Consul of the LBR. If a state’s section leader is elected Consul, the second chair will become their state’s section leader until the Consul’s term expires. The election will be based on an electoral college system. Each state will be awarded one vote per member of their state. The popular vote winner of each state will receive all of the votes for that state. The winner of the election must collect a majority of the electoral votes available. If no candidate receives a majority, The top two candidates will engage in a run-off using the same electoral college rules. The winner of the run-off will become the Consul-elect. They will be inaugurated on the first day of the new quarter. For the first quarter of the year, the vote will be on the second day of school, and the candidate will be inaugurated the next day. The Consul elected for the fourth quarter will keep their title throughout the summer until the first quarter Consul is inaugurated. The votes will be processed and counted by Mr. Harrison who will announce the winner.

■ Section 2: A consul has the authority to make rules for any matter that may arise. Their ruling will apply to all states and will overrule any rule regarding the same topic that a state has created. Once a rule is created by the Consul, it is law unless a supermajority of the section leaders vote against it. Consuls will also be in charge of dealing with any foreign policy matters. They will be the single voice of the Republic for any official Republic statements. The Consul will be the commander-in-chief for the Republic’s military. They will have complete control of any military resources during times of war. The Consul has the power to enlist any member of the Republic into the military during times of war. During times of peace, enlistment will be entirely voluntary. The Consul is also tasked with maintaining peace and stability throughout the Republic.


■ Article 3: The Charisma King is an appointed position that solves any matters

involving charisma. The Charisma King decides the amount of charisma that a member has and provides an active force for establishing charisma throughout the Republic.

• Section 2: The Charisma King will be nominated by the Consul. Once appointed, the section leaders will vote to appoint him. If a majority is reached, the Charisma King will be officially appointed. This appointment lasts for the rest of their time in the Wind Ensemble and as a member of the Republic, or until they retire.

• Article 4: An official list of all rules must be written and available at all times. This applies for both state and Republic laws. All rules not properly recorded will be void.

• Article 5: Any member of the Wind Ensemble who plays an instrument that belongs in the Republic will automatically become a member of the Republic. A member can only be exiled from the Republic with a supermajority vote from all members of the Republic, or if the member leaves the Wind Ensemble or a section that is under control of the Republic.

• Article 6: The Low Brass Republic is a sovereign government that is not under any control from outside forces including but not limited to Mr. Harrison, the Wind Ensemble, or the Coeur d’Alene Charter Academy.

• Article 7: A new section can only be incorporated in the Republic with approval from the Consul as well as a supermajority vote of the section leaders. Upon incorporation, the new section will follow the same rules and processes as the other states.

• Article 8: Any amendment to this constitution will require a supermajority from the section leaders, as well as a 3/4 majority from all members.
  ———————————————————————————————————————
  ● Mr. Harrison: For Mr. Harrison, I leave you with the peace of mind knowing that you will never have to deal with my shenanigans ever again. You can relax peacefully on a tropical beach drinking countless pints of beers...unless I trained the younglings to continue your torment for all eternity. MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. You can also have my mutes because I don’t feel like getting them. My final gift is access to my infinite wisdom whenever you need it. I will teach you how to procrastinate until the last minute, and then do all of the work the night before, how to pass chop monsters by pretending you know what you are doing, how to convince anyone to obey you absolutely, and most importantly, how to make your music teacher proud while simultaneously wanting to murder you. All of this knowledge and more is now at your disposal.
  ● For all the members of the Wind Ensemble, I leave you with this final ability to rise up against the man. Embrace your inner self and destroy all that block your path. This is the way to Enlightenment. As Dylan once said “Peace Out!” 


Final Will and Testament of Imelda Bresee
Thank you for the great year, even though it was short :) I think I have sat in every chair from last chair to first chair sometime throughout my years being in orchestra. I know what it's like to be at the bottom of the section when you can barely keep up with everyone. . . and I know what it's like to be constantly challenged for your chair by that pesky person below you, and I almost know what it feels like to sit at the top of the section. But overall I loved being able to play with you all, no matter what chair I was.
To the second violins: Keep working hard at knowing your part, practicing at home really does help.
To Rebecca: I love your enthusiasm! I can imagine you as concert mistress in the near future! To Kiley: I still laugh when I think of Red Pony... or Red Wing
To Lauren: Thanks for keeping orchestra fun by making corny jokes and playing with my hair. No one else will get it, but you still aren’t pretty enough to be an elf (wink wink)

To Abi: It was fun being stand partners with you during Rosinance. You are a great player, and I hope you go far!

To Andrew: I don’t need to encourage you to keep practicing because I know you practice enough. Don’t be afraid to lead your section!

To the violas: I believe in you! even though there’s only three of you. Just please play loudly! More viola!

To the cellos and basses: I have always wanted to play the cello, even though the violin is still better

Final Will and Testament of Clare Freeman

Mr. Harrison:

 I am very grateful to you for everything you have done for me as I have grown in your class more than I thought I would when I entered it freshman year not knowing what I was doing. I was so lost in the back of the second violins, not knowing anyone. Your confidence in me rising up through the section definitely helped me have more confidence to go after the first chair of the second violins, and eventually the first violin section. Thank you for the opportunity of playing with the Piano Guys. It is definitely an experience I will never forget. I have made friends and grown in your class a lot throughout the four years, and I am very grateful (even though sometimes it doesn’t seem like it, I know, with my attendance). Thank you for everything you do. I will miss having you as my music teacher. 

To the Chamber Orchestra as a whole:

 Just as a public service announcement, if i roast you, I am only half joking : ) You are all great. 

The cellos and bases (yes, i grouped you guys together):

I don’t really have much to say to you guys. Your sections have grown since I started, and it’s great seeing a good-sized section. Your practice ethics are better than some. I leave you guys the ability to speak up in class. Owen is gone, it’s up to you now. I know Julian already can. Keep up the great work, guys. 

To the violas: 

All three of you violists all put in so much work into your instrument, and I know you guys are such great players. How come I could never hear you? Weird. Andrew, from playing with you in Rosinance and the quartet, I know you have it in you. I leave you all the volume. Kalei, I leave you confidence. Eddie, I leave you an invisible cape so Mr. Harrison won’t pick on you as much. Keep up the great work, guys. 

To the second violins:

Y’all are definitely a delightful bunch of people to have played alongside of. But I leave you ALL the confidence in the world. Because I know that you are all good players, but just need to allow that to show in class. 

To the first violins:

BWAHAHAHA. Y’all, I don’t even know what to say to you guys. I would say I leave you the ability to beat Jacob, but I didn’t have that, and he’s gone now so that plan is dead. Whoopsies. You guys are all great. Abigail, ewwwww a freshman. I don’t even know what to freaking say to you. You’re crazy, but I’m proud of you for making it so far being a freshman. I leave you a bottle of imaginary chill pills. Lauren and Kiley, I know you guys are great at playing. The nerves just get you guys in class. I leave y’all also some confidence, and less shaky hands : ) 

Last general note to all:

All of you mean more to me than y’all think. My high school life as a musician would not be the same without all of you alongside me. I am glad I met you guys and played music with you everyday (even when it didn’t sound much like music). I hope you all stick to your instrument and keep going. Music is a wonderful thing, and playing an instrument is an amazing talent to have. I wish you guys all the best of wishes : )

Benedict Zepeda

To the Wind Ensemble I leave my Walle figure sitting on the top shelf on the west side of the band room. I have had him for many years. Do try and take care of him. 

To Miles I leave first dibs on Bertha. I know you have Tubby but Bertha is one hell of girl and she will treat you right if you treat her right. Just put a little rotary oil in her every once in a while. 

To Josiah I leave my respect for upperclassmen superiority. If you can keep the people above you happy they will keep you happy. And if you don’t you will do lots of pushups and have a huge chest so either way you win. 

To Caleb I leave my Yamaha trombone for the low price of $200. It's time for you to get a new instrument and if you want to take me up on it you can contact me at (208) 699-7617. 

To Dylan I leave my lack of classroom etiquette. You must take my spot in the classroom as the disruptive one who stands on your chair during breathing gym and makes strange noises in the middle of class. May your rambunctious ways waste hours of class time. 

To Mason I leave nothing but my respect for the musician you are and the one you are becoming. Words can’t describe how proud I am of you. 

To Michael I leave the tiniest desire to do well in band. I always hated to practice and only did so when I really needed to and I would love if you made it to the level of practice I currently am putting in. That means you bring your instrument home once every 3 months to put some air in it. That is all I ask. If you won’t do it for the band do it for me. 

To Alex I leave my ability to appear busy when I’m not. Countless times I looked back this year to see you standing when you were resting. Fake engagement so no one gets on your case. 

To María I leave nothing but my admiration. Nothing filled me with greater joy than when we rearranged the band and I was right behind you and I got to listen to that beautiful French horn. Keep grinding and kicking butt. 

To Ryan I leave my papa status. Now that I am moving on I need someone to replace me as “Big Papa” and I choose you. Fill the classroom with joy and always be there to hug a fellow musician who is down in the dumps. May your descendants me as numerous as the stars, like Father Abraham. 

To Nathan I leave humility. You must remember your place. You were a freshmen this year and you were a bigger pain in my butt than anyone else. Seniors give freshmen a hard time. Not the other way around. Just recognize the hierarchy and you might make some friends in the upper grades. 

To Jordan I leave the desire to succeed. You  are already doing so well in band and in track. If you keep this up you will be a phenomenally well rounded senior who doesn’t just do everything but also excels at everything you do. 

To Sophie I leave a copy of the constitution. Read that through once and tell me if your political ideology has changed any. Jk, stay a fireball in the classroom. You are proof that the myth that women can’t be funny is false. 

To Sydney I leave a RBF. Look it up. It’s why I am always scared to be around you because I can’t tell if you are mad or not. 

To Chance I leave common decency. I don’t want to hear about any more moaning coming from the back of the classroom or so help me God I will fly back from college to personally set you straight. 

To Tug I leave my praise. You use to be unbearable to be around because you were so arrogant but you really are a delight now and the addition of humility to your list of attributes makes you a tremendous person. I am so proud of who you are becoming. 

To Shire I leave my love of God and country. Hours before writing this will I saw some videos of you shooting a “broomstick.” I respect that and hope to hear more about your firearm experience in the future. 

And finally, to Mr. Harrison I leave my love and respect. Starting my day off in a class with someone as passionate as you was the only stimulant I needed to feel awake in the morning. Don’t burn out. I know the administration is a pain in the butt and that coward string parent is a thorn in your side but Charter students need you. Without you I don’t know if I would have made it through. Thank you for all your support. You are my buttercup now and forever. I love you 3,000. 

Will and Testament of The Reverend, Evan Cameron 

28th May 2019

I, Evan Cameron, former resident of Coeur D’ Alene, Idaho, declare this to be my first and final Will and Testament. 

Article 1

Though I have been relatively distant from the wind ensemble this year, I would like to take the time to personally thank each and every member for putting forth their best effort and making my senior year fly by. Unfortunately, at the time you are reading this, I am likely still struggling to scrub, pressure wash and paint Jan and Craig’s back porch, so this document will have to suffice. This Will grants me entirely too much power. I can write whatever the hell I want, make any allusion, divulge any secret, and Mr. Harrison will still probably read it all out loud because he pulled an all-nighter updating grades and forgot to proofread this paper. With Great Power comes Great Irresponsibility. But never fear I shall be careful. Nikolai’s “Gopher” story is safe… oops.

Article 2

Next, I would like to address a couple of individuals directly.

1.Mason Oyler. You are a very gifted musician. Lars Ulrich, the drummer for Metallica, isn’t even half as competent as you are when it comes to holding a tempo and nailing rhythms ( Literally just google Lars Ulrich failing and the first 20-or-so videos that pop up prove that statement). And as for the music that you have written for us, the potential is there. In order for the execution to mirror the vision in your head, you’ve just got to remember one crucial: Brother, no one wants to do the 4+ sharps and flats thing. That would require effort. Nevertheless, I am still able to whistle the Christmas tune your wrote almost all of the way through. You’ve got a great ear, and I hope it serves you well. 

2.María Aguilar. I actually have a physical item for you. In Honor of your fantastic obsession with Star Wars that may even rival my own, I am leaving you a book containing the blueprints to every major vehicle in the Star Wars Universe. I hope you find them interesting. I also leave you with some advice: Ignore Meric. He’s my friend.  He’s smart. Really smart. So smart, that he thinks he knows everything. You are in many ways, a better musician than he can ever hope to be. You can’t learn music from a book, and that’s his problem. All he’s really got is the theory. Never forget that. You got SOUL, kid.

3.Nathan Hammond. I leave you with  two important challenges: Peter and I fell short of what we were trying to accomplish for our little Bari sax finale this year. I challenge you to be better. Also, and much more importantly, I challenge you to grow a mullet, because your brother keeps chickening out. But more than anything, I’m super excited to see where your guitar will take you down the road. You jumped into jazz band with minimal introduction at the beginning of the school year and 8 months later, you’re soloing on our end of year music video. Dude. Impressed.

4.Tuggles. And so, another year of unsuccessfully dropping the flute comes to an end. There is always next year, right? Ah well. You’re still a pretty damn good flute player. Congratulations, Mate. When I first met you, I spent 5 minutes talking to you and decided on the spot, “I will never be able to talk to this kid. Not in this life, the next life, the afterlife, not even after a weeklong binge on Corona and rum in Tijuana,” (which is the trip I’ve had planned for this summer since freshman year). But the person you’ve become is vastly different from the person I met. You are still the same person. You have not changed. But you have become very deliberate in the way you conduct yourself. And I will forever appreciate the person who can become a better version of themselves while staying true to themselves at the same time. I’m proud to call you a friend.

5.Jordan Gallegos. This one will be short and sweet. After some deliberation, I have decided that I will be giving you my Netflix password. You know the saying: “Strict parents breed sneaky children.” And I am nothing if not an enabler. Text me for the account info.

6.For the sake of keeping this Will under 3 pages, I will conclude with Dylan McCaughan, If he is even present and not at home sleeping in. Dylan, your blatant disinterest in putting even the smallest amount of effort into any task or event, while still managing to produce acceptable and sometimes even impressive results is everything I aspire to be. If you have taught me anything this year, it can be summed up with the statement “you don’t have to try as hard as they say you do.” See, this comes across as sarcastic, but I’m dead serious. Thank you for demonstrating for the past two years that there is always an easier way to do something. If I am able to swing by the school before this Will is read, there will be a carton of chocolate milk for you sitting on Mr. Harrison’s desk. If not, I guess it will be an I.O.U.

Article 3

To Mr. Harrison

I have never been an easy student. I know this, you know this, Mr Nicolas knows this, everybody knows this. I want to thank you for two things. First, I want to thank you for putting up with my, as you call it, “foul mouth” for the last 4 years. I can only imagine how much trouble my colourful vocabulary has gotten you into, and I’m both sorry that you had to deal with the fallout and appreciative that I never felt any repercussions ;) But most importantly, I want to thank you for sitting down beside me in the MPR 7 years ago and convincing me to pick up an instrument. Had I not been in the music program, I would have left Charter in 8th grade with my best friend, Jackson Bronsell. I would have never gotten to experience the success you have helped us attain and I never would have made it into the college that I did. But most Importantly, I never would have gotten to know all of the fantastic people that are members of Charter’s music program. Make no mistake, I stayed because of you, and I wouldn’t have any other mentor. Not on my life. Forgive the musings of your resident alcoholic priest, graduation makes even the most callous and asinine of people reminiscent. (Actually, all jokes aside, you will be happy to know that my 29-year-old meth head best friend made me attend AA with her last summer, and helped me break my substance abuse issues. So I guess everything does seem to resolve in the end). And to everybody that I have come to know during my time in this ensemble, I will miss and remember all of you. Just remember to cut Mr. Harrison some slack. I’ve done his job. It’s a really freaking hard job, and I do not envy him for it. And in the words of Old-Man Harrison himself:

Keep it PG-13.

Anthony Critelli

To the band as a whole- I grant thee the ability to stop playing your instruments when asked of you, you all suck at that as of now. It obviously annoys Mr. Harrison. Stop it. It does not make you funny, only annoying. I also command that every person in band must read the book Dune. It is very good.

To the flutes- Nothing. I owe you nothing for hurting my ears constantly.

To the clarinets- I imbue thee with the powers of Squidward Tentacles, the greatest clarinet player of the 15th century. With this power you shall have the ability to not give up on your dreams, or something like that.

To the Saxophones- I would imbue thee with the powers of Kevin Eaton, except it would seem you already have a lesser version of that already. Instead I grant thee a theoretical gift. I grant thee a theoretical life-size cutout of Issac Lawrence, the Scourge of God, a theoretical gas canister and a theoretical box of matches. You theoretically know what to do theoretically do.

To the Horns- I imbue thee with the powers of Noah Reason, a hated war criminal from the Yugoslav wars. With this power, you shall gain absolutely nothing. Stop worshiping Noah as a god, he is a mere man.

To the trumpets- I imbue thee with the powers of Caleb Groover, 10th century B.C. king of Cappadocia. With this power, you will be able to use a new attack move, “Punch the Pig” giving you a +10% modifier on loudness when playing trumpet.

To the Low Brass- I imbue thee with the powers of William Hust. With this power you can greatly strengthen your humor. That is all. Nope, nothing else. I am serious, go away. Okay, fine, you get a sick belly dance from Will as well.

To the percussion- I don’t have any powers to imbue you with. All I'll say is to play louder when on timpani.

To the strings- I grant thee the powers of Raziel Sepulveda and Rachel Callister. With these powers, you will be able to count and actually be heard off of stage.

Now, on to specific persons…

To Dylan- Over my years in wind ensemble, I was never the loudest person. And because of this, Mr. Harrison has told me to play louder many time. I have been counting them.I grant thee all 213 times Mr. Harrison has told me to play louder, meaning you can play as loud as you want now with or without Mr. Harrisons permission.

To Caleb- I am physically incapable of doing push-ups do to my immense weight. I put this burden on you, so you do not have to do push-ups ever again.

To Josiah- We both know you hate solos. I have been cursed to never receive a solo. I give you this curse, so you never have to do a solo again.

To Mason- I will you the power for you to still be you, and to continue doing great things.

To Maria- I will you the power of understanding a joke. Ahhhh, I am kidding. I will you the power to create good humor, instead of the painful puns I hear in bio.

To Tug- I will you powers of a great juggler, so you may juggle your activities in life, from band to school to tech.

To Shire- I will you the ability to not break vending machines. I will say that it was funny though.

To Nathan- I will you the will to deal with your brother. Seriously, you are a solid 1000x better than him.

To the band as a whole, again- It was nice getting to know all of you. I will be doing my first two years of College at NIC, so expect me to come to any concerts I can. And seriously, read Dune. I was not making a dumb joke earlier. This book is amazing, and everyone who has even a passing interest in science fiction should read it. Also, I give you all the ability to pull out your phones and subscribe to Magkno on Youtube. It is a very, very funny youtube channel.

Karson Chrispens

Upon my graduation, I, Karson Chrispens, will:

To the sax section in jazz band - Better tone and phrasing. Remember, bending isn't cool unless you are, and if you think you're cool, you're not.

To Tug: glory once you achieve the braceless embouchure. also, gear only gets you so far, no matter how fresh it looks! Persistence and patience will make you a mean, mean player.

To Shire: Absolute chad status as a segmented trilobite

To Ryan: more piano lessons with me

To Shane: a new mouthpiece, check the mouthpiece bin: hopefully something in there will be better than a Hite.

To Jordan: a chill pill in good fun

To Dylan: restraint. Remember, the young ones are jealous of your power, and if you make them do too many pushups they will overthrow you. 

To María: another chill pill, life's hard, but freaking out makes it harder. you're a bueno amigo though, have fun and remember you pretty much rock at most everything

To the trumpet section: play louder, and listen to lawson because he became magically super good. probably it was practice :)

To the rest of all the band: Mr. Harrison is likely the best music teacher you're going to get to be directed by. Enjoy it. Sometimes it gets rough, and you play a song or two that you don't like. In those cases, you gotta suck it up and just appreciate that you're a part of this program. Yeah, belt challenges kinda suck, but it's a small small price to pay. Also, if Mr. Harrison is having a day, just shut up. It'll make things much easier and no trombones will be needlessly tossed.

Sayonara,

Karson

Hailey Lommasson

CHAMBER ORCHESTRA

An orchestra that can play electrifying music must have a good conductor (pun intended). My experience at CCA would have been severely lacking if it weren’t for Mr. Harrison. I cannot put into words how thankful I am. 

To the Violin I Section

Jacob: I leave my beloved violin pickup, may you use it well. I’m not sure how I feel about one of the most “orchestra” people I know joining band, but I’m sure I’ll get over it. Good luck! Jazz Band is a ton of fun (possibly maybe even 20x more fun than orchestra, but you didn’t hear me say that). 

Clare: Thank you for letting me see your many different personalities. I’ll miss your friendship and your laughter. Jacob may be a god, but you are a goddess. I place upon you the responsibility to keep him on his toes and show off your skill. Everybody deserves to see it. 

Imelda: You are just as amazing as Clare and Jacob. Fight them for their chairs. Don’t hide your talent. Your competition will breed an even better orchestra. Don’t let them get too comfortable and don’t be shy. I believe in you!

Lauren: I love your spirit. You are more than the spirit captain of orchestra. You are the spirit of the orchestra. I wish everyone had the joy you emulate every day. Thank you for making each of my final days at Charter shine a little brighter. 

Kylie: You are so graceful and succeed in everything you pursue. Help the orchestra dance and have a little more fun. Rise and shout. You only have two more years. Do everything you can with them. 

Abi: You are a beautiful blossoming violinist. I bestow upon you humility. As you listen to others you will find there is always still much to learn. Knowledge may come fast, but wisdom only comes with time. Use your incredible drive for good. You are really sweet and it has been a pleasure having you as my orchestra little sister. 

To the Violin II Section

How to fix a screechy second violin? Take the violin and break it over your knee. That being said, you guys have come a long way this year. I, too, was a violin II once. Take pride in your section. You have a lot to offer and are relatively important to the orchestra. The violin I section is your birthright. Keep up the good work and someday you may join their ranks. I leave to you the power of a metronome and a tuner. They are great tools. Use them. 

To the Viola Section

Though I was unable to join your ranks this year, I enjoyed my time, though brief, with all of you. Your section is like a family. You welcome everyone with open arms. And hey! This year we actually had a viola section! More than two players! That in and of itself is a success. Keep up those sold off beats. You could teach the violin I section a thing or two when it comes to those (i.e. Mountain Spring). 

I leave you a challenge, make you choose to accept it: that someday, Harrison will yell at you for playing too loud. (Eddie I’m counting on you to lead the charge!)

Andrew: You are a pretty cool guy. You need to let more people see your sass. Thank you for tolerating my viola playing in Rosinance and in Chamber Orchestra. I’m sure you will be greatly missed in Jazz Band. I bestow upon you the confidence (aka the enormous head) of a violin.

To the Cello Section

I absolutely adore the cello. Though this may be betraying myself, it might even be my favorite string instrument. May you all have the passion Owen emulates when he performs. 

Sydney, Owen, and Matt: I have loved getting to know all of you. Like almost every composer, I’m too burnt out to write anything super inspiring for you guys. Blow everyone out of the water with your skill. I’d leave you a cannon, but I think Pachabel Cannon is enough cannon for a lifetime. 

P.S. Watch out Owen. Matt is coming for you. 

To the Bass Section

The bass players seem as cursed as the Dark Arts position in Harry Potter. I hereby lift that curse. May you have many great years in Chamber Orchestra. 

Ava: I leave the title of Head Orchestra Librarian & Mr. Harrison’s secretary. You have become one of my closest friends this year. I hope our friendship will continue beyond Charter. You are an incredible role model and I wish I was as strong as you. Don’t give up and never forget how many people love you. I sure do. Like Meghan Trainer, I’m “all about that bass.”

JAZZ BAND

I know I know I didn’t belong, but thank you for tolerating me. 

To the Saxaphone section: There’s this thing called practice. I don’t know if you've heard of it. Some of you do it. Others do not. You know who you are. 

To Tuggles: In the same way I started on the violin and switched to viola, you switched from flute to saxaphone. Except you’re actually good. Thank you for your talent and leadership. 

P.S. I give you permission to calf slap Shire whenever he’s being too egotistical. 

To Shane: We may have given you a hard time, but you’re pretty good. Don’t let Shire hog the spotlight. 

To the Trombones: How do you get a trombonist off your doorstep? Pay them for the pizza. Keep moving those hips. You can use them someday for extra tips. 

To Maria: I had to give up the title of Jezebel to somebody. You will do anything to get what you want, including being amazing at both the trumpet and the horn. May you seduce much beautiful music from your instruments. With great power comes great responsibility. Don’t let your place as first trumpet get to your head as it may have certain previous trumpets. 

To Spongebob: Thanks for keeping things interesting. I leave this meme--

To Maggie: Keep up the hard work. Don’t be afraid to play loud. That’s what trumpets do. You have a sweet spirit and I’m playing alongside you these last two years has been a blast. 

To Ryan: In orchestra, we have a saying: What does plucking mean? Don’t rush! I know you don’t pluck your instrument, but the piano is still a string instrument. Thus, I thought of a new saying: Don’t rush! Not everybody is as amazing as you and can play that fast. Your reptoidness only adds to your coolness. Also, one last time-- doo ba di bee dwee doo dahhh. Mwhahahaha

To Shire: I leave the title of Head of the Flumpet Section. I refuse to relinquish the title to Jacob’s annoying perfection. I’m excited to see the great things you will accomplish. As much as you like to show off, I know you can be too hard on yourself sometimes. If you are this incredible as a freshman, imagine how great you will be as a senior. Always remember: Don’t forget your flute at Honey. Or your folder. And please don’t forget me.

Isabel Bartosh

Let me first say that it has been an amazing year playing with you all. I think that this year has been my favorite year so far. I’ve loved every piece, every festival, every concert, and absolutely none of the sectionals. Thank you for an amazing year!

To the 1st Violins: Thank you for your diligence, your dedication, and your complete and utter cowardice when confronted with Jacob and his solos. Yes, he has worked incredibly hard and it shows. Yes, we all feel really, really, REALLY bad. Yes, he will probably get the solos, but that doesn’t mean you can’t at least try. It took me two years to get here, and you have all worked equally as hard. I congratulate all of you, and I thank you for a year of excellent memories.

To the 2nd Violins: Thank you for your role in the orchestra machine. To you, I give you a tuner and a metronome. Please….use them.;) Seriously though, you all play a very important part. I was you for most of my orchestra experience. It is sometimes discouraging when the firsts get all the melodies, but no piece sounds complete without you. Thank you for the hard work and growth you have all demonstrated this year. Don’t give up!

To the Violas:

To the Cellos: Amazing work this year! You all work incredibly hard and you (usually) sound incredible! Fight Owen! Descend into the ring of fire, it’s fun for everybody else to watch. And if you all remember your rockstops, you can accomplish some great things.

To the Basses: We have more than one of you!! That’s incredible! You guys have probably the most important part in the whole orchestra. You are our beat, and even though we will always ignore your frantic attempts to prevent us from rushing, we appreciate you.

To Rosinance:

Thank you for an incredible year. You have allowed me to grow so much, and I’ve had a ton of fun with you all. Thank you. Listen to Jacob and Owen.

One more thing to all of you….

PRACTICE YOUR SCALES!!!!

Luke Kendra

I have been in orchestra since the sixth grade, and over these years it has grown into something truly remarkable. There were other teachers that taught the lower orchestras before Mr. Harrison, while they were good they never had the same gusto as he did. Honestly, the class was a fun experience with a great atmosphere of people. Everybody wanted to be a part of the ensemble, to be a part of something bigger than just themselves. That was, and still is, the beauty of this music program. Now, sadly, I am leaving this place behind to achieve my dreams but I will not leave with leaving some words behind. 

I will start with the first violins. Jacob is always going to be a great violinist, but each of you has the possibility to reach him. Claire has always been really close on her chair challenges. Lauren, Kylie, and Abby have proved themselves to be in the first violins and they are all exceptional players. But honestly, for the love of God please de-throne Jacob (He is just too perfect sometimes). Also Lauren, Kylie, and Abby it was a blast playing with you in Slurrato, hopefully that continues into next year because that was a good experience. 

Now, time for the second violins. I don’t really have much to say other than to keep working on your rhythms and timing. Since that is out of the way, you did all come through in time for the concerts and that is what counts so well done. I won’t bash on you guys brutally because the viola section had some of the same flaws on our songs. I haven’t really known a lot of you for a while, but you all seem like cool people. Keep in mind to work hard because the effort that is put in is for something great.

The violas are going to get it now. I have been a viola player from the beginning, I didn’t switch from the violin. Andrew, you are a nice guy and great at playing viola. If you could be louder that would catapult the section into a whole other level. Keep showing up people with your belt stamps as well and make Mr. Harrison create more belts. Eddie, keep practicing and improving you will be able to move past me soon. I will change the WWLD over to WWED because we are the two loudest in the section. Sorry guys just facts. Also, you better make it into chamber orchestra next year because it would be a major loss if you had to go back down to symphonic strings. Teagan, it’s good to hear you are staying at Charter for high school hopefully you will be still playing the viola because the section needs as many people as possible. Alexa, I know you are not staying at Charter so it was a pleasure to know you before you left. You play better than you think especially with intonation, I hope you don’t fully abandon the viola because the better you get the more fun it becomes. Kalei, I never really asked what your plans were for high school but I hope you at least stay at Charter, it is a great experience. As for the viola hopefully you continue it because again we need more people in the section and you are a good player you just need time to grow. That goes with everyone else just keep on working, practicing, and playing the results will begin to show themselves. 

Finally onto the cellos. Owen keep slaying dude you sound really great and you got one more year so good luck to you. Matthew is just behind Owen and then Sydney. Honestly you are all very close in skill so keep up the good work. Ella, it was fun to play with you in slurrato hopefully that continues. You are very good at playing the cello so keep it up. Julian has some light-hearted humor mixed with good playing, it’s good your section has one of those people. The cello section has always been strong through the years and this year was no exception.

The experiences that I have had in this program are some of the most memorable. Mr. Harrison always has some of the most outrageous stories, but they always bring in some life lesson that people need to hear. Playing in an orchestra is about getting through the hard music, and overcoming that to make something truly breathtaking. I will say though that I was never a fan of the belt system. The highest belt I got was a purple belt, but I never got a green or a blue belt so I have no idea how that works. I only did the challenges so that my grade wouldn’t suffer. However, even though I was never on the ball with the stamps I still practiced and learned the music because that is where I had the most fun. If you think about it, stamps are great for self improvement but if that takes away from orchestra part mastery something is wrong. Overall, everything needs to be done in moderation make sure your grade is good and that you know the music well. The concerts are where you show off your mastery don’t be afraid to present yourself to the crowd, make them feel how much this moment in time means to you, how much music means to you.  

Zachary DeLuca

I have been in the Orchestra since sixth grade, but I did take a semester off so I could get my communications credit. After being in both drama and orchestra, I realized that drama is fun, but I would much rather be here in the orchestra. The people here, and the chief person (Harrison), and what we do make it all worth coming back. I’ve been a violin for most of the time but switched to the viola. I had thought to myself, “I’m tired of being last chair second violin, so I’ll go be last chair of a different section” I found that there are a lot of cool people in the violins and less in the violas, because, you know, there are less violas. But now I have to leave with the rest of the seniors and leave some things behind me. 

To the violas, my new section; I leave you with the inappropriate level of confidence that will lead you to a bright and hopefully louder future. Play out for the world to hear, and if you get it wrong, they will laugh at you and you will be twice as good next time. 

To Andrew; I wish you all the belts except the one I’m wearing. May you exhaust the colors that a rubber band can be printed in. I also impart to you the voice to lead you section for the rest of your days in the orchestra. 

To Eddie; I leave to you the tradition of finishing non related pieces with the classic “Shave and a haircut, two bits” 

To Luke; I leave to you the… wait. He’s coming with me, isn’t he?

To Alexa; Although you may be leaving, I hope you leave with all the fond memories and are able to forget SmartMusic. 

To Teagan; keep being fabulous. 

To Minni Merrifield; Sorry it took 3 and a half quarters of the school year to actually learn your name. 

To the second violins; May you have the competitive spirit that drives you up the section and into the firsts, by means of hours of practice or maybe, just maybe, sabotage. You will be told time and again you’re just as important, and sometimes that’s true. 

To Tristin; I was in the back of the violas without a real stand partner so you were the closest I had to a stand partner for most of the year. Keeping moving up the section, you’re doing good work and you have only one year left. 

To Ava; Being in the back was much cooler with you and Tristin around. Almost made me sad to get a higher chair. Keeping rockin on. 

To the cellos; Hi. Bye. Didn’t spend much time over there but you are all cool people.

To the first Violins; Hi. Bye. Didn’t spend much time over there but you seem like cool people.

To Lauren; Firstly, (Salutes) Quantify! I always appreciated your jokes and you have the spirit of a good spirit captain. Keep it up.

To whomever wrote the program for Bach to Rock; there were six people in Slurato, which isn’t a lot of names. Yet you left me off. Heck you. 

To Mr. Harrison; I leave to you the sanity and willpower to keep leading the program for as long as you can. This place wouldn’t be the same without you. Keep leading the program to greatness, and hopefully, you make it better every year. 

To the Orchestra; 

Abbi Frazier

To the Flutes, I will a tuner (even though you guys might not need it as much now that my elderly flute and I are gone)

To Megan, I will the patience to handle Tug and Shire for the next 3 years

To Shire, I will all the future solos, you’re awesome as a freshman, so I know you’ll only get better

To Tug, I will the patience to deal with charter’s questionable sound system for years to come, good luck

To the French horns, I will some sarcasm and dry humor, you’ll need it now that marisa is gone

To the Low brass, I will some weights, you can only do so many more pushups before they become too easy

To Next year's seniors, I will better organization skills than this years seniors had. Try to figure out the senior gift more than 2 nights before you need it.

To Mr. Harrison, I will good luck and patience, my brother’s headed your way next year, and trust me, you’ll need it

To everyone in band, I will all the love in the world, you guys are a great group of people and even though I’ve made it clear to everyone I could that I wasn’t sure why I kept coming back, I think it must’ve been all of you. Thanks for all the memories.

Kayliani Powlison

Hello Orchestra!

It’s been a wonderful time playing with you all! Before I begin I would like to say that I’m sorry if I forgot anyone, but I really enjoyed rehearsing and performing with all of you, and I wish you all the best in the future years in the orchestra. It’s grown so much and still has so much more room to grow, so continue to water it so that people will keep coming back and making beautiful music. (also if you couldn’t tell already, most of my sentiments are going to be train-of-thought, like this intro) 

Addressing the violin 1 section: viola jokes are only short and to the point so that you can understand them. You can play high notes? Sure, impressive. What’s more impressive? A good viola player. (hint hint nudge nudge join the viola section it’s actually super fun) But in all seriousness, I must congratulate all of you on how well all of you sound. I remember a few years back, not having the kind of sound ya’ll have. It’s amazing the effect a few inspired musicians can have on a whole section, right! Good job! 

Addressing the violin 2 section: kind of a serious piece of advice--I was a third violin once, then a second violin, three years of remaining a second violin, being a first violin for three years, and being a viola for 2 years. it really taught me that every part is super important. I know the second violin section gets a lot of crap for not playing well or not knowing their part, but this year you proved the stereotypes WRONG. Keep doing that! Work hard and know that you’re just as important, if not MORE important than the first violins. 

Addressing the cellos: cello is such a beautiful instrument and I’m sure all of you are aware of this. Don’t let Owen and Sydney take the cake and credit. I want all of you to beat each other up and fight for the first chair spot. Fight for chairs, because that’s one of the most effective ways to get better and make your section sound better. Truth. 

Addressing the basses: I tried playing the bass back in 7th and 8th grade... needless to say the bass isn’t my instrument, but I’m impressed that you are able to play it so well. And for both of you to be brand-new with it this year is super impressive, so round of applause to the basses, who have easy parts to play but a difficult job to do. 

Addressing the violas: I know we didn’t really get many chances to have long conversations but I feel like I got to know each of you very well. As a violinist squeezing her way into the viola section, I can proudly say my bias has changed from violin to viola. Keep playing confidently because I know each and every one of you is super talented and can do it! I know it’s cheesy but because there are so few of you, you need to support each other and keep playing really well! Work hard and be the best section, because that will make me super happy and it will make Mr. Harrison happy. So, I will to you the strength and motivation to continue being awesome! 

To Clare, Imelda, and Isabel: You guys are so talented. Working with all of you in Rosinance was so fun! You’ve improved so much in your playing, and you’re getting stronger every day! 

Because 4 of us are leaving, it’s up to you to pick up the slack and carry the group through. It’s such a cool opportunity to have a chamber group at Charter, so grasp the opportunity and work hard! Good luck :D 

To Jacob: I remember back in my 8th grade year when you were my stand partner in the 1st violin section, and you were so tiny. You were the only dude in the first violin section so choreography was awkward and fun, and it was always such a blast to perform. Even with your year of absence, you still had a place in our orchestra and even though we seniors have our seniority over you, you’re so smart and knowledgeable and passionate about violin, so I will you to take charge of the orchestra and take care of your section. They’re going to be out for blood these next years, so stay on your toes! I also will to you an alter ego that simply sucks at playing violin (like the person that came out of the shadows in The Children’s Hour) so that people see your flaws. Just kidding, we know you aren’t perfect. Really though, you can loosen up a bit. 

To Lauren: I don’t know you super well but your constant flow of positive energy kept the class in high-spirits, and your really lame jokes made me smile on slow mornings. Thank you for being so awesome! I have nothing to will to you other than an “eternalizer” to keep the positive energy flowing! 

To Ethan: ...You’re a weird nut. Along with Lauren, you really give personality to the orchestra and make people super confused with everything you say, but we need that. I will to you some sanity but not too much sanity, because we need your insanity. 

To Noah: You’re incredibly funny, but I don’t know if the rest of the orchestra knows that. You’re amazing at trumpet and French horn but the bass really suits you too. I will to you permanent residency in the orchestra, at least mentally, because you became our resident bass player. Thank you for being so competent and sharing your wisdom with us! 

To Sierra: You’re really an amazing personality. Sunny and bright and silly, you made playing in Jazz all the more fun. Please stay playing bass because you’re very good at it, and you’ll continue to get better. Everyone loves a great bass player. Continue being who you are! I will to you jazzy skills to help you through jazz, because I believe you can do it! 

To Owen: I know you’ll miss my constant presence, so I will to you 1,000,000,000 strums on your cello so that you may never catch up to me. Youŕe a super talented, passionate cellist and I mean that from the bottom of my heart. Don’t ever stop playing for some other endeavor or I will be out for blood. Youŕe too good to stop. Join another quartet for state, because you did so well with it this year. You’re going places, kid. I’m super jealous that you get to play the instrument I’ve always wanted to play, and you play it incredibly well. You have so many years to perfect your craft, so take your time but work hard. Good luck! 

To Sydney: You and I, we go back. Dancing together in the empty band room during the drama party after Once Upon a Mattress. Sharing experiences at Lindsey Stirling and the Beatles Tribute... I’m going to miss high school orchestra road trips and swimming in the hotel pools, eating meals together and getting excited over choreography. I’m super proud of you and wish you the best. I will to you all of the good memories we had together and all of the laughs we shared. Thank you for being such a great friend and essential part of the orchestra!! Love you Syd :’) 

To Hailey: I had such a blast with you in jazz this year, and I’m very pleased with your decision to switch over to viola in orchestra. You had better stay in jazz, because we need to preserve the violin legend in the band. You wouldn’t believe how refreshing it is for judges and other jazz musicians to see a violinist. I will to you the motivation and confidence to solo in jazz. Volunteer to solo, because I was constantly afraid to. Buy yourself an electric violin, because 1. Theyŕe pretty awesome and 2. It’s important to have in the jazz band. You picked up the viola so quickly and that’ll really help you in improving on your playing, as it is indeed a more difficult instrument to play. Good luck and have fun! 

To Eddie: Dude, you’ve got so much going for you. You’re just so cool and relaxed, and you’ve got a lot of potential. I’ve heard you play your viola, and itś beautiful. Play strongly though, and you’ll go far. I believe in you and your ability to rock the viola section. You’ve got this!!! I will to you the confidence of a violinist on steroids so that all the audience can hear is Eddie, Eddie, EDDIE! Haha, but really, you made my last year at Charter a fun one, so continue to mentor those coming in next year and help them to have a good time as well! B-) 

To Kaija: You’re so sweet. For you Kaia, I will you the perseverance to stay sweet and really showcase your sweetness in expressive playing. You’ve got a lot in you, just play everything like you’re a seasoned professional, work hard, and fake your way through it. I know that you, along with all of the other violists, will do amazing in the future so be sure to reserve a spot for me in your future viola solo showcase! 

To Zach: You are one funny guy. Thanks for joining the viola section, you really amped up our sound! Once you join us, I warn you, you mustn’t leave. I will to you the positivity of a proton, because you have a mighty power in keeping the section glued together and charged with super ultra hyper mega awesomeness! WOo! 

To Andrew: I’m no longer going to be the first violist, so it’s your chance to step up to the plate. Our section is super strong, and they’ll definitely challenge you for the right to be in your seat. I know you can do so much, Andrew. You’re so talented and have such a drive and motivation to improve. I honestly wish I had that. By the end of high school, I know you’ll be even better than you are now and you’ll have so much more confidence. Everyone loves to hear the sound of a viola, and I definitely want to hear your growth in a few years! Keep working hard and remember to never be afraid to speak-up when you have an idea or advice. I’m going to miss being your stand partner and helping each other out with bowings and shifts. I will to you my chair and the power or the first violist, and let me tell you: this power is one to be reckoned with. 

Louisa Bresee

To the Violins - I give you a big group hug and seven years worth of memories. You guys are seriously the best, and I am going to miss each of you. 

To the Cellos - Beware! The Symphonic Cellos are out for blood and they are competitive. What a culture shock that will be! 

To the Violas - I give you a saucy vibrato (to make up for years of Kayli’s slow and wide vibrato). Also, I give you the ability to play the solo at the beginning of Dvorak’s American Quartet, because it is one of the only viola solos worth listening to (viola jokes are unavoidable). 

To the Basses - I give you a mirror so we can double how many of you there are (pun intended) To Sydney - I give you a camera roll and the official position of class photographer. Also, I give you permission to delete all the awkward photos you have of me...lol 

To Owen - I give you the knowledge that I think you are better at cello than Margaret (SHHHH...dont tell her) Also, don't be contented with 2nd chair! 

To Andrew - You don’t really need anything... but could I have some of your perseverance? Also, I give you the happy confidence Kayli had for leading her section. You are going to do great! 

To the multi-talented Kylie and Kaija- I give you the responsibility of next year’s choreographed piece. Have fun and keep making it better! 

To Lauren - I give you a high five. Thanks for keeping it light-hearted amongst us serious orchestra kids. Also, I nominate you spirit captain again. 

To Hailey and Isabel - I give you some medicine to help with the inevitable Senioritis of the next year. FYI, You don’t need to actually do any work senior year, just don’t pull a Brittany and not come to class... 

To Clare Dolan - I don't really understand you. Your sarcasm really makes me laugh though I still remember when you told the whole class that your favorite word was “bush.” 

To Jacob - I give you some imperfection because sixteenth note runs don’t always have to be perfect!!! Also I give you the courage to tackle Zigeunerweisen. You got this! Also, be very afraid of Clare... she's coming for you. 

To Clare Freeman - REMEMBER WHAT I TOLD YOU. Don’t let Jacob be 1st for the next two years. Also, I want you to come to University of Mary with me... Go Marauders! 

To Imelda - Here is my advice to you. Try not to get too annoyed with Maria while I am gone. And work on staying up past 10:00, because that’s what successful adults do. Keep the van clean and make sure not to leave for school past 7:30 or Pius will get nervous and start running to class. Get your license as soon as you can so you can take over my job as taxi driver. Don’t do basketball if you hate it, and work on talking to people in gas stations so you can become less awkward like me. 

Brittany Davis

To the 1st Violins - Keep doing what you’re doing. Don’t be afraid of Jacob. Yes, his fingers have been blessed by the violin gods but he wasn’t born playing the violin (to my knowledge). You can and will get there too. I give you some metronomes because you’re not too good for slow practice. Listen to the other sections, they are equally as important. 

To the 2nd Violins - You rock! I was a second violin for more time than I was a first. I give you a tuner and sheet music of scales and arpeggios because they will help you more than you know. Don’t get so caught up in trying to be a first that you forget the importance of your part. Lauren and Kylie, you were great examples of how dedicated and hardworking a second violinist should be. In call and response sections, play LOUDER than the firsts. I dare you. 

To the Violas - You majestic beings you. I think we can all agree that violas are the most majestic instrument in the orchestra. You are more than your viola jokes. I give you rosin because we all want to hear you more! The orchestra needs you and we thank you for putting up with us. 

To the Cellos - You play such an important role in the orchestra. You sound beautiful when you watch your half steps. I leave you the fire and drive to have some healthy competition. Maybe come for Owen and Sydney a little bit? Don’t be afraid of them, they can take it! 

To the Basses - A big thank you! I know you are capable of much more than what is written on your page. Thank you for your patience when Mr. H is working with the other sections and thank you for sticking with us! 

To Rosinance - To all of those who are and will be in Rosinance, have fun! Work hard. I encourage you to find outside gigs. My junior year we played for a wedding and I think i’ll remember that forever. I hope you have the chance to experience something like that! 

To Hailey and Isabel - You’re seniors! You made it and i’m so incredibly proud of you. May you have the wisdom and patience of Mr. Harrison to direct the orchestra. 

To Jacob - You’ve come out of your shell a lot since we began and I hope to see that even more. Follow your heart. Don’t be afraid of pursuing a career centered in music if that’s what’s itching in the back of your mind. You have what it takes. 

To Clare Freeman and Imelda - Don’t be afraid of Jacob. He doesn’t bite. 

To Lauren and Kylie - I welcome you into the 1st violins. Your hardwork will pay off in ways you don’t expect. Great job this year being such go getters, i’m proud of you. You’ll improve your shifting a lot by being in the firsts. We’re glad to have you. You earned it. 

To Clare Dolan - Thanks for making me laugh when Louisa had her moments. I really needed that. To Lance - Your hard work does not go unnoticed. (Here is me noticing it). Keep it up! 

To Andrew - I give you confidence and the strength to lead the violas. You are now their leader and they need you. Don’t be afraid to speak up. 

To Sydney and Owen - I would say maybe challenge each other a little more but at this point, I think it’s kinda the cellos thing to be so chill. 

To Sierra and Noah - Thank you for keeping the orchestra together. I know you’re capable of much more than what is written in your part but I thank you for sticking with it and being our human metronomes. 

To Mr. Harrison - Thank you for everything. You and a handful of friends kept me at charter. You keep so many others at Charter and do more for the school than half the teachers combined. I sincerely hope the administration is able to see what an asset you are and how many kids are here because of you. 

Addressing Chamber Orchestra, I really enjoyed my time with you guys. I have so many great memories from orchestra I will carry with me. There will be highs and lows in your time at Charter. Let orchestra be something you can always count on being fun and lifting you up. Dream big. You all have what it takes to pursue your dreams. Don’t let fear get in the way of what you want to do. In all seriousness, sit up straight, watch your half steps, use a metronome, practice vibrato correctly and don’t be afraid to seek help when you need it. 

Best of luck, Brittany 

Marie Zaragoza 

To Sydney, I leave a role as a bridesmaid at my wedding to You-Know-Who and countless pictures to remember all of the special memories. 

To Andrew, I leave special moments in music. I always looked forward to the part in the octet where we played a duet and we looked up to stay in sync and that experience will stay with me. 

To Jacob, I leave the role of “Orchestra Theatrical Antics Leader.” I know you have it in you; just channel the grandpa. Your talents on the violin are remarkable and I am so excited to see you exercise your potential in all aspects. 

To the upperclassmen of next year, I leave the charge of inspiring the next generation of Charter musicians. Forging bonds beyond the music really makes all the difference and keeps people coming back. 

Though I don’t have the fortitude to write something for each of you, I want you all to know that you have touched my life in ways I am sincerely grateful for. Thanks for not killing me when I got too bossy during the choreography. I wish you all the best of luck in the music room and out of it. 

Robyn Vest

I, Robyn Vest inscribe this senior will to bestow my valuables unto thine younger students. These students have proven their worthiness through the year.

1)Dental floss: I bestow this dental floss to Marie. Marie, love the dance, but that is not what flossing is. Practice with this.

2) University of Idaho Sticker: I bestow this U of I sticker to Jackson Emery because he wanted it. Jackson, use this wisley.

3) Scissors: I bestow these scissors to Mason. I hope you know what to do with these. If you don’t look at your hair.

4) Rope: I bestow this rope to Evan. Hopefully this can keep your feet together while directing breathing gym.

5) Glow Stick: I bestow this glowstick to Lawson so that his voice isn’t the only thing cracking.

6) Picture of the Sunset: I bestow this picture of a sunset to Jorden to remind him that his playing sounds like a sunset.

7) (not in box) My Folder: I bestow upon Lawson my old band folder #2. Mr. Harrison, make sure he gets it!!

8) Melted Ice: I bestow this ice that is probably melted by now, to Mr. Harrison to keep is head cool.

9) Padded Baton: I bestow this baton to Mr. Harrison as a gift to the flutes of future generations. If this falls out of your hand it should fly with grace and gently kiss a flute on the face as if a cloud fell upon them. 

10) Duct Tape: I bestow this piece of duct tape to Asher. Hopefully he can use it to keep his mouth shut. Also use this to tape your folder to your hand so you'll never lose it. 

11) Not in box: Brandon, I’m bestowing upon you the ability to sit upright

12) Ear Plugs: there you go Dana. You no longer have to suffer from Tugs piccolo

13) Diamond: I beetow diamond to Jackson Emery. Good luck finding a place to put this, it is yours. You can do what you will with it. Donate it to someone else? Maybe Mr. Harrison wants to keep it?? Trash? Secretly keep it in your closet, I don't care. You're welcome. 

Maya Zollman

To Jade I will a will to live lol. And Jennifer.

To Olivia I will whipping and doing the hit it dance thing (does it even have a name? hmm) at odd and unexpected times.

To Dana I will a waffle maker and the will to make it to class. And a long happy life full of no broken reeds.  

To Brandon I will you the self control to stop playing when Mr. Harrison is talking.

To trombones everywhere I will the quarter of sixth grade that I played one back to my life span.

To the sax section I will health and prosperity now that your weakest link (me) is gone (and also we lost some weight at semester so that’s a plus).

To Mr. Harrison I will the new tenor reed I found from like 5 years ago when my brother played. I also will you the title of honorary senior because my 6th grade year was your first year here too. (also no meth) 

Sasha Westly

To my current flute section - I bestow a hug. Seriously, you guys are easily the best flute section I’ve ever been a part of, and it’s been a real honor to be able to be your leader. Thank you for all the amazing musical experiences we’ve all shared (and been awesome in) together.

To the flutes coming into Wind Ensemble next year - I bestow a tuner. PLEAASSEEE learn how to use it. But I also warmly welcome to join our flute family. But remember… no fighting :)

To Jackson Emery - I bestow a special privilege. If for any reason we end up with TWO piccolos that play the same part in Wind Ensemble next year… you have my permission to… oh, how do I put this… Avada Kedavra them. Just kidding… try to train them first, or introduce them to the piccolo rotating method we developed, or buy everyone earplugs… but if things get ear-bleeding………. 

To Robyn Vest - I bestow a polaroid camera with infinity film cartridges. Next year, every time Jackson makes a weird/funny/crazy face, take a picture. I’ll be eager to see how thick the scrapbook gets. 

To Mr. Harrison - I bestow a pineapple… with a trumpet… and a baton… and SUNGLASSES… and the Starbucks Logo… Omi someone please make this happen. It could be our mascot!! Move over dancing Santa xD Sunglasses Pineapple is stealing the show.

To the Trombone section - I bestow a magical mute. When you put it in your trombone… no one can hear you at all. Oh who am I kidding. Knowing you guys, the only reason we won’t hear anything is because we will all be deaf by then. I guess I’ll just bestow the award for “best, loudest(est…. est….est) forte.

To all the people who didn’t try Spamwiches that time we all made them two years ago - I bestow a can of spam. TRY IT… IT’S AN AMAZING PROCESSED CHEMICAL MASTERPIECE.

To the Saxophone section - I bestow a roll of duct tape. I think you know what to do with it.

To the Saxophone section - I bestow a punishment neck strap that slaps the wearer in the face when they forget their own. I think you know what to do with it.

To Evan Cameron and Kaitlyn Koch - I bestow some librarian glasses - the kind with the golden chain and rims you can stare over at people. Next time someone turns in their music late or damaged, give them the intimidating librarian stare of shame. Seriously though, thank you so much for all your hard work and organization this year :)

To Mr Harrison - I bestow a wand with a magnetic handle. Once you receive a magnetic implant in your right hand… you will never drop your baton into the flute section again. xD

To my Potterhead flute section - I bestow a commemoration drawing of our section - wearing Hogwarts robes and waving piccolos as wands. Jackson - you’re gonna be a Slytherin. (btw I actually WILL draw this sometime early summer and show you guys… when I find the time xD)

Finally - to all our band - I bestow my blessing. These past years have been an incredible experience - getting to know you guys as we all grew to an amazing musical greatness. Considering how high the bar is right now, I have no doubts that there will soon come a time when our band will become famous for it’s greatness, even more well know locally (and nationally?) than we are now. And, of course, I offer a hundred… no thousand… no INFINITY thanks to you, Mr. Harrison, for leading us, and helping us grow to into the amazing ensemble we have become.

Rachel Callister

To the wind ensemble-

To Isaac, I leave a book of easy piano songs so he can play something other than Don't Stop Believing

To the flute section, I leave a set of tuners

To Ben, I also leave a tuner so he can stop stealing Peter's

To the percussion section, I leave a deck of cards so they can entertain themselves during all the rests and boring parts

To the saxophones, I'm guessing someone has already left you neck straps, so I leave you a sharpie to label the neck straps

To the trumpets, I leave some helium so maybe they can play those higher notes (wait does that work with instruments?)

To the clarinets I leave some WD 40. It's supposed to help with squeaking

To the bass gang, I leave you the trombone's attitude. Maybe it will make you play as loud as them

To the trombones, I leave permanent mutes, and maybe something to help with the tone

To the French horns I leave towels so they'll stop emptying their spit valves all over the floor

To Mr. Harrison, I leave some finished government conspiracy theories.  I won't be around to finish his ________.

To the entire band, I leave lots of love and all the best wishes

To the chamber orchestra-

To the violas, I leave a set of microphones so people can actually hear them

To the cellos, I leave end pin anchors. We never seem to have enough

To Owen, I leave a chill pill. I figured since you always took what I said personally, I'd say something that was actually meant to be taken personally

To the basses, I leave a vacuum for their three octave scales because they need to just suck it up. I also leave them permission to dab every time the orchestra gets to measure 193.

To the second violins, I leave tuners. Lots of them

To all the violins, I leave a fire extinguisher so that we never have to deal with the ring of fire again

To the first violins, I leave a ladder. They can't seem to reach anything high on their own

To Marie, Brittany, Louisa, and Kayliani, I leave luck and patience for leading the group

To Mr. Harrison, I leave large print versions of all his scores because he would never bring himself to get glasses but he can't see the scores as well as he used to

To the entire orchestra, I leave lots of love and all the best wishes

To Cadet Strings-

To the entire orchestra, I leave tuners, metronomes and peg drops. I don't care how good you think you are, you all still need these! I also leave a giant neon sign that says posture so you remember to sit correctly every second of orchestra.

To the violas, I leave a high five. You guys are probably the loudest viola section I've ever heard. Keep up the good work

To the violins, I leave lots of tape. In the coming years you are going to have to shift higher than you e ever wanted to and you'll need all the help you can get.

To the cellos, I leave ice cubes. Most of the cellist need to chill a little more. Specifically for Julian, Joey, Ava, and Maya, I leave extra strength chill pills. I love you all to death, but sometimes you need to calm down.

To the nonexistent bass section, I leave my favoritism. If you want to be my favorite, learn bass. I'm just kidding, I love you all, but please, don't let the orchestra be bass-less. That would break my heart.

To Mr. Harrison, I leave a marshmallow gun to replace his nerd gun.  If he chooses to shoot a student, he then has to deal with that student hyped up on sugar. Choose wisely when you want to use your ammo.

To the entire orchestra, I leave lots of love and all the best wishes

Andre Maldonado

Mr Harrison- I leave you with a vacuum of power where my dynasty ends.

Caleb "Lub" Groover- I grant you the responsibility of boi-ing anyone who does anything wrong (or right) and of doing the vibrato hands when saxes play. Make sure Lawrence eats his vegetables and does his scales. I hope that with my passing you actually warm up instead of playing scales and that thing from The Grand Russian Fantasia

Noah Reason- I grant you the privilege of taking all of Lub's solos at your whim, roasting him when he plays a fall where there is none written and roasting him when he plays that excerpt from The Grand Russian Fantasia. Also talk with Merrick next year about Radiohead because he is the one of 4 people I know who is literate on the subject. You also have the duty to do the vibrato hands.  Also don't let Lub use a harmon on Autumn Leaves

Lawson "Lawrence" Vest- I hereby forbid you from mentioning cupcakes or raccoons, and the punishment for such a crime is 50 lashings in the town square. It is your duty to make Lub put a quarter in a jar every time he says his chops are tired.

Lucas Cheeley- ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Mason Oyler- Please stop playing the vibes when Mr. H talks or he'll throw something

Flute Section- Learn to double tongue ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Sax Section- blah blah blah neckstrap blah blah blah use a tuner blah blah blah Isaac blah blah blah playing Don't Stop Believing during study lab doesn't count as practicing blah blah

Olivia Chang- I know my will isn't that sentimental (>.<) it's my fault, I'll do a better job next time p.s keep boppin to shakira

Dylan "It's Dylan!" Mcaughan- I hereby grant you the right to duct tape Isaac's or Lawson's mouths if they get out of hand.

Ben Zepeda- I'm glad that we could make the jump from just acquaintances to just friends. In honor of our progress I leave you -- for college

Dana Nicol- Seize the memes of production; the ends justify the memes

Horn Section- Play louder in tune

Clarinets- Play louder and in tune

Low brass- Play quieter in tune (except tubas, play louder)

Any future trumpets- Squeezing out a high C once doesn't mean you can play a high C, in jazz the stand should be below your knees, BELL ANGLES, if the director isn't telling you to play quieter you're not playing loud enough, take big breaths always no matter how little you play, if you say your chops are tired everyday then you should rethink how good you think you are

Future band students- Don't talk while the teacher is talking, learn your part BEFORE the concert and always practice

Tyler Ulrich

• 1.To Mr. Harrison: I leave you a baton that -- just kidding, you don’t get a baton because you might throw it at someone and give them PTSD for the rest of their life. Charter is bad enough for mental health. We don’t need batons or chairs adding to the stress. ;-) I leave you a deep breath, my friend. You will need it. We all do. 

• 2.To Mason: I leave you the Jazz Band rhythm section. Merry Christmas, you can play Symphony in Riffs to your heart’s desire... I also leave you the strength to drive both ensembles for the next four years, because that is the job of a percussionist. I leave you the responsibility of providing candy for the section, because we all know percussion is the coolest section and we can eat stuff without ruining our instruments. I leave you the responsibility of tormenting Asher each day. Perhaps keep extra copies of his music, so that on dress rehearsals, he will still have music to read. Lastly, I leave you with a thank you. You have been an awesome percussion comrade during my last year here, and I will truly miss ya. 

• 3.To Asher: Oh Asher... You sometimes make me wish I was actually dead. ;) Jkjk. l leave you Mason, so that you will actually learn your parts and have copies of your music, because you clearly cannot do that on your own. I leave you a pair of xylophone mallets so you can stop stealing mine. I leave you a bottle of chill pills, because you are the most disruptive person in band. Anddd, I will also leave you with a thank you. You always cheered me up with your insanity and bipolar humour. Have fun without me, and don’t quit percussion! 

• 4.To Lucas: Hey wassup brah. 8) I leave you a marimba -- oh wait, I guess you already have one of those at home? I leave you the sanity to deal with Mason and Asher and whoever else comes your way in life. I leave you the permission to bully Asher and Mason, because I will only be able to from a distance now. I leave you the good percussion parts, because tbh this year you kinda got screwed over with the parts, and that’s partially my fault. I leave you with the suggestion to STAY in band! It wouldn’t have been the same without you this year; don’t rob your future percussionists that opportunity. And I suppose I’ll leave you with a thank you as well. Thanks Lucas, for being the one who I could share my silent judgements with when no one else in band seemed sane anymore. Good luck with the rest of high school. :-) 

• 5.To the flute section: I honestly have no idea what you guys sound like, so. I leave you with self-confidence. 

6. To Isaac: Now, I’m sure you have been roasted in several ways in the other senior wills, so I will compliment you. No matter how bad you are at playing bass drum, no matter how much you don’t listen when a skilled percussionist gives you percussion advice, no matter how much you talk out of turn...you are still a wonderful person and I wouldn’t have wanted my senior year in band without you. :-) I leave you the suggestion of never playing percussion again, and I leave you with advice: never stop being you. 

• 7.To Evan: I leave you with a thank you for your sass. Sass is very important to me. I also leave you with patience. You can decide how to use that. 

• 8.To the trumpet section: Good luck without Andre, lol. 

• 9.To the trombone/euph section: I leave you with the reminder of Will’s beautiful belly-dancing. May that forever be burned into your memory. You guys sound awesome when you play too loud, so keep doing that.

• 10.To the clarinet section: I don’t really know what to leave you guys... I guess I can just suggest that you practice more. ;) 

• 11.To the tubas: You guys rock. I leave Ben with a judgemental look, because he is always so happy and chipper. I don’t understand your species. 

• 12.To the french horn section?: You keep up the good work. Or something.

13. To the band: Well, my job here is done. I leave you all with the energy to continue striving musically and the happiness to have fun through all of it. 

William Hust

To the wind ensemble I leave my most prized position, My whey protein as reminder to never take yourself too seriously.

To Dylan I leave a can of smoked oysters since he has no taste much like myself he will probable enjoy them.

To Isaac, All the seniors have decided to throw shade your way so I leave you a lantern so you may make it through the darkness of what is to come.

To robin I leave you a name tag because I forgot your name a lot.

To Caleb I leave my pink guy suit since he can apreciate it and would actually wear it unlike trever.

To Trevor I leave a salad in the shape of a T to remind him that he isn't the best and to give him greatness to strive for.

To Even I leave my gospel and my holey authority to be the reverend if he so chooseth.

To Ben I leave my Skype username, hustachio , stay in touch bruh.

To Mr. Harrison I leave some anger issues since mean Harrison gets results.

To Brandon I leave some shades, keep it cool brootha.

Chris Samson

To the Entire Wind Ensemble, I leave a bag of lollipops because you all suck, but are sweet in your own ways.

To Trevor McKinley, I leave a dictionary so that you can learn to not just speak in quotes. I also leave you the confidence to lead the trombone section through the tough songs in jazz band. I hope you stick with the jazz band through your last year. I would leave you “leadership skills”, but I think you already got it. 

To Gabe Reese, I leave a stepladder so that you can see everyone else over your huge ego. 

To Dylan McCaughan, I leave an alarm clock so you can remember to go to friggin’ sectionals. I bestow unto you my curse of getting sick during solo/ensemble every year. 

To Jade Mokry, I leave a bullhorn in hopes that it will make you play louder.

To Benjamin Zepeda, I leave my meme collection in the hopes that you learn what funny jokes are. Tubba tubba…

To Anthony Critelli, I leave the patience needed to deal with Mr. Harrison’s shenanigans. 

To Mason Oyler, I leave a metronome so that you can practice playing in time.

To Asher Chivvis, I leave the TV series Malcolm in the Middle in the hopes that you reunite with your twin brother Frankie Muniz.

To Noah Reason, I leave my “Once Upon a Mattress” script with all of the sexual innuendos written in the margins. I also leave my “____er, I hardly know her” jokes to you, hoping that you will keep the joke alive. I have trained you well, young Padawan. 

To Kevin Eaton, I leave an ice cream cone because of how much you play the lick.

To Isaac Lawrence, I leave you a handbook of proper talking etiquette: when to talk and when not to. There’ll be a few back-up staples in the back in case you can’t keep your mouth closed.  

To Lucas Cheeley, I leave you a pair of socks because… well, we all know why. 

To Evan Cameron, I leave my special number 6. Take good care of it, buddy. 

Words of Wisdom to future Trombone Sections: Jenny Kellogg once said, “Trombones have no excuse for being out of tune, because they can instantly tune every note.” Keep that in mind. Playing trombone requires a strong ear for tuning. Also, tonguing is a universal rule. Almost every note, even in slurs, need some tongue. 

Jillian Wurmlinger

Dear Charter musicians,

My time has surprisingly come to wish you all farewell. It’s been a fantastic 4 years in this amazing program. Before I depart from you, however, there are a few things I’d like to leave a few individuals with. To my fellow clarinets, I wish you all the best of luck in concerts in years to come. I also leave Katelyn and Olivia to be the responsible ones here(maybe not Katelyn cause at times she doesn’t show for sectionals...PLEASE DON’T HATE ME KATELYN) Oh and Katelyn...I know I am actually the person who inspired you to be a better clarinet-player so I’m just gonna take credit for all your accomplishments. Without my existence, you wouldn’t have been so moved to actually practice your butt off that one summer. To Evan, I leave better functioning clarinet pieces, and not those darn wood pieces that totally don’t match with your clarinet very well...sorry not sorry. Take your attitude with you man and do me a favor and “shaddup.” To Dana, I must say you are quite a giggly person in band, and half the time I didn’t even know what you’re giggling about. To Lauren my section mate-in-crime, I wish you lots of luck and wisdom to be able to jump to the top and entirely wipe-out the others with your awesome future playing. Now for the others...Issac. You knew this was coming. I leave to you multiple copies of the sheet music for “When the teacher speaks.” To Trevor...please unleash your inner “Will Hust” when it comes to playing trombone. To Caleb, I leave a lot of cliche trumpet phrases for you to play during class when Mr. Harrison makes a funny joke, or when someone horribly fails at doing something. Unfortunately, I can’t roast everyone individually...so I’ll roast you all together. Remember kids that band is a place to make good music...not to one-up each other(Unless Lord Harrison wills it). Band is not a popularity contest, so do me a favor and don’t act so stuck-up based on your skillset compared with others. Never judge a person’s skill level and match it with their age. So on a more serious “note” AHAAAA...ok seriously no more puns...Remember to keep practicing and keep growing as wonderful musicians because we’re all capable of making music in our own way! Don’t be afraid to try something new and put yourself out there! I’ll leave you with one of my favorite quotes about music: “We’re all afraid, you know...to get up on stage. Maybe you’ll mess up. Maybe they’ll totally reject you. Even so, you grit your teeth and get up on stage anyway. Something compels us...moves us to play music.” Again...thank you all so much for everything. I will miss most of you all very dearly, and maybe one day in the future I may just pop-back in and say hello for the heck of it. I also want to leave one last thank you to Mr. Harrison for being one of the coolest teachers at Charter I know! PEACE OUT BAND NERDS! 

Margaret Bresee

Brittany: You don’t need anything, so I give Clarisse the talent that Alex’s violin has. Try to measure up.

Kayli: *thumps hand under chin*  I never thought I would befriend a violist. 

Marie: I can’t give you the ability to beat Louisa, but I can guarantee that Anna Black can. 

Rachel: No you cannot have my cello bow. Yes you can have my amazing ability to play all the rhythms perfectly. It’s a talent few have. 

Louisa: Jacob is coming. Because a 9th grader can beat a senior. 

Imelda: You can have the ability to beat Louisa.

To the bassists: I give you a handful 32nd notes. Just enough to make y’all actually practice. Use them wisely, they are the only ones you’ll get. 

To the violinists: I give you a handful of whole notes. Yea, go look them up in a dictionary, they are the one note that is possible to play in tune. 

To the violists: I give you all the abilities that Andrew has. Yes, I have all of those abilities.

Aww.. my cello section. . .

Sydney: I bequeath to you first chair. I also give you my cello case. I will make the sacrifice and take yours. You also need my natural ability to be always prepared. Everyone knows that you only look like you have it together.

Owen:  I guess you get first chair too. Just don’t pull the “who cares my ego isn’t wounded approach.” Because it was then and it will be again.  I’ll give you a mute too. To hush up both vocal and instrumental noises you attempt to create.  I can just picture Emma saying “good thing that loud mouth is at the back of the section. As usual, he doesn’t have his music either.” (Can you understand this sarcasm?) Don’t be surprised if you find your cello suddenly gone. It will happen. 

Matthew: I give you my natural ability to beat Owen, because I know you have been scheming to all year. First chair is up for grabs, every other cellist I know can’t do it.

Emma, Danielle, Sydney and Matthew: There is a disease that comes from the “Celloset.” Symptoms include an inability to go in and come out with your cello efficiently.  It got bad when you could not even put your chairs and stands away at the end of class. (Ask Razzy). As a cure, I give you the room two feet away.  Owen needs the friends. 

I will miss my freshman cellists (and Matt) a ton. Keep up the good work and, here’s an idea, stamps earn chairs, so actually try (take it from the expert...ha). 

Mr. Harrison: The gray area says that I earned a black belt. I sure will miss those Smartmusic Challenges to get there then. You are responsible for every. single. one of  the unforgettable musical experiences I have had at Charter. I wish there was an adequate way to thank you, because I would already have it done.