Marching Band Members and Parents,
I hope everyone has been having a relaxing start to the summer and enjoying some well deserved time off! As announced at Info Night, this is the first season where we've been fortunate to have 4 weeks in between the end of school and the start of July rehearsals. 2 weeks down, 2 to go, keep enjoying it!
This update contains some information on a handful of major schedule changes, DCI Group Ticket details, and the current draft of the FULL SHOW AUDIO for the Hornline and Battery. Please read all the words!
Registration Reminders - Everything is due by 8/1!
ALL INSTRUCTIONS CAN BE FOUND HERE IN THE REGISTRATION INSTRUCTIONS UPDATE.
Before anything else, it is absolutely imperative that everyone take the proper steps to get registered ASAP! We are ALREADY LESS THAN ONE MONTH FROM THE DUE DATE of 8/1! Genesis, Physical, Activity Fee.
Schedule Changes
All changes to the original schedule can be found in the document on our website and Google Drive. Changes in that document are in red. Below is a summary of the changes.
Additionally, all changes have been updated in our Google Calendar - click here to add this to your own calendar!
Tuesday, July 30th - Rehearsal CANCELLED. Optionally, attend purchase discounted group tickets to attend the Drum Corps International Show in Newark Delaware. Details are in the next section!
Band Camp
Rehearsal Friday 8/23: added to Band Camp Week 1, because...
Rehearsal Thursday 8/29: removed from Band Camp Week 2, because...
The first football game has been rescheduled to Thursday 8/29. Friday 8/30 is now OFF (full Labor Day weekend!)
The pickup time for after school Tuesday/Thursday rehearsals in the fall has been adjusted to 6 PM.
Saturday, October 12th: COMPETITION ADDED - USBands Ludwig-Musser Classic, METLIFE STADIUM, East Rutherford NJ
Saturday, October 19th: NEW DATE FOR HOMECOMING (our off weekend). We have dropped from the Egg Harbor Township competition.
USBands Nationals: rescheduled to Sunday, November 3rd at J. BIRNEY CRUM STADIUM, ALLENTOWN PENNSYLVANIA. We have dropped from the NJMBDA State Championship.
The possibility of this happening was communicated to returning members way back in the winter and was posted on the Google Calendar but has not been mentioned since due to the 1% chance of this happening... following the NFL schedule release, the stadium became unavailable on 11/1 Friday due to the Jets having a Thursday Night Football game and the Giants having a Sunday game. (Go Birds.)
Drum Corps International Show - Tuesday 7/30, University of Delaware
This show was just recently added to the DCI schedule and is a first for our area! As we have discussed, Drum Corps is the professional version of Marching Band, and Drum Corps International (DCI) is the NFL/MLB/NBA equivalent. To truly know what we're trying to achieve, everyone should have a good understanding of what it looks like!
Better yet, the University of Delaware is a huge stadium featuring a great show of plenty of top corps like the Blue Devils, The Bluecoats, Santa Clara Vanguard, and the best part: Kingsway Alumna Grace Harker on trumpet ('22) and our very own Battery Instructor Andrew Lewis on bass drum performing with the CROSSMEN!! The full lineup can be found here.Â
DISCOUNTED group tickets will be available for purchase through the Band Boosters: $40 for premium seating and $30 for regular seating. The deadline to fill out the form and pay for tickets is 7/14.
PURCHASE YOUR TICKETS AT THIS LINK!
This is an optional event but I strongly suggest any student or parent who is able to make the trip attends! This event is not officially affiliated with Kingsway - transportation will not be provided, so anyone who buys tickets will be responsible for getting there.
There is also another excellent DCI show the following night, 7/31, at Egg Harbor Township High School, once again featuring the Crossmen, and this time Carolina Crown with another alumna Ethan Zheng ('22) on mellophone!
Upcoming Rehearsals
5-9's, Tuesdays and Thursdays - 16th, 18th, 23rd, 25th, 8/1 (off 7/30)
New Staff Bios
Read about our newest staff members, Elizabeth DeLoach, Volunteer Color Guard Instructor, and Nick Pino, Battery Music Arranger!
DREADNOUGHTUS // FEARS NOTHING
Before the big reveal, I just want to remind everyone of our season goals that were revealed at Info Night.
Finish the show. Get out of the learning phase.
Maximize efficiency with the time we are spending.
Set standards of excellence and follow through.
I can say with confidence that this is the most material we've ever had written at this point in the season, which puts us at a major advantage. The faster we learn the material, the faster the show becomes great. Once it's in your hands, it comes down to practice!
This is still a draft version but is pretty close to what the final version will be for these sections of the band. BUT, imagine it once it has Front Ensemble parts added, Drill, Color Guard work, props, choreography... it's still only the beginning!
Alright, you've waited long enough! Here is the combined audio of the Hornline and Battery parts for the FULL SHOW! (no perc feature, yet)
-Mr. Massaro