November 15, 2015

Post date: Nov 15, 2015 8:36:40 PM

Announcements:

    • Thanks to the nine students and parents who are committed to furthering their students' music education by signing their child up for lessons with Mr. Congiardo! Lessons will begin THIS TUESDAY and will continue every Tuesday that school is in session through Tuesday, January 12th unless at least six of his students want to continue taking lessons after that date. Payment is expected at the time of your student's lesson. All checks should be made out directly to Mr. Congiardo. If a student completes all six of his/her lessons with Mr. Congiardo, this will make him/her eligible to count these lessons towards lettering credit. See the attached schedule for your student's lesson time and additional details. If you still want your student to take lessons, IT'S NOT TOO LATE! Send in your signed lesson contract tomorrow and I will add them on to the end of the lesson schedule.

    • Fruit/Nut orders + money are due TOMORROW! Each student was asked to sell at least $60 in product or get $30 in donations. I hope that everyone has done his/her part so we end our fundraisers for this year! Remember there are cash prizes for the top 3 sellers! Orders will be delivered the week of November 30th and pick-up will be whatever day they are delivered until 5:00 pm. I will keep you updated as to what day we are expecting the order once the order has been placed.

    • A sign-up sheet was posted on the office window last week for any student interested in auditioning for the All-West TN Honor Bands that will be held in Memphis in February. Auditions will be held on January 16th at North Side HS in Jackson. Any student who auditions for All-West MUST have 4 lessons with me which begin on Tuesday, December 8th. If a student auditions for All-West this will count for lettering credit as well. Students must sign-up if they want to audition by THIS FRIDAY. The audition fee for this event is $10/student and must be paid no later than Friday, December 4th. All-West music along with recordings of the music can be found via a link on the band's website at https://sites.google.com/site/gchsmarchingpioneers/Home/fun-things. Students must be enrolled in both marching and concert bands in order to participate. Remember if a student makes one of the All-West TN Honor Bands that this one of the most prestigious honors that a student can get in the band world which ultimately means more scholarship money when your student graduates! Encourage your student to give it a try!

    • Instructions were also placed on the table in the band room for your student to apply for UT Martin Honor Band which will be held in late January in Martin. If your student is selected this will also count for lettering credit. Once again they must be involved in BOTH marching and concert bands in order to participate. The application can be found using the following link:

      • http://www.utm.edu/departments/music/honorband.php

      • under the applications tab. All applications MUST BE SUBMITTED BY THIS FRIDAY so I can get them submitted to UTM by the deadline of December 1st!

    • Students should be practicing his/her Christmas Concert Music along with preparing their final exams (scales) because their grade for the remainder of this semester is based on playing tests that we have in class and 20% of their grade for the entire semester is based on their final exam.

    • Progress reports for all classes should have been made available for all classes this past Friday! Check your students progress reports out online. Be involved in your student's education!

    • Continuing pay for debt! A debt list will be posted on my office window in the next few weeks so students know exactly how much they still owe for band fees, percussion fees, guard fees, reed drawer, etc.

Upcoming Dates:

    • November 23rd-27th - Thanksgiving Break! NO SCHOOL!

    • Saturday, December 5th - Dyer Christmas Parade - 5:00 - Students will have to be at the Tri City Reporter dressed in full uniform at 4:15.

    • Sunday, December 13th - County Wide Christmas Concert - 2:00 - GCHS Theatre - Students will have to be there dressed in "concert attire" at 1:15. Concert attire is NO JEANS, TSHIRTS, TENNIS SHOES, SHORTS, ETC. The high school's portion of the concert will begin around 3:00. Students will have to move all equipment back to the band room before they are dismissed. There will be a booster meeting immediately following the concert in the theatre.

    • Monday, December 14th - Band Final Exam begins!

    • Friday, December 18th - School dismisses at 11:30 for Christmas Break!