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Background
Background
Background
Thanks to Prof. Newell who volunteers as our band conductor, Harvey Green PTA was proud of re-instating our band program in Fall 2022-23, after it was shut down due to COVID-19 in March 2020. In fact, Harvey Green was the very first elementary school in FUSD to resume the after-school band program after the pandemic. Our band students have been making great progress and many have continued their music journey at Horner Middle School. We are happy to announce that Prof. Newell will come back to host the Beginning & Intermediate band in 2025-26, starting in September through mid May.
Overview
Overview
Overview
Register online by Sep 2nd for both new & old students
First organizational meeting on Sept 9th at 3-4pm inside the MUR. Parents please join this session.
If you are a beginner, you don't need to bring your instruments to this meeting.
If you played at our band last year, please bring your instruments & music to this meeting for demonstration
Prof. Newell will discuss the expectations of the band.
PTA will run a basic training on how to setup & cleanup for rehearsals
First rehearsal session on Sep 16th. All students should have instruments & textbooks ready, and every item checked on the checklist.
Beginning Band, Tuesdays at 3-4pm. Total 31 sessions. No auditions required.
Intermediate Band, Tuesdays at 3-4pm. Total 31 sessions. Auditions required for new students or new instruments. Students should demonstrate enough proficiency in playing “Sawmill Creek” (Red Book) while following the conductor.
Duration: Both programs runs from September 9th to May 12th. Winter & Spring Concerts will be scheduled.
Location: Harvey Green Multi-use Room
FREE to join. Donations are collected to cover MakeMusic membership, basic equipment, supplies, music, gifts, snacks at the concerts, etc.
Instructors
Conductor: Prof. Beth Newell, as a retired professor in Psychology & a volunteer at PTA. prof_newell@yahoo.com
Assistant: Parker Chinen, a college student volunteer with multi-instrument band experience
Who can join?
Students: Open to 4th~6th Graders.
No experience or auditions required for the Beginning Band.
Experience on band instruments is required for the Intermediate Band.
We welcome band players in 7th Grade & above to come volunteer, and we can sign Service Hour Forms if needed.
How do I sign up?
Step 1: Register online at https://tinyurl.com/HarveyGreenBand by Sep 2nd
Step 2: Join the Google Classroom of HG Band 2025-26: x5bx7o3 You may join by yourself, or ask your kids to join but please do NOT use students' FUSD email.
Step 3: Sign up for parent volunteering. Each family is expected to volunteer on Tuesdays three times this school year.
Step 5: Go through the Band Checklist and get everything checked by Sep 16th.
What to prepare before the first session?
Please go through the Band Checklist, with Part I for beginning band and Part 2 for intermediate band.
Instruments
Students must rent or own their own instruments. Check the section of "Band Instruments" below for more info on rentals.
If you have financial difficulties, please contact harveygreenpta@gmail.com to discuss the options.
Textbooks
Beginning Band: Standard of Excellence Book #1 (Red). Make sure it matches the instrument you chose.
Intermediate Band: Standard of Excellence Book #1 (Red) & Book #2 (Blue). We will hand out additional concert music sheets.
Music Stands
Students must have their own stands to practice at home. *Music stands will be provided at school rehearsals.
PTA suggests each student to make $50 annual donations. We accept Gift Cards (Starbucks or Target preferred), Cash, or Checks (payable to Harvey Green PTA). Please sign up here and bring your donations to the band rehearsals.
Your donations will be used to cover the basic expenses of our music programs for the entire school year, such as MakeMusic Annual Subscriptions for participating students, piano tuning, school instrument maintenance, music stands, supplies, music sheets, gifts to our instructors & supporting staff given at the two concerts, snacks for students after the concerts, etc.
Please try to bring your donations to PTA rep at the first meeting or no later than 9/30.
Band Rules
All students are expected to practice at least 15 minutes per day at home.
Please arrive on time and help with setup & cleanup benches & instruments.
Please be respectful to our conductor, coordinators & volunteers.
Please do NOT leave any trash or personal belongings behind.
Please be kind to your friends and help each other grow.
Please make sure to keep your instrument clean & polished. Put it away into the case when it is not in use.
Setup/Cleanup/Supervisions
Students & parent volunteers will set up the benches & stands before each session, and clean up everything afterwards. Please refer to the Sample Floor Plan for Band Rehearsals
Each family is expected to volunteer on Tuesdays three times in this school year. Sign up for parent volunteering here,
The band program is sponsored by the PTA and would require two parents to be in attendance plus one staff member. Mr. Junichi Kakutani, our Librarian, has agreed to do this.
Band Instruments
Band Instruments
Band Instruments
Flute, Clarinet, Saxophone, Trumpet, Trombone, Tuba, French Horn, Percussion.
*Notes for Percussion: You must have your own snare drum + bell to practice at home. You are required to bring your own set of the snare drum + bell to the weekly rehearsals. We will provide extra percussion instruments during the rehearsals, including the bass drum, timpani, triangle, wood blocks, cymbals, etc.
The above list covers the common instruments in elementary school bands. You will get exposed to other instruments when you continue to play in middle/high schools, such as Oboe, Bassoon, Euphonium, etc.
Instrument Selection References
Instrument selection should be an informed decision based on your child's preference, budget, competition levels, resources & opportunities, while it is fine to start with a three-month rental to see how it goes.
Feel free to check out a set of introductions on band instruments with Pros/Cons put together by Tri City Band Corps (TBC). Some students may switch to a different instrument in middle/high schools based on teachers' recommendations.
Sorry we cannot take other instruments. Guitars might get the opportunity to join the Jazz Band in middle/high school. Violins will be able to join the Horner Middle School Band in 7th grade, and the Irvington High School Orchestra later.
Where do I get my instruments?
Please first RENT your instrument from a local music store. After a few months of renting, the store will give you options of continuing with renting or buying a student grade instrument, new or used.
DO NOT purchase an instrument online such as from Amazon. There are a lot of scams and low-quality instruments sold online. Most beginning instruments cost between $1000-$1500; so if it's less than that, there is probably something wrong.
Local Music Stores in Fremont:
C&L Music: 1610 Washington Blvd, (510)252-9768
Allegro Music: 3115 Walnut Ave, (510)793-3500
TriCity Band Corps: Please send your inquiry to tbc@tricitybandcorps.org to check their instrument rental/sale inventory. They might be able to hold it for you to pick up on Sunday at Stratford.
There are also instrument stores in Pleasanton or South Bay if you couldn't find one.
Music stores nearby (credit: Horner Music Program Packet)
- Allegro Music
3115 Walnut Ave. (and Paseo Padre), Fremont, (510) 793-3500
- C & L Music
1610 Washington Blvd (near 680), Fremont, (510) 252-9768
- Ingram and Brauns
3160 Santa Rita Road, Pleasanton, (925) 462-3667
- Park Avenue Music Center
1717 Park Ave, San Jose, (408) 279-5100
Kamimoto Strings
609 N. 4th St, San Jose, (408) 298-8168
JwPepper (books and sheet music only)
http://www.jwpepper.com (Order over the phone or internet and they will ship them to you, usually the next day)
Concerts
Concerts
Check our Gallery section for concerts in previous years.
2024 Winter Concerts
Tue, Dec 17th at 6:30pm (rescheduled to 1/21 6:30pm)
2025 Spring Concerts
Thu, May 15th at 6:30pm
Gallery
Gallery
2024-25:
12/17/2024: Winter Concerts - featuring both bands
5/15/2025: Spring Concerts - featuring both bands
2023-24:
12/19/2023: Winter Concerts - featuring both bands
05/22/2024: Spring Concerts - featuring both bands
2022-23:
Spring Concerts: Photos & Videos - Beginner & Intermediate
Resources
Resources
Accessories
Tuner: We suggest you install a free Tuner App on your phone for tuning the instrument at home.
Instrument Stand: You may consider purchasing an instrument stand, for clarinet, trumpet or trombone, so they could be set aside nicely during recess.
Mute: If you find your kids' instrument too loud to practice at home, we suggest you consider getting a MUTE for your instrument (available in music stores or Amazon)
Microphone: For better quality recording, you may consider getting a USB microphone from Amazon.
MakeMusic Subscriptions
MakeMusic (previously called SmartMusic) is a suite of tools offering interactive sheet music with immediate feedback for students to practice and improve.
The annual membership costs ~$15 for each student, with a minimum of 20 students required under a teacher account.
Students with MakeMusic accounts are not limited to practice on the assigned pieces, but are encouraged to explore the music database with collections of different genres & levels. They can learn from the free video lessons, listen to the demos, play along the instrument tracks, or turn on the background tracks like a full band.
In addition to the interactive practices, students can compose & share their own music on MakeMusic.
Instrument Selection Tips
This is a link created by TriCity Band Corps covering the pros/cons of basic band instruments.
Radio Channel
We highly recommend FM 104.9 KDFC Classical Music Channel for your driving so children will get the immersion from classical music treasury.
Tri City Band Corps - School year programs & summer programs
If your schedule allows, we recommend that you sign up for TBC programs in order to get more practice and guided rehearsals. More info here.
Recorded Video Lessons: This video collections cover the band instrument curriculum in the Red Book and beyond.
Private Lessons
Taking private lessons will greatly help your children make consistent progress. Please send inquires to instrument rental stores, such as Allegro Music or C&L Music, as they usually host music teachers on site for private lessons.
CBDA All State Honor Band
NCBA All Northern Honor Band
Music Programs beyond Elementary Schools
Band programs in Horner Middle School
Horner Middle School offers several different programs to allow kids to continue their music journey.
For 6th graders, there is a band class offered as electives. Due to limited capacity, lottery may be used.
For 7th & 8th graders, there are four bands available: Beginning band (no experience needed), Concert Band 1, Concert Band 3, Symphonic Band (auditions required).
There is also an afterschool Jazz Band & percussion ensemble.
TriCity Band Corps
TriCity Band Corps offers different levels of band programs, marching band & color guard programs, etc.
Band/Orchestra in Fremont & nearby cities:
Testimonial
Testimonial
A personal testimonial from a band parent:
My daughter started beginner band last year in the clarinet section. The first month was very challenging and I won't be lying if I say that she had a couple of meltdowns that made her nearly give up on the band. Yet, she persevered and fell in love with her instrument. She did the Tri-City Band Corps camp in the summer and is now a part of the Wind Ensemble this academic year.
She loves band and Professor Newell! She adores playing the clarinet and helping Professor on a couple of days a month with the beginner band. She talks about clarinet all the time! We have miles to go as she navigates the upcoming school years but right now, she is doing exactly what she loves.
If there are any beginner band parents here whose kids are having a slightly hard time with their instrument, please know that it gets better as they get better!
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