Extracurricular Opportunities

Open to all:

• Salvation Army Kettle Holiday Ensembles

  • Groups of 3-5

  • Two-hour time slots, feel free to repeat music!

  • Music will be provided

  • Sign-ups will be posted in the band room in early November, and performances run from November through December

• Tuba Christmas Milwaukee

  • Open to tuba and euphonium players of all ages

  • Saturday, December 15th at the Bavarian Bierhaus with registration at 11:00am, rehearsal at 12:00pm, and performance at 2:00pm.

  • For more information, click here: https://www.tubachristmasmke.com/

• Whitefish Bay Community Band Holiday Performance @ Bayshore Mall

  • Saturday, December 15th, 2018 with performance starting at 2:00pm

  • Open to high school students as well as parents! Dust off that instrument and join in the fun!

• WSMA District Solo and Ensemble

  • Saturday, March 16th, 2019 at Homestead High School in Mequon.

  • Choose difficulty: Class A for advanced, Class B for intermediate, Class C for developing

  • Play alone or with a small group. Traditional ensembles usually contain like instruments, but there is room for flexibility.

  • Soloists may hire a pianist for accompaniment. Recommended, but not required.

  • Class A students who receive a rating of 1* qualify to perform for the WSMA State Solo and Ensemble Festival.

  • Registration will begin in January, but you can start looking for music right away. Visit local music stores for eligible pieces.

Auditioned Groups/Contests:

In general, if you want to audition for scholarships, honor bands, summer camps, etc. you can expect to have ready the "Three S's":

1. Scales (often it's just major scales, but sometimes multiple octaves)

2. Solo (often they want two contrasting selections: one that shows speed and technique, and one that shows slow and lyrical playing)

3. Sightreading

The good news is, you can always use any material in your repertoire; so if you played a really good solo your sophomore year, feel free to bring it to your senior auditions.

Auditions (click on the links for more detailed information):

• Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra: Stars of Tomorrow

  • https://www.mso.org/education/competitions/stars_of_tomorrow_auditions

  • Saturday, February 23, 2019

  • $2,000 scholarship for 1st place, $1,250 scholarship each for 2nd place and 3rd place

  • Finalists and honorable mention winners perform side-by-side with MSO musicians

• Wisconsin School Music Association (WSMA) High School Honors Project... aka All-State

  • Must currently be in grades 9-11

  • Audition information: https://wsmamusic.org/hs-honors/audition-times-and-locations/auditions/

  • Register by December 1st, 2018

  • Audition date: Saturday, February 9th, 2019 at Rufus King H.S., Milwaukee

• Civic Music High School Competition

  • Must currently be in grades 10-12

  • Audition info and registration: http://civicmusicmilwaukee.org/what_we_do/high-school-programs/

  • Register by December 7th, 2018

  • Selected musicians will win $250. The top musicians in classical playing will divide $4,000 in awards, the top jazz instrumentalist and vocalist will share a $1,000 award. This is on top of the $250.