Winter Park Band Notes
November 6, 2016
From Mr. Blackmer
Dear Band Families,
What a terrific way to end our 2016 marching season! Congratulations to the "Sound of the Wildcats" on their "Superior Rating" at Marching Band Music Performance Assessment! The Band had a very good final field performance, and I am very proud of the hard work that was put into the fall - especially over the past several weeks as we made up time from our rainy September! A big thanks to all of our parent chaperones and Operations teams! I would also like to particularly thank our semi driver, Mr. Wayne Baker! As many of you know, Wayne has been "retired" from being a WPHS Band Parent for a few years now, but he still drives the Marching Band semi wherever we go! Thank you, Wayne!
We also heard this week that 8 Winter Park Band students were accepted into the Florida All-State Band & Orchestra! Congratulations to Nicholas Bulynin and Maia Ruiz on making the All-State Concert Band; Adam DeLoach, Sam Dufresne, Wade McCrea, and Arvind Shankar on making the All-State Symphonic Band; and, Tommy Claus and Zachary Noble on being selected for the All-State Symphony Orchestra! They will all perform with their All-State ensembles in mid-January as part of the Florida Music Education Association's state conference in Tampa. We also found out this week that, if you take the five large performing arts schools out of the mix, Winter Springs High School, West Orange High School AND Winter Park High School have the highest representation of students in the Florida All-State!
Along the lines of All-State, just a reminder that All-County auditions are quickly approaching. They will be on Monday, November 14 at Oak Ridge High School, and the audition schedule should be made available sometime this coming week. Students are strongly encouraged to seek out help from Mr. Clemente or me over the coming weeks, and to spend some time using the Sight Reading Factory program to practice some Level 3 and Level 4 sight reading on their instrument!
Thank you to all of our senior parents for making "Senior Night" this past Friday run so smoothly (despite the rain)! I'd like to especially thank Michelle Clemons and Douglas Dufresne for creating the senior pins, and to Jay and Dana Adkinson for making the senior posters!
The deadline for registering and selecting music for Solo & Ensemble is also right around the corner. All registration and music selection needs to be done by Wednesday, November 16. Please make note of the upcoming opportunities to shop with Beethoven & Co. at either Lake Nona or Apopka!
Looking forward to the Marching Band's final performance at this coming Wednesday's Fall Festival of Bands! We are eager to host our future Wildcats from Glenridge and Maitland middle schools! Because of the complexity that is the Fall Festival of Bands, I have created a special itinerary for this performance. Please read through carefully! And those parents who can assist with moving equipment and chairs following the WP Wind Ensemble's performance, please come directly to the stage when their portion of the concert is complete! Thank you!
All the Best!
Mr. Blackmer
Solo & Ensemble MPA
Registration for Solo & Ensemble MPA is a week and a half away! Visit the Band website for S&E information. Remember that all WP Band students are required to participate in S&E in some form. If you have questions, please direct them to Mr. Blackmer or Mr. Clemente, but don't wait until the last minute to do so!
Like last year, new solo & ensemble music will be purchased through the Band Directors based on students' request. If there is a piece (or several pieces) that a student or collection of students would like to see purchased, they should go to the FBA S&E music list, copy the entire line of information found on that list, including title, composer, FBA number, etc., and e-mail that directly to Mr. Blackmer.
Spoleto Spirit Night
Thank you to all of our Band families who came out for the spirit night this past Thursday at the Winter Park Spoleto! We don't have a final tally as to how much was raised that night, but we should know in the near future.
Mark your calendars now for these future spirit nights:
- Tijuana Flats (on Aloma near Outback) - Wednesday, January 18 - a 20% donation to the Winter Park Band!
- Gators Dockside (Baldwin Park) - Thursday, March 9 - a 15% donation to the Band!
Eli Maulfair Eagle Scout Service Project
From Eli Maulfair: "I am in Boy Scouts, and am currently working on my Eagle Scout Service Project. The project I have decided to take on is a sock collection to be donated to the Coalition for the Homeless. I decided on this project when I read in the newspaper that the most needed donation was clean socks. Clean socks are extremely important as they help protect feet from infections, blisters, and the environment. I am seeking any contributions to help reach my goal of 500 pairs of socks. I am collecting new socks via a collection box located in the Band Room, as well as online fundraising. If you are interested in donating, you can either leave clean, unused socks in the box in the Band Room, or you can donate money to my Go Fund Me www.gofundme.com/operationhappyfeet. Go Fund Me is an online service designed to help raise funds. As little as $1 can buy a pair of new socks. You can donate any amount, then I can withdraw it to use for my project. Thank you!"
The donation box will also be in the Auditorium lobby for this Wednesday's Fall Festival of Band concert!
Band Composite Pictures
Pictures for the 2016/2017 Band composite will take place on Thursday, November 17 and Friday, November 18 during the school day. Pictures will be in marching uniform tops (or tuxedo tops and dresses for non-marchers).
Chris Gaines, the photographer, will be available before Winter Concert on December 8 to show proofs for those who may be interested in purchasing their own head-shot and/or composite picture.
Beethoven & Co. @ Lake Nona HS and Apopka HS
On Thursday November 10, Lake Nona HS is hosting Beethoven & Company for a Solo & Ensemble music night from 5 PM - 8 PM in their Band Room. And, on Monday, November 21, Apopka HS will be hosting Beethoven & Company from 3 PM - 6 PM. These are a great opportunity to acquire music for Solo & Ensemble AND get some of their awesome free pencils!
Like last year, if you tell the Beethoven & Company representative that you are with the Winter Park Band (and show them your school ID), they will bill the music to the school.
Additionally, their website is an outstanding resource for finding and selecting S&E music. If you find something on their site, you can call them and (if they have it in stock) they can bring it on November 10 for you to look at!
Potential Home Play-Off Game - November 18
If the varsity football team wins their first playoff game on Friday, November 11, there is a chance that the next playoff game on November 18 could be at Showalter. If this is the case, we will be taking all (or most) of the Marching Band as a pep band to that game.
Please check calendars. If the Friday, November 18 game would be a schedule conflict for you or your family, I must have a parent e-mail no later than Wednesday, November 9. Otherwise, all students will be expected to attend that game. If the playoff game on November 18 is an away game, a volunteer pep band will be assembled (depending on location).
For parents who would be interested in chaperoning the game on November 11, please go to the Band Calendar and click on the "helping hand" icon found on the calendar date.
New York Fundraising
As David Bornstein announced during our Fall Band Concert, if you know a business or philanthropic individual who might consider making a contribution to the Winter Park Bands to assist with the funding of the Wind Ensemble's performance in Carnegie Hall next June, please e-mail Mr. Blackmer. He will forward the information on to the parent fundraising committee, and they will take it from there!
Like Mr. Bornstein said, we are just looking for a "foot in the door," and this would be a terrific tax-deductible contribution to our Band Program!
Band Fair Share 3
The 3rd Band Fair Share payment was due on Wednesday, October 5. If you ever need reminders about what is due and when, the Financial Obligation forms can be found on the Band website under FORMS.
The next Guard Fair Share is due this coming Wednesday, November 2!
Sight Reading Factory Update
A notification from Sight Reading Factory came through last week that the browsers Safari and Internet Explorer will no longer be able to run SRF due to compatibility issues. Google Chrome (which is on all student laptop devices) and Firefox are the new recommended browsers for SRF.