Please be sure to read it in its entirety as it is updated regularly.

Please note that there will be NO CADET BAND rehearsal on Wednesday, May 8 due to the Recruitment Concert later that morning. BEGINNING BAND, CONCERT BAND AND SYMPHONIC BAND WILL REHEARSE!! Choir and Symphonic Band students will be traveling to MIS to play for the 3-5 graders!

Please note that our Spring Fine Arts Concert will take place on MONDAY, May 13. We will NOT be holding our Concert on Tuesday as there is a conflict with the high school that evening.

Please check the calendar for other end of the year events. This is a busy time of year for everyone, especially our music department.

The 4/5 Grade Bands will be attending the Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra concert at Trinity Christian College on Wednesday, May 15 in the morning. Unfortunately, due to a conflict with Outdoor Ed, Mrs. Hill and Mrs. Grice's classrooms will not be participating in our field trip. Those students should attend the Outdoor Ed field trip. A permission slip was emailed out and sent home last week. Thank you to the Music Boosters for sponsoring this event for our students.

8th Grade Recognition Night will take place on Monday, May 20 at 7:00 p.m. at the junior high. We can use some non-8th grade parent volunteers to help with set up.

The Symphonic Band and Concert Band students will be participating in the Mokena Memorial Day parade on Monday, May 27. Students will meet at MIS at 9:15 and should be picked up at St. John's Cemetery around 11:30. I have attached the itinerary below. We will need a few parent volunteers that day.

The end of the year is fast approaching! The last day for Beginning Band and Cadet Band will be Friday, May 24. Any student using a school-owned instrument, will need to check that instrument in with their director on that day. If your child wishes to keep a school-owned instrument over the summer, we will need the serial number of the instrument and a photo of the tag on the instrument on that day.

The last day for Concert Band and Symphonic Band will be Tuesday, May 28. Students will not need their instruments that day as we will be cleaning out lockers and packing up the room for the summer. Any student using a school-owned instrument, will need to check that instrument in with their director on that day. If your child wishes to keep a school-owned instrument over the summer, we will need the serial number of the instrument and a photo of the tag on the instrument on that day.

All 6th - 8th grade band students will be auditioning at the beginning of next year for placement in either Concert Band or Symphonic Band for the next school year. These bands will no longer be separated by grade, but instead, will be separated by skill level. This will benefit all students as they will be placed in an ensemble that is appropriate for their level to promote student growth. Hopefully this will alleviate students feeling overwhelmed by music that is too difficult. Also this will provide the challenge that some students need to continue progressing on their instrument.

Students have already received the scale and etude excerpts that they will be performing for the audition. If your child did not receive either of these items, please have them contact their director. These auditions will take place at the beginning of the school year and students will submit their best video to a Google form. We will have outside judges ranking the students and they will be placed in the appropriate ensemble. This is not something that the students should stress about, but they should take it seriously. If a student chooses not to submit a video, they will be placed in Concert band.

In December, students will have the opportunity to submit another video for the possibility to move to Symphonic band if their ability level determines that that is an appropriate placement for them.

If you have any questions, please contact your child's director.

Registration for Band/Choir for the 2019-2020 school year will begin later this month. Please watch your email for more information. All registration will be done online and will be due by the end of the month. Students who have money owing on their account will be prohibited from registering for next year until their account is paid in full. All students registering will need to make their fee payments at the time of registration unless prior arrangements have been made with the directors. Students who are not up to date on payments will not be registered for the ensembles until payment is made (this includes summer band/choir payments, books, school-owned instrument rental fees, etc.).

If you have any questions, please contact your director.

Please check your Charms account to determine if your child has an outstanding amount due to the Music Boosters. Students will balances owing on their account will be unable to register for any music activities next year until their account is current.

If you have any questions, please contact your director for help.

On Monday, May 20 we will be having our 8th Grade Music Recognition Night at 7pm in the MJH Band Room. This is a chance for the music department to recognize the 8th grade music students and everything they’ve accomplished in their time in the Mokena music groups. 8th Grade families should have received an email asking for an RSVP. If you did not receive this email, please contact Mrs. Cheney.

The AmazonSmile fundraiser is available year round - not just at Christmas time. This is a great way to support our music programs without any cost to you! Any time you are shopping via Amazon, please consider using Amazon Smile for your purchases. Go to www.amazonsmile.com. You can select the Mokena Music Boosters to receive a donation on your behalf just by making your regular Amazon purchase through them. It doesn't cost you anything and helps the Music Boosters fund our programs. This is available year round. If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Bussean.

It is not required that Mokena music students take private lessons. It is true, however, that the vast majority of students who do not take private lessons tend to have improper playing habits, and never reach their full potential as musicians. SECTIONALS ARE NOT A REPLACEMENT FOR PRIVATE LESSONS. There are still many benefits of private instruction over full band rehearsal and small group sectionals. If you are interested in getting your child private lessons on their instrument, please visit the following link: https://www.mokenameteormusic159.org/uploads/2/3/4/4/23449316/private_lessons.pdf

If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Bussean or Ms. Beekman

Come out on Tuesday, May 28, 2019 at 7:00 PM to the monthly Music Booster Meeting held at Mokena Junior High School in the Library. Music Booster meetings are open meetings that anyone can attend. Come see what our Boosters are all about and how you can help support your child's music education. I look forward to seeing you there!

5/8 - Recruitment Assembly at MIS during the school day (MJH Band/Choir Students)

5/13 - Spring Fine Arts Concert (MIS 6:00, MJH 7:30) at MJH in the West Gym

5/15 - MIS Band Students to attend IPO Concert during school day

5/20 - 8th Grade Recognition Night (8th Graders and their families only)

5/24 - Last day of Beginning Band and Cadet Band

5/27 - Memorial Day Parade (all 6/7/8 band students and color guard - MANDATORY)

5/28 - Last Day of Concert Band and Symphonic Band

5/28 - Music Booster Meeting 7:00 pm