We have a very short week ahead of us. Students have 1st and 3rd period finals on Monday and 2nd and 4th period finals on Tuesday. Both days are early release days as well.
We pray that everyone has a chance to spend time with family and get some much needed rest of the Holiday break.
I look forward to seeing our students return on January 4, 2019!
Merry Christmas everyone, and a Happy New Year!
Yesterday we had many students audition for the GMEA District Honor Band. Students worked individually to learn scales, a lyrical etude, and improve sight-reading skills to prepare to compete against other musicians in our district for the opportunity to represent our school in this prestigious ensemble.
We are so proud of all of the students who made the commitment to prepare for the auditions and had the courage to compete yesterday at East Paulding High School. Your dedication to improving your individual skill level and musicianship is leading others in our band to strive for excellence. Thank you for pushing yourself everyday to do better. We are very proud of you!
Congratulations to the following students on earning a spot in this year’s District Honor Band! They will represent us in Ringgold, GA from February 14-16, 2019 in the District Honor Band. Go Trojans!!
Christmas Concert on Monday eveningWe hope that you will join us in the Mabry Arts Center for a holiday presentation on Monday evening. Festivities will begin with Dr. Mclendon’s community string orchetra performance in the lobby at 6:30PM and the high school performance on stage at 7:00PM.
Students have elected to wear Christmas sweaters and Santa hats for this concert. Festive wear or our concert attire is also acceptable. We look forward to presenting a lighthearted sincere performance to spread holiday cheer to all in attendance.
Report times:
Students have auditions on December 13 in class. The first 8 measures of the their respective GMEA etude is required for the prepared etude. Students will have 2 minutes to perform as many major/minor scales as they can from memory, points will be earned for correct performance of each octave. They will also perform their chromatic scale as required by GMEA. Their final task will be to complete a short sight-reading example.
Etudes can be found here: https://www.gmea.org/asb-audition-information. 9-10 graders will perform the “Concert Band” requirements on that website and 11-12 graders will perform the “Symphonic Band” requirements on that website.
This information has been announced during class for a couple of weeks and students are encouraged to see Mr. Carr or Mr. Bright if they have any questions or need assistance in printing an etude.
Good evening!
I hope that everyone had a terrific weekend. I am sorry that the weather ruined our plans this weekend. Waiting on the parade would have been miserable, especially considering our buses would of had to drop us off to and meet us at the end of the parade route. Without a plan for shelter, it could have been a really tough morning. Thank you for everyone’s patience and grace when the decision was made. I assure you it was made with the highest concern for student safety.
We have a little bit slower week this week, but still have a lot going on:
Speaking of auditions! We had our first students in the history of the school audition for All-State Jazz Band this past weekend at North Georgia College. If you see the following students, please congratulate them on their extraordinary efforts in representing our school at the All-State Jazz Band auditions: Brian Crews, guitar; Jacob Sipes, drum set; and Andrew Stagliano; baritone saxophone. The three students along with Cesar Ramirez, bass guitar will represent our school at the District Jazz Band in January! So proud of their efforts!
Wow! What an amazing experience we had traveling to Hollywood, CA! It was many of our students’ first time flying, an opportunity for many students to practice budgeting, time management, navigating unfamiliar locations, and a memorable experience for all.
We had the opportunity to fly across the country, visit many famous locations in Hollywood including the Farmers Market (where a student had an opportunity to meet Weird Al Yankovich), the Egyptian, Chinese, and Dolby theaters, the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the Griffith Observatory, and view the Hollywood Sign. The students spent a full day at Universal Studios, toured the Grammy Museum, ate lunch near the Staples Center while Lakers fans were preparing for the basketball game, marched in the Hollywood Christmas Parade, visited the San Diego Zoo and Silver Strand State Beach.
Each day had a full itinerary and I am so proud of how the students handled themselves. We received multiple compliments from the flight crews, hotel staff, and restaurant employees about our students demonstrating class, respect, and dignity. Our students represented our community proudly and I cannot wait for the airing of the parade so that our nation can celebrate our students’ hard work!
The Hollywood Christmas Parade was a spectacular event 3.5 miles long and lined with spectators the entire route about 4-5 people deep! It began with a grand stand section that surrounded a red carpet the width of the street and was complete with search lights and movie stars! Be sure to tune in to the CW on December 14 at 8:00PM to catch our performance.
We had many parent chaperones who were outstanding on the trip! They allowed our students responsibilities to provide growth, provided assistance with supervision, logistics, encouragement, praise, and kept our students safe in all environments. We are blessed with the best village a parent could ask for and I am so thankful for all who generously share their time to nurture our students! Thank you for a great trip!
Welcome back home to Carrollton! Now we get to show our community the enthusiasm that we shared with the nation. We have 2 more parades to go this week!
Thank you to Mr. and Mrs. Antico who drove our equipment across the country, spent their time with us in Hollywood, and departed the morning after the parade so tobring our equipment back hom in time for our Carrollton Parade. Please pray for their safe travels as they are still on their way home. We are so blessed by their continued support and willingness to volunteer for our band program even though their son graduated 14 years ago!
Wishing all of our Trojan Band families and our community a Happy Thanksgiving! Carrollton is a very special place thanks to the village who continue to make our children and their education a priority. Our band family is blessed by those who continually pour their efforts into our children. Thank you to all of the band moms, dads, aunts, uncles, grandparents, siblings, and friends who make our program special!
We have news that Mr. Antico arrived safely in San Diego and is enjoying his Thanksgiving with family.
Quick reminder that our report time for Hollywood travelers is 3:00AM. Pack some food for your trip just in case security takes longer than planned. You may have a brief minute to grab a snack at the terminal before your flight, but that depends on how quickly we can check our bags and navigate the security checkpoint. It is going to be an awesome trip! Looking forward to seeing you soon!
