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The Weekly Update

Happy Sunday!

I hope that everyone had a wonderful weekend. We look forward to continuing our progress in preparation for our first game this week. The weather is threatening rain. If it rains, we will still have practice. If it is light enough for us to go outside, we need to do our best to be outside. If the weather causes unsafe conditions then we will remain inside but will continue to practice.

There are many important announcements concerning the 2019 Competition Schedule, First Football Game, District Honor Band sign-ups, Spirit Wear, Parent Tailgate, Booster Meeting, and Health Class, and how to sync your calendar. Thank you for taking the time to read the update and we hope that you have a wonderful week! Go Trojans!

Week at a glance

  1. Monday • Full Band Rehearsal 3:45 – 6:15 PM
  2. Tuesday • Full Band Rehearsal 3:45 – 6:15 PM
  3. Wednesday • Quality Assurance Program until 5:00 PM
  4. Thursday • Full Band Rehearsal 6:00 – 9:00 PM
  5. Friday • OPEN

Thank you for checking http://www.chstrojanbands.com for the most current calendar.

2019 Competition Schedule

Please take a minute to re-read this post from June 19, 2019.

I would like to alert your attention to our competition schedule. The newly added fall break and the location of our open Friday night has made planning our competition schedule more challenging than normal. All of this information is on the calendar as well. Please take a look at our competition dates:

Our first competition is on October 5 at Creekview HS. Yes, this is the Saturday before our Fall Break. This is a required event for all participants in our Trojan Marching Band. Please plan ahead. I do not know the itinerary for the day yet, but please plan on a full day. We will rehearse some that morning before we depart for the competition. *This is an SAT date. You should still be able to test that morning here at CHS if this is the best date that works for you. Other dates for the SAT during the first semester are August 24, November 2, and December 7.

The LoC, the competition here at Carrollton HS, is on October 12. Yes, this is the Saturday after our Fall Break. This is also a required event for all participants in our Trojan Marching Band, and we also need all parents to volunteer to work this day. Please note that this is a date that we schedule for the same date annually so that our competition becomes a regular competition for bands to visit each year. This was a date that was set before we knew the school calendar. Assuming we will have a similar school calendar for the following school year, we will reconsider the date if necessary after this year’s competition. We will be hosting many bands on our campus this day and we need everyone’s participation to host it right. We do have a football game (all football games are required events) on Friday October 11 as well. If you notice on the calendar, we will not rehearse the week of Fall Break until Friday before the game in an effort to allow families to make the most of that week.

Our final competition is on October 19 at Haralson County HS. Again, please plan on the full day. Our performance time will determine the daily itinerary and we will not know that until closer to the contest (usually about 1.5 weeks out).

The week following our final competition we do not have a football game (October 25 – the ACT is on October 26th, if that helps). Since our weekends of the Fall Break included football games on each side, it made more sense to schedule our competitions this way in an effort to allow families to take advantage of our Friday night off and have a full weekend off. Notice that the week’s schedule is very different from the rest of the calendar. We will meet with our concert band classes to prepare for the upcoming concert and not rehearse on Thursday evening. Again, trying to do what we can to be mindful of family time.

Thank you for looking ahead at your calendar and planning around these competition dates, because it is critical that we have 100% attendance to allow our students to perform their best.

First Football Game vs. East Coweta @ UWG

It is hard to believe that our first football game is upon us. The first Trojan football game will be Friday, August 30 at 8PM at the UWG Stadium. And we need volunteers to help us load equipment, feed our students, unload the equipment, help with the show and yes PULL THE FLAG! To sign up to volunteer to help, please click this link. We need to know how many volunteers we have because UWG requires anyone assisting on the field to have a “sideline” pass to be allowed on the field. So if you plan to volunteer, please sign up by August 26, as we will pick up the required number of passes on August 27.

District Honor Band • All-State

Students should sign up on this form to audition for District Honor Band or All-State.

Happy start to the school year! Things are started off great and I attribute it to the diligent work ethic instilled by our parents and community here at Carrollton High School. As we start the school year I would like to encourage all of our students to practice for and try-out for our District Honor Band. The more of our students who strive for this goal, the better our band program will become. We have many people who are a part of our team and if our individuals set personal goals to better themselves, then we will achieve our group goals.

Here is your opportunity to set a personal goal and discovering new ways to enjoy making music. The Georgia Music Educators Association (GMEA) sponsors a District Honor Band and an All-State Band annually to showcase the most talented students in each district and in the state of Georgia. Students are selected for participation by an extremely competitive audition process. They then participate in an honor band clinic consisting of Thursday, Friday, and Saturday which is conducted by a nationally recognized music educator. This event culminates in an unforgettable concert, which was prepared in only a few days! Additionally, students selected for All-State will have their name added to plaque that will hang outside Mr. Carr’s office.

Parents often ask me about how a student can earn a scholarship in music for college. Colleges actively recruit the students who make the GMEA All-State similarly to how they recruit the top athletes in our state. Colleges and employers also highly value students who have participated in District Honor Band and All-State because it shows positive attributes in individual goal setting, high personal performance and achievement in an individually competitive setting, and the willingness to go above and beyond standard or minimum requirements.

Basically the process works as follows:

There are 2 auditions in total. The first audition takes place on the 2nd Saturday in December. Times are TBA based on the number of students auditioning. The first audition serves as seating for our district honor band. District Honor Band is traditionally the 3rd weekend of February. Rehearsals start on that Thursday and the concert takes place on Saturday early evening. Students who score above the recommended score at the first audition are invited to audition at the second round at Houston County High School. The 2nd audition traditionally happens on the 2nd Saturday of January. The final round determines seating for the All-State Band which takes place in Athens, GA on the last weekend of February or first weekend of March.

Experts will be visiting our school to work individually with students who have committed to auditioning for District Honor Band or All-State. The students will play their scales and etudes for the instructor and get immediate individual feedback to help focus their awareness of how to practice and what to practice so that they have a better chance of making it. The cost to audition for District Honor Band is $10 and the cost to audition for All-State is $25. If a student would like to be considered for both it would cost $35.

The main argument that students give me for why they do not want to do it is: “What if I don’t make it?” My answer is always the same. “Well if you don’t make it, then at least you got better.” The lesson is in the journey, not the destination. If a student tries out this year and doesn’t make it, then of course they will feel unhappy until they realize: 1) they are better prepared to audition next year, 2)they overcame a fear or anxiety about auditioning in front of someone so they are more confident when faced with similar situations such as job interviews, 3) they have bettered themselves which in turn has bettered our band. I will continue to let them know how proud of them that I am just because they had the courage and diligence to audition.

Please encourage your son or daughter to set this goal. I have seen so many students blossom in a very positive way from their participation in this event. It’s a pretty big deal and our kids have the potential to do it!

Spirit Wear

What better way to show off your Trojan Band pride than to sport some Band Spirit Wear!!! There are hats, polo shirts, t-shirts, etc. all with your choice of 4 different logo options to be embroidered on the item you choose

Click this link to browse the Trojan Band Shoppe. You can simply place your order on the site and you will be contacted once your item has arrived.

Parent Tailgate Save-The-Date

As a way that we can celebrate the beginning of our marching band season, at the first home game (September 6 against Riverdale) we would like to host a Tailgate for all band parents from 5PM – 6PM. We will provide more details next week, but we would like for you to make note of this event. This is the same date as our first home game – please plan dinner for your student as they will be busy getting ready for the game during this time.

General Band Booster Meeting

The next general band booster meeting will be held on September 17, 2019 from 6:30PM – 8PM. At this meeting we will discuss the upcoming All-In-One sale, one of the two major fundraisers we have as the booster club.

HEALTH CLASS

We are fortunate that our students may receive Health and PE credit for full participation in marching band. More information regarding this process may be accessed by following this link https://chstrojanband.com/health-in-band/. Many of our students are making great progress towards completing the online requirements for the health portion of the class. If this pertains to your child, please help to check up on their progress. There is an option in the Google Classroom for them to invite you to receive notifications. Since it is a course that allows them to work at their own pace, oftentimes it can be out of sight and out of mind, causing the students to fall behind. The best way for them to avoid any extra stress is to stay ahead of the deadlines to complete the course well before Thanksgiving Break. Thank you for your assistance with this.

HAVE YOU SYNCED YOUR CALENDAR?

The Charms Calendar is syncing again. Syncing your calendar with the band calendar is a great way to stay informed of the schedule. You can access more information through the links above (If you hover over Calendar, Sync Calendar becomes an option), or just click here.

Categories: CHS Band