Pep Band's Basketball Opener on January 6th!

The Pep Band opens its basketball season on Friday, January 6th, 2012.

This is also a reunion for alumni who are in college, some of whom will be joining the band to help cheer on the Flyers who take on the Firebirds of Kellenberg Memorial.  Interested band alumni can contact Bro. Karl for more information.

Concert Information for this Weekend

Click on the appropriate page above to view the information for the concert bands.

Information about what time to arrive, what to wear, where to go, etc. is posted.

Since the concerts have taken place, these pages have been removed.

Tickets for the Christmas Concerts

Tickets for the Christmas Concerts, to be held on Friday, December 16th and Saturday, December 17th, at 8:15 p.m. are available at a cost of 5 dollars each.  The Flyers Band, the Crimson Glee Club, the Crimson Band and the String Orchestra will perform on Friday evening, while the Gold Band and the Gold Glee Club will perform Saturday night. 

If your son is performing in the concert, click on the link below to print out a ticket order form.  Fill it out and have your son bring the form and cash/check to school, handing it in to the appropriate moderator. 

PLEASE DO NOT PHONE IN THE ORDER.

This link has been removed.

Basketball Dates for Pep Band Are Posted

The Pep Band Calendar page has been updated with the dates for this year's basketball season.  The Tuesday games are afternoon games, which usually start at 4:00.  The Friday games start at 7:30.  The Pep Band will meet earlier to set up.

The playoffs will probably begin during the February recess.  Pep Band members should be prepared to play at the playoffs the following week, the week of February 27th.  They are usually evening games, off campus.

Welcome to a New Year of Band!

Band starts up again this week!

Students should be ready to play this Friday.  We will be doing some paperwork on Thursday, but feel free to bring your instrument in that day. 

For the new freshmen, we will also issue rental instruments, if available.

Remember, ALL instruments in school need an ID tag!  You can buy one from the school for $1.00.

3-C Week Will Soon Be Here!

For you new freshmen, the band will be performing for you as part of the auditorium presentation.  We hope you enjoy the show!

Freshmen will not need any instruments until classes begin, Thursday, September 8th.  A limited number of rental instruments will be given out, with priority given to those who do not have an instrument.  Hopefully you have an instrument you can leave at home for practice.  We should be able to supply you with a second instrument.  This, of course, depends on the instrument and what is available.  We will work this out with your son after Labor Day.

Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors who are performing in the auditorium presentation for 3-C week will receive a letter reminding you of the particulars.  Rehearsal for the upperclassmen is on Thursday, August 25.  Please report at 6:00 p.m. in the band room with your instrument.  Dress for the Thursday rehearsal is casual.  All of the repaired instruments are back and can be found in the lesson area, while those who stored their instruments in school over the summer can find them in the band room.

Mark Your Calendar!

For all you keepers of the calendar, you will find the calendar events for each band on the pages listed at the top of the blog.  These should match the dates you find in the school calendar.  New to this year's calendar is the NYSSMA festival which Chaminade will host on May 1st and 2nd.  Band students will be assigned an afternoon or evening to help make sure the festival runs smoothly.  More details will be available when the time arrives.

The basketball dates for the Pep Band are the only dates that we are waiting for.  Other than that, if you see something missing or incorrect, or if you have questions about any of the calendar entries, kindly e-mail Bro. Karl. 

All Results Have Finally Been Mailed!

Apparently not all of the audition results were mailed out at the same time.  Everyone should have gotten something by June 10th.  My apologies for any confusion.

Obviously the deadline mentioned in the acceptance letter is extended.  If you would be kind enough to let me know of any changes by Wednesday June 15th, that would be appreciated.  In particular, we need to know now if anyone wants to drop out of band.

We are looking forward to seeing all of the new players in September!

Check your E-mail!

E-mails about the results of the audition went out on Wednesday, June 1st.

Kindly make sure that your junk mail filters have not tossed it out!

If you have not received the results of your audition, feel free to e-mail me.

Check your E-mail for Audition Results.

Audition results will be arriving via e-mail sometime this week.


Parents, I need your help in three areas:

First, some of your sons, although accepted into the band, may decide that they are no longer interested in playing in the band.  This may be a difficult idea for you to accept, but it has to be your son's choice.  If HE doesn't want to play, please respect that choice.

Second, some of your sons may have been accepted into the Pep Band when they really wanted to be in a concert band.  There were many trumpet and alto sax players who auditioned, making it impossible to accept all of them into the concert bands.  Here are answers to some common questions:

"Can my son play on a Chaminade sports team and also play in the Pep Band?"
Yes, he can.  We have many Pep Band members who do both.  Whenever your son has a game, he is excused from Pep Band.  There are fewer conflicts than you might imagine.

"Will my son make a concert band sophomore year?"
It is possible.  The best way is to use the year in Pep Band to improve, including doing well on a level 5/6 NYSSMA solo next year.  Another way is to use the year in Pep Band to learn another instrument.  For alto sax players, learning the baritone sax is an excellent choice.  For trumpet players, the baritone horn is an option.  Good baritone players have a greater chance of making the concert band next year.

“Can my son play in band and do well in school?”
Of course he can!  Band takes place during the school day, replacing your son’s study hall.  Lessons also take him out of a class for 30 minutes once a week.  Time management and study skills will require a bit of adjusting, as it will for all freshmen.  Band students have an excellent history of doing well in both school and band, and in learning how to adjust the balance between them.


Third, we need to know NOW, not September, if your son does not want to be in the band.  Please inform me by June 6th if your son is not interested.  Band will be on your son's schedule this September and he is committed for the year to stay in the band.  Your help in this area is greatly appreciated.

Chaminade Bands to March in the Mineola Memorial Day Parade

On Monday, May 30, 2011, more than 100 students from the Gold, Crimson, Flyers and Pep Bands will march as one unit, leading the Memorial Day Parade of Mineola. 

The parade kicks off at 11:00 a.m., and should arrive at the intersection of Roslyn and Jericho around 11:10.  Around 11:20 the parade will cross Mineola Blvd. and Jericho Turnpike.  Around 11:30, the parade will turn the corner of  Jericho and Marcellus.  All times are approximate.

In addition, members of the Bagpipe Band will be marching, separate from the combined bands

Parade route:  The parade starts at Wilson Park, which is at the east end of Mineola.  North on Union Street, turning left and heading west on Westbury Avenue.   A right turn heading north on Roslyn Road.  A  left turn onto Jericho Turnpike heading west.  A left by the AAC heading south on Marcellus Road.  

Many family members of the band students watch the parade along the one or two blocks EAST of the AAC, making pickup quite easy. 

Band students should report to Chaminade by 9:00 and will be done by 12:00. 

Please come to see the parade and honor the men and women who have served our country!

Music Recitals this Thursday and Friday

On Thursday and Friday, May 26 & 27, students from the various music groups of Chaminade High School will be performing solo pieces in the Hearst Auditorium of the Activity Athletic Center. Different students will be performing each night.

 

The recitals start at 7:00 p.m. and will last about 90 minutes.

 

All are welcome and admission is free.

Nice Showing at Auditions!

Thanks for taking the time to audition.  We had a good number of students show up and now we have the difficult task of sorting everything out.

If there was an unforeseen problem where you could not make the audition, please contact Bro. Karl right away.  We have another day when you can audition.

Results will be e-mailed after Memorial Day.

A Piano Position Has Become Available!

A position for the piano in the Flyers Band has become available.  This is in addition to the piano position available in the Pep Band.  For both of these, the synthesizer is your main instrument, where you will be covering band parts that are missing or weak.

Any questions, please contact the band moderator, Bro. Karl.
You can go to the Audition Information page and use the link in the Band Letter to All Students to contact him.

We hope to see some of you piano players at auditions!

Audtions are this Saturday!

Hopefully you have been practicing and are ready for the upcoming auditions this Saturday!  You can click on the page above for audition information.

Remember to send an e-mail if you can't make it on Saturday and we will try to arrange another date for you.

If you have recently taken a NYSSMA solo, we would appreciate a copy of your score sheet. Some of you will not have performed your NYSSMA solo until after the audition.  Feel free to send in a copy when you receive it.

Results of the audition will be e-mailed to you after Memorial Day.

Great concerts!

Congratulations to all for another fine set of concerts.  Both nights were well-attended and everyone enjoyed the variety and skill of all the groups.

Click on the link to see some photos: Concert photos

Information for the night of the concerts

There is a page for each of the concert bands containing the pertinent information for the night of the concert.  What time to show up, what to wear, when it will end, etc.

These pages have been removed since the concert is over.

May 77th? I knew May was long, but this is ridiculous!

In thirty of the e-mails I sent out to parents of incoming freshmen who are interested in the band, I listed May 77th as the date of the auditions.  That should, of course, be May 7th.  May is long enough as it is!

Spring concert ticket information.

Tickets for the Spring Concerts, to be held on Friday, April 15th and Saturday, April 16th, at 8:15 p.m. are available at a cost of 5 dollars each.  The Flyers Band, the Crimson Glee Club, the Crimson Band and the String Orchestra will perform on Friday evening.  The Gold Band and the Gold Glee Club, including the Jazz Band and the Vocal Chamber Ensemble, will perform Saturday night. 

If you do not have a son performing in the concert, please place your order by calling the Chaminade Box Office, (516) 742-555, ext. 455.  Your tickets will be placed on reserve and should be picked up the night of the concert.  You will be contacted only if there is a problem.

If your son is performing in the concert, click on the link below to print out a ticket order form.  Print it out and have your son bring it to school, handing it in to the appropriate moderator.
 
This link has been removed since the concert is over.

Welcome to the Band Blog

This blog will cover topics related to the Gold, Crimson, Flyers and Pep Bands.

Ticket information for the Spring Concerts to be posted soon.