Now that the excitement and success of our first concert is behind us, we are ready to move on to bigger and better things! Both the 5th and 6th grade bands have started working on new music, and we are excited to share what we are learning.
The Fifth Grade Band has REAL music! Yes! We have 3 pieces to learn that are a full page long. Besides learning new notes and rhythms, we have learned how to read rehearsal marks, many measure rests, and....we all have our own parts for our instruments! It is a challenge, but we have a good start on " Popcorn Prelude". You'll have to watch us in our next concert to see what is special about this piece.
The Sixth Grade Band is playing WAY COOL music! Can you say....Prehistoric??? We have a piece about dinosaurs that is challenging our technical skills. We love playing this because....every piece describes the behavior of a species of dinosaur. We also moved on to a new rock piece- "Stone Age Stomp" and we do rock! Even with the short time we have had to practice since the concert, we are catching on.
Congratulations to Logan Musel, Eve Thomas and Juawan Thomas who were selected to the Karl King Honor Band. These three students will travel to Ft. Dodge in January to participate in this Festival. Fifth Graders, keep practicing so that you have a chance to try this!
We say goodbye to Mr. Anders, our student teacher. We all enjoyed having him with us. We will have another student teacher next semester.
Keep the music going! And, have a wonderful winter break. I look forward to the rewards of working with you in 2011!
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
First Concert November 29
We had our first concert of the year last night. I am so proud of all of my students. The fifth grade played very well, and they really looked like they knew exactly what to do! I couldn't even tell that they were nervous! Congratulations on your first performance.
Mr. Anders, our student teacher, directed the 6th grade band. I know that it meant a great deal to Mr. Anders to be standing in front of you and being your leader for the concert. The 6th graders were awesome- great music making at its best! What a band!
We will have video posted on You Tube soon. Check back to get the links, and you can share our performances with friends and family far away!
Keep practicing, folks. I know I need to go do that today, too!
Mr. Anders, our student teacher, directed the 6th grade band. I know that it meant a great deal to Mr. Anders to be standing in front of you and being your leader for the concert. The 6th graders were awesome- great music making at its best! What a band!
We will have video posted on You Tube soon. Check back to get the links, and you can share our performances with friends and family far away!
Keep practicing, folks. I know I need to go do that today, too!
Monday, November 22, 2010
All State was fantastic!
Just got back from a trip with the high school All State students. We had a wonderful time in Ames.
First, congratulations to these 7 band students....Kieran Cullen on flute, Emma Morin on Eb Clarinet, Katie Schulz on Bb Clarinet, Kelsey Struck on horn, Jesse Luedtke on trombone, Don Halverson on baritone, and Tom Cullen on tuba. Kieran, Katie, Kelsey and Jesse performed with the All State orchestra, and Emma, Don and Tom performed with the All State Band.
These students earned spots in All State by auditioning in October. They played scales, performed a short solo, and prepared etudes. Hmmm....you guys practice scales too! I am sure there are some future All Staters in our middle school groups!
While in Ames, we had chair placements. All of our kids placed high in their sections. Emma, Don and Jesse were 1st chair...that is quite an accomplishment at All State!! After chair placements, we ate at Hickory Park. We returned to our motel and went to bed. Friday was a day of rehearsals and watching the groups come together. What amazing sounds! When you get that many great musicians in one place, you can do anything! We had a wonderful meal that evening ( thanks Music Boosters!). Saturday was the big day- rehearsals in our ensembles, a run through in Hilton Coliseum, and the concert. Word from the students, the parents, and the audience in general is that it was one of the finest All State concerts they had heard! (Must have been all those good Storm Lake kids!)
The concert is televised on Iowa Public Television. Check out the concert on Thursday, Nov. 25 at 7:00 pm or Sunday, November 28 at 5:30 pm. Look for our Storm Lake kids in black dresses and tuxes. Our choir kids- Cayla Egesdahl, Hannah Friesen, Erica Allen, Anna Wulfkuehler, JC Renteria, Alex Lenhart are wearing blue robes with gold collars. Bring a note from mom and dad telling that you watched the concert and get extra credit!
Work hard guys....All State is incredible. All of our HS musicians started out right where you are now! Consistent practice and a desire to be the best you can be will get you there. I hope to see you on tv in a few years, too!
First, congratulations to these 7 band students....Kieran Cullen on flute, Emma Morin on Eb Clarinet, Katie Schulz on Bb Clarinet, Kelsey Struck on horn, Jesse Luedtke on trombone, Don Halverson on baritone, and Tom Cullen on tuba. Kieran, Katie, Kelsey and Jesse performed with the All State orchestra, and Emma, Don and Tom performed with the All State Band.
These students earned spots in All State by auditioning in October. They played scales, performed a short solo, and prepared etudes. Hmmm....you guys practice scales too! I am sure there are some future All Staters in our middle school groups!
While in Ames, we had chair placements. All of our kids placed high in their sections. Emma, Don and Jesse were 1st chair...that is quite an accomplishment at All State!! After chair placements, we ate at Hickory Park. We returned to our motel and went to bed. Friday was a day of rehearsals and watching the groups come together. What amazing sounds! When you get that many great musicians in one place, you can do anything! We had a wonderful meal that evening ( thanks Music Boosters!). Saturday was the big day- rehearsals in our ensembles, a run through in Hilton Coliseum, and the concert. Word from the students, the parents, and the audience in general is that it was one of the finest All State concerts they had heard! (Must have been all those good Storm Lake kids!)
The concert is televised on Iowa Public Television. Check out the concert on Thursday, Nov. 25 at 7:00 pm or Sunday, November 28 at 5:30 pm. Look for our Storm Lake kids in black dresses and tuxes. Our choir kids- Cayla Egesdahl, Hannah Friesen, Erica Allen, Anna Wulfkuehler, JC Renteria, Alex Lenhart are wearing blue robes with gold collars. Bring a note from mom and dad telling that you watched the concert and get extra credit!
Work hard guys....All State is incredible. All of our HS musicians started out right where you are now! Consistent practice and a desire to be the best you can be will get you there. I hope to see you on tv in a few years, too!
Monday, November 15, 2010
Tips for Parents- Some Things To Think About
Once your child begins to develop good practice habits, you will start to see and hear a difference. Can you detect behaviors that will likely affect other parts of your musician’s life? Can you hear musical improvements? The improvements might include any of the following:
Improved sound- range, tone, flexibility
Improved problem solving skills
Ability to set priorities
Result-oriented behavior
Improved time management skills
Improved focus
Creativity
Flexibility
Emotional and intellectual engagement
Satisfaction
Now what do you do the make your child improve even more? Try some of the following suggestions, or ask for the Mastering Motivation table!
Ask your child to perform a mini-concert every week at a special time, such as Saturday night after dinner.
Encourage your child in discussions about music. Even if you don’t have a musical background, you can talk about how music relates to other areas of your life and how it makes your feel.
Listen to recorded music with your child and ask him or her to describe what instruments they are playing and other elements of the performance. Encourage your child to use musical terms (e.g., melody, rhythm, staccato, legato) and to define them for you.
Ask your child to memorize a piece of music and perform it for you from memory
Encourage your child to compose a piece of music and perform it for a special family event.
Improved sound- range, tone, flexibility
Improved problem solving skills
Ability to set priorities
Result-oriented behavior
Improved time management skills
Improved focus
Creativity
Flexibility
Emotional and intellectual engagement
Satisfaction
Now what do you do the make your child improve even more? Try some of the following suggestions, or ask for the Mastering Motivation table!
Ask your child to perform a mini-concert every week at a special time, such as Saturday night after dinner.
Encourage your child in discussions about music. Even if you don’t have a musical background, you can talk about how music relates to other areas of your life and how it makes your feel.
Listen to recorded music with your child and ask him or her to describe what instruments they are playing and other elements of the performance. Encourage your child to use musical terms (e.g., melody, rhythm, staccato, legato) and to define them for you.
Ask your child to memorize a piece of music and perform it for you from memory
Encourage your child to compose a piece of music and perform it for a special family event.
Friday, November 12, 2010
What happened this week?
We had a great week in our 5th grade and 6th grade bands. Our fifth graders started a new schedule. Each group of our band has a sectional and we worked on music for our first concert. On Wednesday, we practiced together and did every song for the concert. We are going to be ready to play! All of us need a white shirt, black pants or a black skirt , and black shoes for the concert. Come and see at our first performance.
The 6th grade band enjoyed having Mr. Anders, our student teacher, conduct our rehearsals. He is learning from us and we are learning from him. He started with one piece, and by Thursday, took our entire rehearsal. He will conduct us at our concert, and we hope we all do well!
80% of us, grades 5-8 attended our lessons this week. We have many schedule changes, so this was a difficult task. Mrs. Wells keeps talking to us about practicing, and progressing through our lesson material. Those of us that take our instruments home, and make an effort to learn our assigned lessons are really making great contributions! Mrs. Wells strongly encourages us to practice at least 5 days a week for 10 minutes a day. We can always be assured we will be great musicians if we follow this guideline!
Practice time can include work in our lesson books, on our band music, or even on a specific skill.....like tapping our toe in time, or correcting the way we blow---so that we always get a good sound.
We love making music together...and we appreciate all of your encouragement and support! Make sure you come to our concert on November 29th at 7:00 in the Middle School Gym. The Music Boosters will provide ice cream sundaes after the concert to celebrate our success. Come be a part of the fun!
The 6th grade band enjoyed having Mr. Anders, our student teacher, conduct our rehearsals. He is learning from us and we are learning from him. He started with one piece, and by Thursday, took our entire rehearsal. He will conduct us at our concert, and we hope we all do well!
80% of us, grades 5-8 attended our lessons this week. We have many schedule changes, so this was a difficult task. Mrs. Wells keeps talking to us about practicing, and progressing through our lesson material. Those of us that take our instruments home, and make an effort to learn our assigned lessons are really making great contributions! Mrs. Wells strongly encourages us to practice at least 5 days a week for 10 minutes a day. We can always be assured we will be great musicians if we follow this guideline!
Practice time can include work in our lesson books, on our band music, or even on a specific skill.....like tapping our toe in time, or correcting the way we blow---so that we always get a good sound.
We love making music together...and we appreciate all of your encouragement and support! Make sure you come to our concert on November 29th at 7:00 in the Middle School Gym. The Music Boosters will provide ice cream sundaes after the concert to celebrate our success. Come be a part of the fun!
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