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Congratulations to our awesome students on another successful virtual concert performance!  Ms. Kluga is so very proud of you all, both for your musicality and for your open minds and positive attitudes as we studied the music, the pop culture, and the icons of the Swing Era.  

And, many thanks to the Band Officers who donated their time to create and deliver our concert goody bags.  Thank you for helping make this a special evening for our students!

To help celebrate Music in Our Schools Month, NAfME (National Association for Music Education) is releasing the ANHE virtual performances – with our own Swaroop Pujari representing YCSD as a member of the All National Concert Band! The concerts will be released on 3/4, and can be accessed via this link 

Congratulations to Swaroop on achieving this impressive musical honor!

The lesson calendar and new lesson groups will be reviewed in class and are available on Dashboard.

Ms. Kluga looks forward to working with you all, in person, this Thursday 3/4 from 2-3pm. Please arrive by 1:50. Bring your signed attestation.

Information will be reviewed this week in class, is available on Dashboard, and is attached.

As part of our next unit, all band students will learn a NYSSMA solo as part of their lesson homework. So, if they are interested in participating in NYSSMA, or auditioning for Wind Ensemble, they will have the necessary tools to do so.

In addition to the musical opportunity NYSSMA provides, students are able to receive honors credit for Concert Band or Wind Ensemble by earning a score of 95 or above on a level 6 solo/ensemble, or a score of 97 or above on a level 5 solo/ensemble. 

Auditions for the 2021-2022 Wind Ensemble will take place at the end of April.  Students wishing to audition should review the audition information sheet (attached) with you.  If your student is interested in auditioning, Ms. Kluga strongly suggests that they also participate in NYSSMA.  The Wind Ensemble audition information sheet/permission slip is attached and is also available in the band room.  FORMS ARE DUE MONDAY 3/8.

On Tuesday 3/9, Master Sergeant Johnson, a trombone player with the “President’s Own” Marine Band will present a clinic, via zoom, to our Wind Ensemble students (period 8). The clinic is part of the band’s educational outreach campaign and is titled Becoming a Better Musician During a Pandemic. Interested Concert Band students are also welcome to attend, e-mail Ms. Kluga for more information. We are thrilled to have this opportunity!

In class on Monday 2/22 and Tuesday 2/23 we will be recording virtual bows. Students will need to be wearing their concert black and holding their instrument (percussionists, you will hold your sticks). We will review the process in class. Students, please make sure you have your concert black ready to wear.

Swing music was, literally, made to be danced to. As part of our study, students learn social dances from the period – to help them feel the “swing” of the beat and better interpret the music. This year we learned the “Shim Sham” which was a popular line dance in the Harlem Swing venues of the 1930’s (most notably the Savoy Ballroom). 

Interested students have an opportunity to earn extra credit points by participating in our virtual Upbeat performance of the Shim Sham. Information (including a tutorial) is attached, and was reviewed in class before the break. Shim-Sham videos are due Monday 2/22.

The students and Ms. Kluga are so excited to share our work with you! Our virtual concert is scheduled for Thursday 2/25 at 7:00pm, via YouTube. The link will be posted on the YHS homepage. Please join us for an evening of music!

Our awesome Band Officers have again created a bag of goodies for each student to enjoy while they watch our performance. Bags will be distributed to hybrid students in class. Bags for our remote students will be available for pick-up in the Main Office on Wednesday 2/24 and Thursday 2/25.