TECHNOLOGY AND BAND

To all of our students – thank you for your patience as we deal with the learning curves that music technology (and technology in general) presents. To be successful, here is what students will need:

1.     A device with working audio and video (so Ms. Kluga can hear them when they play and see their posture and finger/stick technique).

2.     Headphones

3.     Power cable

GUIDED PRACTICE / EXTRA CREDIT

Below is a list of this week’s sessions. Huge thanks to our awesome upperclassmen leaders for hosting! For this quarter our YHS Band students, grades 9-12, have clocked a total of 111 periods of guided practice so far!

  • Monday 11/2, p.9: Jazz Saxophone with Swaroop, Jazz Trombone with Colin, Saxophone with Alissa
  • Wednesday 11/5, p.9: Trumpet with Michael
  • Thursday 11/5, p.9: Clarinet with Sarah
  • Friday 11/6, p.9: Flute with Chinmay, Horn with Alicia, Jazz Trumpet with Michael

NOVEMBER LESSON CALENDAR

Due to the updated YCSD calendar, Ms. Kluga needed to make some lesson changes for November. The updated lesson calendar is available on Dashboard.

JAZZ BAND

Nice job at rehearsal this week! It was so much fun to see you all having fun together!

Please plan on attending your sectional this week – check your e-mail for the link. Have your notes and rhythms ready to work on Critical Mass.

Thursday 11/5 from 2-3pm is our next rehearsal. Practice your music so you are confident, then we can have fun putting it together!

FRIENDLY REMINDER

Band students have had 7 lessons so far this quarter, each one building on skills from the previous, and this week’s lesson was particularly challenging.  Young musicians need to work repetitively to build muscle memory – which doesn’t always sound like music at first. As our students practice at home, with other family members at home too, here is a reminder of how you can help support them 🙂

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YHS BAND HALLOWEEN COSTUME CONTEST

Our 17th annual costume contest will take place in class on Thursday 10/30 and Friday 10/31.  Extra points if your costume is home-made, or in any way musical.  Looking forward to celebrating this fun holiday with you!

EXTRA CREDIT

Students can earn extra credit by attending a guided practice session with an upper-classman, or an extra help appointment with Ms. Kluga. Availability is announced daily in class. Ms. Kluga is always available for extra help by appointment.

Here are the rest of this week’s guided practice session offerings. Zoom links were sent via e-mail.

Wednesday: Horn, Flute, Clarinet, Jazz Band Trumpet

Friday: Clarinet, Trumpet

Thank you to our awesome upperclassmen for your time and leadership!

JAZZ BAND

We will meet Thursday 10/29 from 2-3. Ms. Kluga will make a call regarding the weather during the day on Thursday. Please arrive early so that we can begin promptly at 2.

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UPBEAT MUSIC APP

This week we tried out the UpBeat app (which combines the social meeting platform of Zoom with the recording capabilities of Acapella) during our virtual rehearsals and band lessons. Students started by clapping a simple rhythm exercise, and once that was successful, went on to perform a more complex rhythm with instruments. A sample video of this project is attached. 

Ms. Kluga is really excited about the musical possibilities Upbeat offers our students! More to come.

LESSON CALENDAR CHANGES

FYI – Ms. Kluga had to make a few changes to your upcoming lesson days/periods. Please see the revised October lesson calendar, which is attached and on Dashboard.

LESSON HOMEWORK

All students have a new lesson assignment this week. You should hear some music making at home 🙂

EXTRA CREDIT

Students can earn extra credit by attending a guided practice session, or an extra help appointment.

Practice sessions are offered weekly by our upperclassmen, and are held both in person (socially distanced with instrument PPE) and over zoom. The date/time is communicated in my class announcements. Ms. Kluga is also always available for extra help by appointment.

Thank you to our awesome upperclassmen for your time and leadership! You are making a difference!