Congratulations to everyone for your terrific performances at the band concert!

Reminder: Jazz band rehearsals will resume after break. Please check calendar for upcoming performances & rehearsals.

REHEARSALS TONIGHT CANCELED

Due to rapidly deteriorating weather conditions, both band rehearsals for this evening have been canceled.

Rehearsal times for tomorrow night have been adjusted as follows:

Fr/Soph Band: 5:45 - 7:30 pm
Junior/Senior Band: 7:45 - 9:30 pm

If you see this - please spread the word! Call, text, update your Facebook status - help us let everyone know NOT to come to rehearsals tonight.

We will see you tomorrow evening for tomorrow's rehearsal. It is now EXTRA important that you be ON TIME for this rehearsal as we need every second of rehearsal time that we can get!

Greetings from the basketball game!

Have a great weekend, everyone - see you at rehearsal on Sunday!
(6 - 7:30 for freshmen/sophomores, 7:45 - 9:15 for juniors/seniors)

Please see updated pep band times on the calendar!

Concert Dress Code!

Dress code for all MCHS band concerts during the 2010-2011 school year will be black and white dress clothes. All school dress code rules apply! The dress code can be found on page 37 of the Student Handbook.

Appropriate attire is as follows:

Boys:
Black dress pants
Black or white dress shirt
Black dress shoes with black socks
Optional: Black or white tie

Girls:
Black dress pants with nice black or white top
Black skirt with black tights and nice black or white top
Black dress with black tights
Black dress shoes (with black socks or tights)

Girls please note:

• Black tights/nylons are required if you are wearing a skirt.
• All skirts must adhere to the school dress code -- that is, bottom of the skirt must be at or below your fingertips when you are standing up with your arms at your side. Please consider skirt length when sitting as well as standing.
• Dresses may be sleeveless (i.e., only open at the shoulder) -- spaghetti strap and strapless dresses are not allowed unless you are wearing a sweater over the dress.
  

If you are unsure if your outfit is appropriate, please see Mr. Anderson or Ms. Wych BEFORE the day of the concert!!

Happy Thanskgiving!

With this early end to the school week, only one question remains....

Did YOU take your instrument home to practice over the long weekend??

(And no, this was not a setup - thanks to Anthony, Molly, Becky, and Aric for actually all leaving at the same time with instruments in hand!)

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, everyone!

Drum Major Announcement

Congratulations to our new drum majors for the 2010-2011 school year! Joining Mallory on the drum major team will be:

Justin Miner
John Kauffman

Thank you to everyone who tried out - we were extremely impressed by the quality of this year's candidates. You will all be great assets to next year's band!

IMEA Band/Choir Honors!

Congratulations to Kayla Bachar and Hannah Knorr!

Kayla and Hannah were selected to participate in the IMEA District I Honors Music Festival! They were chosen after a rigorous audition process that selects the best musicians in the Chicagoland area. Kayla will be in the Honors Band playing flute and Hannah will be in the Honors Choir singing in the alto section.

The festival will be held at Lincoln-Way West HS on Saturday, November 20th. The concert will begin at 4 pm and the general public is invited to attend.

3rd Round Playoffs!

Congratulations to our 10-1 MCHS Football Team! Our band will continue to support our team/school/community at the next game with Belleville East this coming weekend. The game is Saturday, November 13th starting at 6 pm. REPORT TIME WILL BE 5PM!

Your attendance is required for home playoff games. If you have a time conflict with this event, please see Ms. Wych or Mr. Anderson BEFORE FRIDAY.

GO INDIANS!

Important - Band Night Rehearsal Change

The Band Night rehearsal scheduled for 3rd period tomorrow (Tuesday - B day) has been switched to 3rd period on Wednesday (A day) due to a forecast of inclement weather.

Your teachers have been notified of the change. Again - take the bus over to Central on Wednesday, 10/27, NOT Tuesday!

Also - the first playoff game has been scheduled for 1 pm on Saturday, 10/30. Due to the conflict in schedules, the band will no longer be performing in the Minooka Halloween Parade. Call time for Saturday's football game is 12:15 pm.

Great job, band!

Congratulations to everyone on an awesome performance at the Mahomet-Seymour Marching Band Festival yesterday!

The band placed 3rd in our class (AAA) and third overall (out of 26 bands), as well as placing third in the Percussion, Auxiliary (guard), and Music caption awards.

What a great end to our competitive season! You have all worked very hard this year and your effort has certainly shown in your performances. On behalf of all the band/guard staff, we are extremely proud of you!

Don't forget though that we do have (at least) three performances remaining this fall.

• Band Night - Wed, Oct. 27th at 7 pm (6:15 call time). The Boosters are also hosting a Chili Dinner before this event, so bring your family, enjoy some chili, and support the band.
  
  
• Football Playoff Game - Fri, Oct. 29th - Time TBA. This is a home game, so attendance is required!
  
  
• Halloween Parade - Fri, Oct. 30th at 2 pm (call time TBA). Wear black pants and drillmasters. From the waist up, you may wear anything orange and black, or a Halloween costume of your choosing.
  
  
• If our team wins the football game on Friday (Go Indians!), stay tuned for information on next week's playoff game performance.

Again, great job on your performances this weekend!

U of I Week is here!

Schedule for Saturday!

9:00 am - 10:45 am -> Band rehearsal
10:45 am - 11:45 am -> Lunch (on your own)
11:45 am -> Load busses/trailor
12:15 pm -> Busses leave MCHS
4:39 pm -> Marching Indians Performance!
8:00 pm -> Marching Illini Performance!
8:30 pm -> Awards Ceremony
9:20 pm -> Busses leave
11:45 pm-> Return home (approx)

The competition is held at Memorial Stadium on Campus.
Bring money for food at concessions stands.
Wear orange t-shirt or band hoody when not in full uniform.

schedule for the all the bands at U of I may be found at:
http://www.music.illinois.edu/illinoisbands/content/schedule.html

*Reminder - there is a regular Wednesday night rehearsal on 10/14 from 6:30-9:15 pm*

IMEA auditions

Good Luck to our band students who are auditioning for the IMEA District I Band this evening!

Hannah Knorr
Kayla Bachar
Sarah Danielson
Kevin Hannon
Anthony Abbonato

Spaghetti Dinner Winners

Congratulations to the following winners of the Spaghetti Dinner 50/50 and Basket Raffles:

50/50 Raffle - Ticket #6343449 (must present ticket to collect prize)

"Bears" Basket - Ben Thelo

"Breakfast in Bed" Basket - Carolyn Kopp

Winners should contact Wendy Homa at 708-516-9330 to collect their prizes.

A big thank-you also goes out to all the band parents and students who contributed time, resources, and hard work to make the Band and Guard Spaghetti Dinner a success!

Schedule for Oswego Panther Preview

*Update* - For parents wishing to attend this performance, admission is $4. The location is "the" Oswego High School (not Oswego East) - 4250 Rt. 71, Oswego IL.

Student Schedule:

4:15 pm - Report to band room
4:30 pm - Leave for Oswego High School
6:00 pm - Panther Preview Begins
6:26 pm - Marching Indians Performance
8:10 pm - NIU Marching Huskies perform
8:40 pm - Leave OHS
9:15 pm (approx) - Return to MCHS

Attire for this event is blue jeans, orange band t-shirt, black socks, and black drillmasters.

Do not wear any additional long-sleeved shirts under your t-shirt. However, you may bring sweatshirts, coats, etc to wear over your t-shirt when we are not performing. You will be allowed to purchase dinner from the concession stand after our performance, or may bring a sack dinner if you choose.

Great job this weekend!

Congratulations to everyone on two great performances this weekend!

At NIU on Saturday, the band placed 3rd in class 4A. We also ranked 5th overall out of the 30 total bands in the competition. It was certainly an exciting evening performing in the NIU stadium, and we are very happy with our results! Our music scores in particular showed much improvement from the previous week.

On Sunday, the band competed in the Grundy County Corn Festival Parade, placing first in our class and winning Caption Awards for best horn line, best drum majors, and best color guard.

Great job, band! You had a week of very focused, productive rehearsals and warm-ups coming into this weekend and your hard work definitely showed in our performances.

This week we have rehearsal on Monday, 9/27 ONLY - no practice on Wednesday 9/29 due to the PowderPuff football game. Let's have a great rehearsal and a successful performance at the homecoming football game on Friday! Keep up the good work - your directors and instructors are very excited for the rest of our season.

NIU and Corn Fest!

NIU schedule (9/25)
Rehearsal- 2:00 pm to 4:30 pm
Dinner - on your own
Report time - 6:00 pm
Performance time - 9:55 pm
Return time (approx) - 12:15 am
additional info: http://www.regiment.org/bands/show.cfm

Corn Fest Parade (9/26)
MCHS "Marching Indians" are unit #47
Report time - 12:30 pm
Parade starts - 2:00 pm
Return time (approx) - 3:45 pm

Rehearsals this week are the normal Monday (9/20) and Wednesday (9/22) evenings from 6:30 pm to 9:15 pm

Weather

We will be rehearsing indoors if the weather does not cooperate for today's practice at 11:30 am to 1:30 pm.

The competition today will not be cancelled due to weather. There is an indoor performance that will be implemented due to weather. This decision is made by the competition officials at Wheaton North HS.

See the weather link at the following website:
http://www.wnband.org/news/Festival.php#weather

Competition Week is here!

WHEATON NORTH HS FIELD COMPETITION!

Saturday, September 18th

Rehearsal - 11:30 am to 1:30 pm (@MCHS)

Lunch - 1:30 pm (on your own)

Report time - 2:45 pm (@MCHS)

Performance time @ WNHS - 7:00 pm

Return to MCHS - 11:15 pm (est)

(additional info available: http://www.wnband.org/news/Festival.php)

Sept 25th (Sat) NIU Field Competition - Performance time is 9:55 pm

(schedule to follow in a few days)

Sept 26th (Sun) Grundy County Corn Fest Parade - TBA (unit #47)

Oct 2nd (Fri) Homecoming Game! Report time is 6:15 pm

The new uniforms have arrived! Final fittings have gone well - THANKS TO MRS. MILSAPS AND MRS. NORRIS! We will debut our new look at the Wheaton North field competition! This is first time in 17 years we have had new uniforms!

Uniforms are here!

Next rehearsal -> Mon. 9/13 from 6:30 pm to 9:15 pm

Band Booster meeting -> Monday 9/13 @ 7 pm (band room)

Next performance report times:

Sept 10th (Fri) football game - 6:30 pm

Sept 18th (Sat) Wheaton-North HS Field Competition

Rehearsal - 11:30 am to 1:30 pm

Lunch - 1:30 pm (on your own)

Report time - 2:45 pm

Performance time @ WNHS - 7:00 pm

Return to MCHS - 11:15 pm (est)

Sept 25th (Sat) NIU Field Competition - TBA

Sept 26th (Sun) Grundy County Corn Fest Parade - TBA

The new uniforms have arrived! Students need to to schedule a final fitting time on the list in the band room!

GREAT FIRST SHOW!

Your directors/instructors were impressed with your great showing at our first game! There was very good focus during the performance and as a result was well received by the audience! Your positive enthusiasm during the game definitely added to the home "turf" advantage for our team! I think everyone will be looking forward to another "roller coaster" ride at the next game with Kevin. :)

GO INDIANS! MCHS YOU!

Congrats on your good performance at Summerfest. Our audiences in the parade and at the concert enjoyed our presentation.

Our next rehearsal is Monday, Aug. 30th from 6 pm to 8 pm. We will be spending a great majority of the rehearsal learning drill spots for Part II of our show! We need to have perfect attendance to make the most progress at our rehearsals!

Please note that rehearsal next Wednesday (9/1) will begin our normal rehearsal times for the rest of the season (6:30 pm to 9:15 pm)

Next performance report times:

Sept 10th (Fri) football game - 6:30 pm

Sept 18th (Sat) Wheaton-North HS Field Comp - TBA

It seems likely our performance time will be late afternoon or early evening. Please note that you should reserve the entire day for band as we will be having a rehearsal in the morning.

Uniform News

Delivery of our new uniforms is due the week of Sept. 13th. More information about fittings and guidelines for uniform care/maintenance will be forthcoming.

Tag Day Pictures

Below are a few pictures from today's Tag Day at Wal-Mart. Thanks to Mrs. Wolz for taking and sending the pictures! She said patrons were happy to see our students performing rather than just asking for donations. Simultaneously earning money for student accounts, the band program, AND spreading music in the community - sounds like a good day to me!

ALSO - Please see Mr. Anderson's post below for information about this week's rehearsals and Sunday's parade!

Marching Band off to a GREAT START!

Congrats to all for a very successful week of camp! We are all encouraged by the high levels of desire shown by our band to achieve greatness! Your directors/instructors were pleased with the fine performance at demo night.

Please see the calendar on the left to see some updated times/dates for the fall season. Report time for Sunday's parade (Aug 8th) in Shorewood is 11 am. We meet at the MCHS band room for all events. Students should wear orange polo shirts, black docker style pants, black socks, and your black drillmaster shoes.

Our next rehearsal is Wednesday night (Aug. 4th) from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm. Be lined up in parade block ready to go promptly at 6:30 pm. DO NOT BE LATE!

Section Leader Meeting

To all section leaders -

The section leader meeting this Sunday, July 18th is at 7 pm in the band room.

Be there or be square... marching band season has begun!

Pictures!

Thanks to everyone who has sent/shown me pictures of themselves practicing this summer! Remember, if you want a small musical prize, and to be entered to win a larger one, send me a picture of your musical endeavors!


Just over a week til sectionals... get excited!

Drumline Rehearsal Cancelled

Drumline rehearsal for June 23 has been cancelled due to new carpet installation in the band room this week. The next rehearsal will be July 11th. Please help spread this announcement by calling or texting other drumline members.

Packets and Games

Hey, Band! Hope everyone is having a fantastic summer! Two things worth blogging about:

First, band camp forms are due TOMORROW, June 15th! Turn those in to the band room or main office at Central ASAP! Remind your friends to turn in theirs, as well!

Second... it's Game Time! (It is summer after all, right?) We all know I enjoy shameless bribes, especially if they involve getting you to practice. So here's the game:

Any time between now and July 18th, email me a picture of you playing your instrument and a sentence or two describing what you played. (Scales? Band music? Banana Boat?) In return, you will receive a small but fun music-related prize when I see you during sectionals week! Group pictures are accepted and even encouraged! Get together with friends and play some duets or trios on a rainy day, or head out in the front yard and entertain your neighbors. Particularly entertaining pictures may make it onto the blog, but all pictures are accepted! Pending how many people take part in this game (I'm not sure how many people check the blog during the summer!), we may even have a drawing at the end for an even cooler prize.

So... turn in your packets... then take out your instrument and join the game!

Happy Summer!

Great job at the Memorial Day parade, everyone! It never rains on a great band... although we cut it PRETTY close this morning!

A couple reminders as we embark on seven whole weeks with no band:

• Turn in your Band Camp forms by June 15th to avoid incurring a late fee. CLICK HERE to access the band website with all necessary form downloads in case you misplaced a few.
  
• Practice your instruments!
• Stay active prior to band camp! You will thank yourself when we're down at EIU. Get some friends together and march through the neighborhood! (Kidding... sort of... not really.)

Have a great summer!

New Uniform Fittings!

The MCHS Board of Education officially approved this special new purchase for our band program last Thursday evening!

All members of the 2010-2011 Marching Indians (including incoming freshmen) are required to come to the MCHS band room during one of the following evenings to get measured for a new band uniform that will be fitted specifically for you! Guard members that are also band members should also attend.

Tuesday, May 25th 7-9 pm
Wednesday, May 26th 7-9 pm

This will only take a few minutes of your time. Please spread the word among other band members!

*Reminders*
Call time for graduation- 1:30 pm on Sunday, May 23rd.
Call time for Memorial Day- 8:30 am on Monday, May 31st.
(drumline call time is 7:30 am)

MCHS Summer Band Camp Info

TMS students will receive a packet info at their Spring Concert on May 18th.
MJHS students will receive a packet through the mail by May 20th.
CJHS students received the packet at their May 10th concert.
Returning MCHS students received the packet at the their May 13th concert.

Parents please use the color coded papers within the packet when returning the required information to:
Mr. Rick Anderson
301 South Wabena Ave.
Minooka, IL 60447

The info contained in the packet is also available at -> http://band.mchs.net

Please contact Mr. Anderson or Mrs. Wych if you have any questions.
randerson@mchs.net
gwych @mchs.net

Guard / Drumline Tryout Dates!

Fall Guard tryout camp will be in the MCHS Central Campus main gym on dates listed below. All students attending MCHS next fall are eligible for guard tryouts! !
May 10th - May 14th
5:00 pm to 8:30 pm

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Drumline tryout camp will be in MCHS Band room on dates listed below. All students enrolled in percussion class next fall need to attend! (including pit & mallet players)
May 7th (Fri) - 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm
May 8th (Sat) - 2:00 pm to 9:00 pm

May 15th (Sat) - 2:00 pm to 9:00 pm
May 16th (Sun) - 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm

IHSA Music Sweepstakes!

Congratulations to all our music students at MCHS for winning 6th place in the state for most Division I and Division II awards at Solo/Ensemble and Organizational Contests this spring! The complete results can be viewed at www.ihsa.org under the music category.

Booster Meeting Change

Please be aware that the Band Booster meeting date for May has changed to accommodate Senior Awards Night. May's meeting will be Tuesday, May 4th instead of Monday the 3rd.

Hope to see you there!

Fox Valley Music Festival at MCHS!

CORRECTION: The concert tonight begins at 7:00 pm, not 7:30 as previously stated. We suggest arriving at 6:30 pm or earlier to guarantee parking and a good spot in the audience.

The 81st annual Fox Valley Music Festival will be hosted by MCHS for the first time!

The concert will be in the MCHS Central Campus Gymnasium at 7:00 pm on Monday, April 26th. Eighteen schools from the Chicagoland area will be represented in the choir, orchestra, and band.

Congratulations to the students from our band who were selected to perform in the prestigious event!
Melissa Hallihan, Emily Kratz, Allison Turner, Andrea Aguilera, Kelley Cerovac, Hannah Knorr, Brooke Dugan, Melissa Jepsen, Erin Williams, Anthony Abbonato, John Bond, Kelly Turner, Alex Halaska, Joe Phipps, Zach Friant, Carly Johnson, and NIck Martiniak

Superior Ratings!

Congratulations to all of our bands at IHSA Contest in Morris last Saturday!

All three groups received Division I Superior Overall Ratings for their outstanding performances.

* The jazz band received 2 Superior Ratings and 1 Excellent Rating.
* The symphonic/concert band received 3 Superior Ratings.
* The wind ensemble band received 3 Superior Ratings.

IHSA Band Contest Info!

The IHSA Organizational Music Contest is being hosted by Morris HS on April 16th and April 17th. Our band program will have three performance groups in attendance for adjudication. Performance times include:

Jazz Band I - report time 6:00 pm
April 16th (Friday) @ 7:30 pm performance

Wind Ensemble - report time 1:00 pm
April 17th (Saturday) @ 3:00 pm performance

Symphonic/Concert Band - report time 1:15 pm
Aprill 17th (Saturday) @ 5:00 pm performance

Symphonic/Concert band have 2 required evening rehearsals scheduled for April 13th and April 15th from 7:00 - 8:45 pm.
Jazz Band I - April 12th (7:30 - 8:45 pm) and April 15th from (6:00 - 6:45 pm).
Jazz Band II -April 12th (6:00-7:15 pm).

Keep up with us in San Antonio!

If you'd like to follow along with the band and our activities in San Antonio, visit our special edition trip blog!

www.mchsbandtrip2010.blogspot.com

We'll be periodically posting updates and photos from San Antonio. Feel free to post comments and questions!

Let's have a great trip!

Hey, Jazz Bands!

Attention Jazz Band members:

Jazz II will be performing on Wednesday, March 24th at the Channahon Jr. High Band Boosters' "Italian Pasta Night." This performance will be from 5:30 pm - 6:00 pm. Call time is 4:30 pm at the band room. That Monday, March 22nd, we will rehearse in the band room from 6-8 pm to prepare for the performance.

Jazz I members -- you are welcome and invited to perform with us to help fill out instrumentation! Trombones are definitely needed, trumpets and saxes are appreciated. Especially if you are a CJHS alum, this will be a fun opportunity to perform!

Jazz II -- this is a required performance! Be there or be square. Jazz I -- please let me know if you'd like to join us!

March 6th !

The band has several activities/performances!

* IHSA Music Contest- 8 am to 4 pm at Ottawa HS
* Annual Craft Fair - 9 am to 3 pm at Central Campus
* Jazz Band I at Sr. Citizen Prom - 7 pm

WInterguard Home Show Today!

The MCHS Winterguard Home Show today is at South Campus. This exciting event begins at 11 am and will conclude at 2:30 pm in the gymnasium. Come out and support your MCHS Varsity and Jr. Varsity Guard in competition!

Feb 11-SPC Band Festival Concert 7pm

Congratulations to the following students for their selection into the SPC Band Festival to held at Plainfield South HS. They will rehearse all day and perform a concert at 7 pm. Admission is free and open to the public.

Jr./Sr. Band:
Anthony Abbonato, Hannah Knorr, Andrea Aguilera, Alex Halaska, Melissa Hallihan, Denine Cohran, Erin Williams, John Bond, Nick Martiniak, Carly Johnson, and Joe Phipps

Fr./So. Band:
Molly Willeford, Haley Reichardt, Anna Strle, Kayla Bachar, Rebecca Wolz, Sarah Danielson, Charles Tierney, Jessica Muir, and Audrey Schmidt

Website Updates

Student Account Balances as of January 16th are now available on the Band Boosters page of our website!

If you would like to use funds from your Student Account towards the last trip payment, you may download the Student Account Disbursement Form from the Documents page. Remember, all trip payments must be made by January 25th!

Band Booster Meeting minutes through the January 11th meeting are also available here.

Pep Band Pictures

Check out these pictures from the pep band performance on Jan. 15th!

Woodwinds do the YMCA!


Possibly the first time a melodica has been played in the MCHS Pep Band?

That's one big pep band!

MCHS Band in the NEWS!

Article about our SPRING BAND TRIP!
click here!

Bowling Fundaiser for Trip!

Our Winter Fundraiser, Boot Scootin' Bowling, is fast approaching!

When: Saturday, January 30th, 7 pm - Midnight
Where: Channahon Lanes (25306 W. Eames, Channahon)
What: In addition to bowling, this event will feature a buffet dinner, live entertainment by both the MCHS Jazz Band and the Road Dogs Band, and Live, Silent, and Basket Auctions.
Why: Support the MCHS band program and help offset the final San Antonio trip payment!
Cost: Tickets are $30 per person.

Tickets must be pre-ordered by January 23rd.

Click here to be taken to the band website to download ticket order form! (Simply scroll down after clicking the link.)