Congratulations to the Symphonic Band for their Excellent (II) rating and the Wind Ensemble for their Superior (I) ratings at the State Large Group music festival this past Thursday! All the students have been working so hard to refine their skills and improve their ensemble sound as well as individual technique. We are very proud of their efforts and ratings this past Thursday.
Coming up next is the West Area Band Festival on Tuesday. This will feature the Wind Ensemble and Overland Express along with the two middle school bands and elementary bands. Symphonic Band and Jazz Lab do not perform on this concert. Call time for these two groups is 6:30p in the gym. The concert begins at 7p. Concert Black is the dress for the evening. The concert will be finished at 8:00p.
The West Area Orchestra Festival is Wednesday evening. Many of our winds and percussionists are participating. I do not know their call time, but I’m sure they do. Their concert is also at 7:00p in the gym.
Friday is our traditional Jazz on the Bridge. What an incredible celebration of American Jazz music. We will have several of the area’s high school jazz bands performing starting at 5:30p.m. Each group will have 20-25 minutes to perform. We will have a food truck from The Rub BBQ on site for dinner. Please consider joining us for an hour or two to support your friends. OE will also have the great Stan Kessler (trumpet soloist) performing with them. OE performs around 9:00p.m. Full schedule will come soon.
Percussion Concert is Wednesday, April 27 at 7p in the auditorium. Cost is $5. Invite your friends to come join us for the exhilarating display of beats and grooves by our drumline.
State Solo and Ensemble Festival is Saturday, April 30 at Topeka Washburn Rural HS. When we get the schedule, we will pass along. Parents, please consider carpooling to help everyone find rides to Topeka. We typically have not provided transportation since some people will play early in the morning and others late in the afternoon.
Now for the BIG NEWS! Worlds of Fun!
We got everything moving in the right direction. I feel terrible that I have not shared more information sooner. But alas, here we are. We will perform on Saturday, May 7th at 12:10 (Sym. Band) and 12:35 (Wind Ensemble) and then go to the park for the rest of the day. The Symphonic Band and Wind Ensemble will perform their contest literature once again for a new set of judges gaining a regional perspective. But then, we go and play the day away at Worlds of Fun. I know a few students have expressed their lack of enthusiasm for roller coasters. I resemble that remark. I am not a roller coaster person either but there are so many other aspects of the park to enjoy. I would encourage everyone to join us! However, IF they truly don’t want to go hang out at the park, we still really need them to join us for the performance. It won’t cost the students anything to perform with us. Parents we need some chaperones to go with us as well. All students and chaperones attending Worlds of Fun will have one meal provided. BAW is picking up a substantial cost of the event for everyone participating.
Time is of the essence. I have to provide the final counts on Friday, April 22, therefore we need to know exactly who is performing, who is attending Worlds of Fun and who has season passes by Thursday, April 21. I know this is short notice. I am very sorry. This is not typically how we handle trips. You’ll see that next year.
Please email if you have any questions. We will go over most of this tomorrow in class with the students.
West is Best and band students and parents ROCK!