Behind The Music A BIG success!

The first ever "Behind The Music" event was a BIG success! Our two-day elementary school "reach-out" camp drew 26 kids in grades K-5 to Jerome HS, ending in a performance at the baskteball game on November 30th with the Ambush of Tigers. Thanks to all the students and parents who were so instrumental in making this such a great event!

Magic Valley Music & Movement Showcase plans

NEW DIRECTION! We're going to pull away from the USSBA hosting the show in Jerome this year - contract troubles stemming from multiple changes in the USSBA front office and indecision about how to handle a very different competition like ours will be.

SO, we're going to go it on our own this year, which will be much less expensive (demanding about one-third of the sponsorship money we would have required) and will allow us to start in earnest NOW instead of waiting for details to be hammered out back east.

The MAGIC VALLEY MUSIC & MOVEMENT SHOWCASE (or the MVMMS) will still take place in the O'Rourke Stadium on the campus of JHS on Saturday, September 24th, starting at 1 pm. It will feature marching bands, non-marching bands, drum lines, color guards, dance and drill teams from throughout Southern Idaho - we'll bring in five highly qualified judges from within Idaho (rather than nationally as the USSBA would have done) and hope to charge NO entry fee for the performing groups.

We WILL need to get sponsors for the event, program, and trophies, and can now start on that immediately - students, this is on YOU! You are the ones who can get businesses and donors to contribute, not the adults! Contact Mr. Daniels (Sabra and Alexis' granddad) for the list of prospective businesses to visit.

Here are the rough numbers - Boosters, peruse these and let me know what you see that needs to be changed...

INCOME:
> Patron admission) $4 adults, $3 for students, $2 for children under 9. Estimate $300.
> Concessions) We are likely but not absolutely guaranteed to be able to use the JAB football concession stand... Estimate $300 profit, after expenses.
> Entry fee) My hope is not to have to charge performing groups an entry fee.
> Sponsors) Event, program, and trophy sponsors are required. This budget suggests that $1300 will cover the cost of the event, rather than the $4000 the USSBA needed.
> COLOR GUARD CAMP) Mandy Trigloff is hoping to set up a color guard camp for grades 3-7, to excite youngsters about joining the Ambush flag team in eighth grade. This is the perfect opportunity - we recruit up to the previous Friday (Constitution Day performance for all the schools), and have three after-school sessions with our own guard on W/Th/F right before a performance on the 24th at the MVMMS. If we have a $20 participation fee, subtracting cost for lunch and a t-shirt, I'm estimating $100 cleared, to be safe. Upfront expenses for equipment and shirts...
> Programs) Hoping to ask Mr. Quinley to help us make these in house - advertising should offset the costs - at $2 each, we should make about $300 here.
> Shirts to sell) We've got our logo and our slogans - now to make up the shirts and sell them at the event. We're thinking at $7 per unit, selling for fifteen, but allowing for not selling more than half at the actual event... no profit ON SITE but money to be made in the long term on these.

OUTFLOW:
> Dance after the contest) ... for all performers - we have the equipment and such covered and donated, and should be fine except for perhaps snacks or something if we don't have concession leftovers...
> JUDGES) I want to have five adjudicators: one each in the categories of Music, Visual (marching), General Effect, Percussion, and Color Guard/Dance. I have people in mind for all positions but have not issued invitations yet. Total cost: $250 plus transportation and food for all - estimated total $1600.
> Advertising) Allowing for a $500 budget for local TV, radio, and newspaper.
> Trophies) Covered through sponsors but am allowing $100 in case.
> Announcer) I have a KMVT guest announcer I'd like to bring in, and a small stipend of $100 would not be out of line.
> What does it cost to have an EMT on site?

Thoughts? Let me know!

Magic Valley Marching Showcase

WE ARE IN NEED OF SHOW SPONSORS! If you have connections with individuals or businesses who would have an interest in sponsoring our marching contest September 24th, please put them in contact with Mr. Smith ASAP - we need to have those sponsors in place by mid-July to get the show in place! Every little bit helps - program sponsors, trophies, signage, anything they can contribute!

LIFESPAN update

With the week off from summer school, I have the drill entirely on the computer ready for the Ambush and the visual design ready to share with the color guard in July... We're still waiting on a couple of equipment issues (specifically the keyboard and costuming for the boy and girl) but we're in great shape for marching and field show camps!

2012 show ideas

So here's the current plan - I'm putting together THREE show possibilities for 2012, and if I can manage to get them all put on paper by then we'll read them all in November for the Indoor Marching Extravaganza! I'm still arranging a "Wizard Of OZ meets The WIZ meets WICKED" show, but I'm also working on Phantom of the Opera and the Broadway hit City Of Angels. Ideally, you'll get to play all three in some form and we can make our long-range decisions then!

2012 show ideas

For the 2012 field show, we've been talking about combining "The Wizard Of Oz", "The Wiz", and "Wicked" into one storyline-theme show...well, guess what the big new commercial shows are this year? Yup, you guessed it.

So... do you still want me to go with something like that - because I guarantee I cam make it distinctive from the commercial shows! - or would you like me to pursue a completely different theme? As I type this, I'm looking through possibilities like "Miss Saigon", "Tommy", and the broadway jazz show "City Of Angels". Vote now, please!

Puget Sound tour... Split it up?

We're looking at this possibility: Go to Seattle in March 2012 with the choir... and to the Portland Rose Parade in June 2012 with Minico and Wendell's bands!

Mrs. Palmer REALLY wants to make the joint trip at spring break, and the Seattle Center would prefer we came in the spring as well. We could add some clinics at UW or Puget Sound to round out the trip and do it for less than the original spring tour budget.

Meanwhile, with the difficulty finding a weekend we can get away during marching season for our road-trip show in the fall of 2011... why couldn't we make the Portland Rose Festival our "road-trip" for the 2011-12 season? We could focus it on the marching band parts of the event rather than a mixture of choir and concert stuff... and run it the way the Ambush always runs its road trips. That's what the Magic Valley marching band was created for in the first place - this very trip!

Doable? Or too much within too short a time? Vote now, please!

Some cool video clips to share...

Equal time for the string players - and anyone who likes short red dresses:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/31963943#31963943

Some incredible non-human musicians from the Toyota factory... thanks, Ben!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xs_vL9g4IYk&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-mC1PkYbnM&feature=related

Clarinet players: your next instrument is here!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWbj7FYEi3M&feature=related

Here are two adverts for BlackJack trumpet mouthpieces that are really clever and funny, passed on by Mr. Smith's HS band director, Mr. Clyde Quick:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9kKSvk1NMuM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ys-b7NHlEWo&feature=related

Another two videos for trumpet players (they're very short):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQXZ9vzQJAo&feature=related and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcsGttruRd4&NR=1

Here's what a contrabass sax looks and sounds like:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXBeu7o9uUM

And a "superbone" (check it out, low brass players!):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNBQDPRbqv8&feature=related

How to make a flute: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHSu0trGkRg&feature=related

Now, here's the next generation in flute players: never needs make-up, doesn't gossip about boys, and has better posture:
http://video.msn.com/video.aspx?mkt=en-us&vid=110d2381-a453-40e3-b631-d8f630e20934 - Courtesy of the Takanishi Lab and Hamilton Smith...

Also, here's a link to a really cool website with a Star Wars a cappella tribute that will hook in with the lyric re-writing assignment:
http://www.themovieblog.com/2008/11/star-wars-a-john-williams-a-cappella-tribute

Marching season update

Just a few notes... Mr. Smith has finished the music and the drill sketches for "LIFESPAN: the story of a girl and boy in love", and is starting the part printing, set-by-set, and choreography for the 2011 show.

...Waiting for the football schedule to be finalized, but as of now we're planning on three Idaho competitions: the new Jerome USSBA show on Sept. 24, Caldwell's USSBA show on Oct. 1 (tentative date), and Pocatello on Oct. 15th. If the current edition of the football schedule holds and the weekend of Oct. 8th is free, we'll be looking at our out-of-state competition on that date.

...Talked with both Minico and Wendell's directors about the possibility of combining with them for a larger parade band for a more significant parade than the ones we've participated in previously. Both directors were initially positive but of course want to talk with their constituents.

...Also visited with the directors in Gooding and Shoshone about the idea of letting their handful of students dual-enroll in the marching program so they have a large-group experience.

Evening of Fine Arts

The date has been verified for the EVENING of FINE ARTS - it will be Tuesday, March 8th, in the Jerome High School building complex, throughout the first floor. This will include all four bands - 6th, 7th, 8th grades, and high school. The time frame is still up in the air a bit as we want to use it to encourage voting in the school bond levy that day as well.

This will REPLACE the February 28 and March 1 ensemble concerts previously listed on the schedule. There is NO current date for the Puget Sound tour meeting, although it may very well fall on March 8 as well...stay tuned.

Winter Concert

The Winter Concert is coming up on Monday, January 17th - 7 p.m. start, students meet by 6:30, all four bands performing (6th grade, 7th grade, 8th grade and HS Symphonic Band).

Featured will be a performance by the Symphonic Band of Mr. Smith's tribute piece to Dr. King, On The Steps Of The Lincoln Memorial, first premiered by the Symphonic Band and the Dallas Brass three years ago. Mr. Burton has graciously agreed to re-create his presentation of Dr. King's words, and the solo parts will be performed by JHS students Erik Nordquist, Jerman Orozco, Kade Stirling, Brevin Jackson, and Brooke Sprowes.

Evening of Fine Arts - Puget Sound tour

Our annual Evening of Fine Arts looks like it's going to be scheduled for Tuesday, March 8th in conjunction with the school district's annual bond levy election. This means that (if solidified) we'll be postponing the Ensemble Concerts scheduled for February 28th and March 1st and enfolding it within the EOFA.

We may also reconsider having the Puget Sound meeting on top of that already-large event... but we are hard at work preparing possibilities for the 2012 band/choir tour. As of today, we're most seriously doing two major events in June - the Seattle Center's 50th anniversary of the World's Fair, and the Portland Rose Parade.