The Week Ahead - Week beginning 11/28/10

We will be taking a full band and sectional pictures on Tuesday (11/30) during 6th period and shortly after school. Please send your students to school with their band shoes and gloves.

There is a football game this Friday Night (12/3). All Students are to report at 5:00 PM with their Band t Shirt, Jeans, sneakers and warm outer clothing. We will not perform the halftime show, but we will play from the stands as a pep band for the whole game. Return to GHS will be 11:00 PM.

Here's a look at the week ahead:

• Tuesday, Nov 30th:

1. Fair Share installment ($75) is due. *See note below.
2. Holiday Band 3:00 to 4:30 PM
3. Indoor Guard and Percussion 5:30 to 8:30 PM
4. (Indoor Percussion Parent Meeting at 8:00 PM)

• Wednesday, Dec 1st: All County Auditions @ GHS
• Thursday, Dec 2nd: Holiday Band 3:00 to 4:30 PM, Indoor Guard 5:30 to 8:30 PM
• Friday, Dec 3rd: Playoff Football Game: Students report @ 5:00 PM.

*Note: Fair Share is due On November 30th. Students should have paid in $425.00 by Nov 30th to be current. This includes camp fees and fair share payments for September, October and November.

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Season Recap - 11/21/10

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Thank you so much to everyone that went along with us to help, support and cheer on competition weekend. The whole weekend was a huge success and we should all be very proud of our accomplishments. I could not be happier with the students performance on the field at Finals and the way they conducted themselves off the field after the final results were announced. I know that deep in all of our hearts we were a little surprised by the end result, but we need to remember the feelings the kids had in the parking lot after the performance. There is no trophy or award that can replace the way they reacted to their own performance. "IT" was definitely in their hearts as they came off of that field.

Here are a few links to things you may be interested in:

• This is an article that is in today's Gainesville Sun, http://www.gainesville.com/article/20101122/ARTICLES/101129874/1118?Title=Santa-Fe-band-students-march-to-victory
• Here is the link to the recaps page for FMBC. http://floridabandtournament.com/2010/2010%20Web%20Pages/Recaps%202010.html

There are so many people to thank for the success of our band this year. It would be impossible to name everyone, so thank you to everyone that played a part in this grand production.

You may think that Football season is over, however, our team is experiencing a lot of success as well. They won their first playoff game this past Friday while we were in Tampa and they play again this Friday. If they win again and host another game next Friday, December 3rd, we will most likely go as a pep band. Don't panic, no more props, or pit, or capes. Just a pep band. More info will come after the game this Friday.

Speaking of next week, we are shifting quickly to concert and indoor season and here is a look at the week ahead.

• Tuesday(11/30): Holiday Band 3:00 to 4:30 PM (All 3rd and 4th Period Students), Indoor Guard and Drumline 5:30 to 8:30 PM
• Wednesday (12/1): All County Auditions @ GHS
• Thursday 12/2: Holiday Band 3:00 to 4:30 PM Indoor Guard 5:30 to 8:30 PM
• Friday 12/3: Indoor Drumline 4:00 to 8:00 PM (If no football game)

Be sure to join us at our Winter Holiday Concert on Monday, December 13th at 7:00 PM in the GHS Auditorium. We will present the sounds of the seasons and there is a rumor that there may be an encore performance of Scheherazade.

Last Minute Reminders for State Competition

Are you ready?! Here are some last minute reminders.

1. Please remember that the students need to be at the school by 8:00 AM on Friday for bag check.
2. Please review the rules and policies that we emailed out a few days ago.
3. Directions for all venues are available in the band room.
4. If you are traveling separate from us, please remember that admission at Prelims will be $14.00 and Finals will be $20.00. Parking at prelims will be free however, parking at Finals will be $15.00. All of these fees are cash only. Please note that there have never been convenient ATMs close to these sites, so be sure to bring sufficient cash with you.
5. Video taping is not allowed at either site, sorry. Still photos are fine.
6. No outside food or drink will be permitted inside the stadium at either site. Bags will be subject to search, especially at Tropicana Field.
7. Students should pack a lunch for Friday and they should bring plenty of snacks and drinks. All drinks must be in a sealed container. We will not allow their normal drink jugs. We will provide plenty of water and gatorade throughout the day on Friday and Saturday (donations of 1/2 pint size bottles of water, and individual bottles of gatorade would be most appreciated).
8. Students will need to have money for Dinner for both Friday and Saturday and also lunch on Friday. They may pack extra food if they like. We will provide extra ice for student coolers. Breakfast will be provided by the hotel Saturday morning at the hotel.
9. We will return to GHS at about 2:30 AM on Sunday Morning. Please be here to pick up your student on time.

If you are coming down for the performances, it is your duty to scream and cheer and lose your minds while the kids are on the field. They feed off of your energy. Make it feel like Showcase!!!

If you have any questions, please email today and we will get back to you by tonight (Thursday). We will not be able to answer email questions once we leave GHS tomorrow (Friday).

State Competition Information

The Week Ahead - Week beginning 11/14/10

The big week is finally here. Here's what is coming up for this week. Note: There are still a couple of rooms and a few seats on the bus available for the state competition. Mr. Pirzer needs to let the hotel by Wednesday which rooms we will not use, so please let him know ASAP.

• Monday: Full Band 3:00 to 5:00
• Tuesday: Horn Line 3:00 to 5:00, Pit/Battery/Guard 5:30 to 8:30 PM
• Thursday: Full Band 5:00 to 8:00 PM, We will load the trailers after practice.
• Friday: Students Must be here by 8:00 AM for Bag Check. I encourage you to make arrangements so that you do not need to leave your car here overnight. If you need to leave your car here, it must be parked on Hurricane Lane and you should park it up closer to our end of the lane.

We still need drink and snack donations (thank you to those who have donated thus far). For drinks, the small, half-pint water bottles work best. For snacks, packaged crackers, granola bars, and other non-perishables, all of which can be brought to the band room any time this week. Donations of apples and bananas would be great if brought on Friday morning.

Thanks to all parents who supported the band this past weekend ... It definitely takes a village!

GHS vs. Santa Fe Football Game Photos

More News for Week of 11/14/10

LAST CALL!!!

You may still turn in your wreath orders and picture orders on Friday morning. Please get them to me before school if possible.

Admission for Saturday's show at North Marion will be $10.00. Let's fill the NMHS stands full of purple and create an atmosphere like Showcase. That was awesome!!

A tentative schedule has been posted for State Prelims for next week. We are currently scheduled to perform at 11:44 AM at Chamberlain HS. More details to come.

Admission to State is kinda pricey. $14.00 for prelims and $20.00 for Finals. Both sites are cash only, so plan accordingly. Also, there is a charge to park at Tropicana Field. I believe it is no more than $10.00 per vehicle. This fee is charged by the City of St. Petersburg and not FMBC.

I have just a few seats left on the bus and also several hotel rooms left. Rooms are now available for those that wish to drive seperately at a price of $40.00 per person. Remember, first come, first served. I will give them to the folks who turn their money in first.

Remember, practice from 3:00 to 7:00 on Friday and then loading afterwards.

Band Booster Meeting Minutes - 11/8/10

Band booster president, Frank Mason, began the meeting at 7:00pm by asking for a motion to approve the minutes of the 10/11/10 meeting. Motion was made and was seconded, all approved.

Band Director Update

• Mr. Pirzer thanked all for their efforts with competitions to date. However, he has seen a complacency with the students and needs everyone to step up. He reminded us that there are only 5 more full rehearsal before state.
• 1^st football game of last year – 2009 season – was the last time the band had perfect attendance. Closest we have come this year – down 3 at Showcase.
• Students need to be practicing at home. Today’s practice was sloppy.

North Marion Competition, Saturday, November 13

• Students will load instruments into trailer after practice on Friday. Parents, please delay pickup a few extra minutes.
• 13 bands competing. Santa Fe, Buchholz, Middleburg are among them. Preliminary performance time is 1:45pm. Finals should be wrapped up by 8/8:30

STATE Competition, Saturday, November 20

• All students and parents riding the bus need to be here at 8am Friday morning. Will search bags Fri AM. Goal is to leave by 9am (after GHS busses leave).
• 11-11:30 – Anticipated arrival at King High School, Tampa for practice. Will pack up and leave by 4pm to go to hotel, which is a couple of miles from the high school. After clean up, will take to West Shore Mall for food court and other activities. Will be back to hotel by 10pm. Hotel is Days Inn Tampa North, 701 E. Fletcher Ave, Tampa, 813-977-1550
• For preliminaries (Chamberlain HS – admission $14), we are 2^nd to last in our class. 16 bands in 3A. Taking top 5 to finals (Tropicana Field - $20). Mr. Pirzer will finish and distribute itinerary once official times have been posted, which should be by the end of this week (11/12).

Parent Bus to State

• Currently have 17 bus seats remaining and 15 rooms left. Will hold off until Friday to offer extra rooms to those who aren’t taking the bus. Want to make sure those who are on the busses are taking care of first. Will check with administration as to where parents can leave their cars on Friday.
• If you are riding the parent bus, you are also considered a chaperone, which means you will be assigned a few specific duties at the hotel. This is not a big deal (basically involves making sure your assigned room of students leaves the hotel room in good condition prior to check out), and being around to help out, if necessary. Chaperone assignments will be made within the next week.

Week after Thanksgiving, band shifts right into concert season with the Holiday Band (combine concert and symphonic). The Holiday Concert is Dec 13^th.

Mr. Pirzer also reminded us that Pictures, Wreaths, and SCRIP are all due Wednesday.

Treasurers Report

• Suzanne has paid every bill except for State-related expenses. We need more fair share payments to come in order to be able to cover these expenses.
• Fair share – each band student should have paid $350 in at this point. Less than 25% are at that level. In light of this, if people can pay ahead on fair share rather than in the scheduled installments, that would be appreciated. Better yet, if everyone who is behind could catch up, that would be even better.
• Gator Concessions, Barbeque, and SCRIP all added to the treasury this past month
• Susan Weinstein – made a thermometer to show where we are with fair share (compared to our goal). It will be posted in the band room.

Fundraising

• Gator Concessions – last opportunity is the game this week (same day as North Marion competition). Ruth Dean is looking for 5 more volunteers.
• Again, Wreaths and SCRIP due this week
• Proposed Fundraiser - Mr. Netardus
• Decorated ornaments and gift baskets to be sold/raffled at Holiday concert. Ideas or contributions (items) to baskets should be sent to Laura Netardus or Susan Weinstein - Contribute items or create a complete basket for yourself. Ideas: Coffee, Chocolate, Free meal coupons. This was a good money raising venture last year. Mr. Pirzer suggested Laura Netardus assign themes to sections. Mr. Netardus indicated he would let Laura know and she would get back to us.

Volunteer Coordinator – Mike Grantham

• Mike thanked all volunteers for past events and reported that we have enough volunteers for No. Marion, but may need to recruit some of the bus parents to help out at State, at least for the practice session on Friday. He won’t know until he sees who shows up on Friday.

Uniforms

• Susie Hummel thanked everyone for their participation over the last month. It has made the job much easier.
• For this week, any available parent to help lay the uniforms out Saturday night after returning from the competition would most appreciated.
• The assigned section for the Sunday afternoon inspection and rebagging process is the PIT – so Pit parents, please let us know if you can help out on Sunday afternoon (11/14), 2pm, by sending an email to ghsbandnews@gmail.com.

Meeting adjourned 7:53pm.

North Marion Competition Itinerary

The Week Ahead - Week beginning 11/7/10

Here's a look at the upcoming week....

• Monday, November 8th: Full Band 3:00 to 5:00 PM, Band Booster Meeting 7:00 PM
• Tuesday, November 9th: Hornline 3:00 to 5:00 PM, Pit/Battery/Guard 5:30 to 8:30 PM
• Wednesday, November 10th: Picture Orders and Money Due, Wreath orders and Money Due, Scrip Orders Due
• Thursday, November 11th: No School
• Friday, November 12th: Full Band 3:00 to 7:00 PM, we will load the trailers after practice.
• Saturday, November 13th: Kingdom of the Sun Festival @ North Marion HS. Itineraries available through students and on the website.

We have only two weeks of marching band left!!! Please ensure that your student is at ALL rehearsals between now and state. We averaged 10 absences per rehearsal last week!!!!! There is a lot to put into the show and it is very difficult to move forward with so many people missing.

We will discuss the State trip at the Booster Meeting, please plan to attend to receive all of the information.

ROOMS FOR STATE.

We have just a few rooms left for State. I am going to hold them until Wednesday for those who plan on riding the bus and then on Friday I will open it to anyone who wants to drive down and spend the night. The cost is $65.00 per person to ride the bus and stay in the room. The rooms alone with no bus will be $40.00 per person starting on Friday.

Hope to see everyone at North Marion on Saturday.

The Week Ahead - Week beginning 10/31/10 - Cont'd

Here are some additional news and notes that were not included with the week ahead email earlier this week.

1. All County Audition forms and entry fees are due this Friday. The music and forms were given to all instrumentalists over a week ago. I strongly encourage that all of our students at least give it a try. I believe many of our students would make the ensemble if they take the time to audition. Auditions will be December 1st @ GHS.

2. Students will receive their picture proofs in class Tuesday. There are 4 different poses for each student and the packages are very reasonable. If you would like to purchase pictures, please return the envelope and money to me by next Wednesday, November 10th. The pictures will be back to us in time for the Holidays.

3. The wreath orders and money are also due next Wednesday, November 10th. Please turn them into me in the band office.

4. Scrip orders are also due on November 10th. It's Holiday time, and gift cards are a great gift idea!!

5. We will have a Band Booster meeting on Monday, November 8th at 7:00 PM in the band room. There is a lot to discuss about the State Trip.

6. Speaking of the State Trip, we still have rooms and seats left. Please don't wait until the last minute. The hotel is already asking for a rooming list.