A final reminder that the Remembrance Day Ensemble performance tomorrow will be held at the cenotaph which is located beside the Kingston United Church on the Kingston Road (at the intersection of the Kingston Road and the Bannockburn Road). Participating students are asked to meet at the church at 10:15 a.m. All students who live in the area are also encouraged to attend.

The grade 9 band performed very well during the school Remembrance Day assembly on Thursday morning. A big thank you is extended to the students for their cooperation yesterday, and for the work they did in preparation for this event.

The Remembrance Day Ensemble will perform on Monday, November 11th at the site of the Kingston United Church. Participating students are asked to meet there at 10:15 a.m. Please check here on the blog, and in Google Classroom, before leaving for the ceremony in case there is a change in location due to weather conditions. The alternate site is East Wiltshire Intermediate.

We will be playing O Canada, Abide With Me and God Save the Queen for this ceremony.

A few tips for this outdoor performance:

Wear your uniform under very warm clothes (winter boots, tuque and gloves).

Wear a poppy. I will bring a few extras.

Students are responsible for bringing their own instruments and music. We will be loading music stands and percussion equipment at East Wiltshire at 9:45 a.m. on Monday. If you need to pick up your instrument at school please meet us there at that time.

Bring plastic (saran wrap or plastic sheet protectors) to cover your music in case it rains.

If it’s really windy, a weight for the bottom of your music stand will be helpful. A shopping bag with weight in it (sand, hand weights) will work. I will bring some clothespins to help keep your music on your stand if you are not using a binder, but bring your own if you can.

Please note that there are no washrooms or indoor facilities at this site as the church is closed. Students can check in to let me know they have arrived at 10:15 a.m. Students can then stay in their vehicles until closer to the performance time when I will ask them to set-up their instruments, leave cases in their vehicles, and gather for a warm-up.

If you have any questions, please send me an e-mail: ampeters@edu.pe.ca

Thank you!

November 7th: School Assembly Performance

The grade 9 concert band will perform at the school-wide Remembrance Day assembly on Thursday, November 7th in the morning. All grade 9 band students are asked to please bring full uniforms, instruments, and music to school on Thursday morning.

November 11th: Kingston Cenotaph Performance

A Remembrance Day Ensemble comprised of a smaller group of 19 grade 8 and 9 volunteers will perform on Monday, November 11th at the Kingston Legion Remembrance Day ceremony.

The outdoor ceremony will be held this year at the cenotaph on the corner of the Kingston Road and the Bannockburn Road at the site of Kingston United Church on Monday, November 11th.

(https://goo.gl/maps/GKgqCjDrd5ASPuf89).

Once again, if anyone has a van or truck, and is able to help move a few music stands and drums from East Wiltshire to the ceremony and back again on November 11th your help would be much appreciated. Please send me an e-mail at ampeters@edu.pe.ca if you can help.

The alternate location in case of inclement weather is East Wiltshire School.

Participating band members are asked to arrive in uniform by 10:15 a.m. The ceremony will begin with our performance of O Canada at 10:55 am.

There will be a rehearsal for the Remembrance Day Ensemble from 12:45-1:15 during period 5 tomorrow (Monday, November 4th).

The cookie dough orders will be delivered to East Wiltshire on Monday, November 18th. The orders will be available for pick up from 3:00-5:00 p.m.

The cookie dough campaign was a huge success! Thank you to everyone who participated, and thank you as well to all of those parents who chose to make a direct donation to the band program instead.

Stay tuned for the delivery date! The date I was given conflicted with a PD date so we are rescheduling.

The company does not ship partial cases of cookie dough, so we have a few extra tubs that can be ordered now (through the form below) and will be available for pick-up on the delivery date. Payment can be made on the pick-up day (cash or cheque made out to East Wiltshire Intermediate).

Available Flavours include:

Chocolate Chip AA = 4 extra tubs

Double Chocolate = 5 extra tubs

White Chocolate Macadamia= 3 extra tubs

Toffee Supreme = 2 extra tubs

Congratulations to all of the band students on their excellent performances at Bluefield tonight!

Just a couple of reminders:

Thursday, Oct 31 : Grade 9 early am is canceled (Day after concert)

Friday, Nov.1: Grade 7 early am band is canceled (Day after Halloween!)

The grade 9 band students represented East Wiltshire in a very positive way this afternoon during their workshop with Dr. Dale Lonis at Bluefield! He used all kinds of interesting techniques to inspire them to perform at a higher level. Ask your child to tell you what they learned if you get a chance!

CONCERT INFO!

Tomorrow night is concert night! The students and I are really looking forward to sharing some of the music we have been working on together since September.

All band students are responsible for bringing their own instruments and music to the concert at Bluefield, so instruments must go home with students at the end of the day.

Parents of band students who have an extra instrument that they keep at home for practicing (tubas, baritones, French horns and bari sax) are reminded that these students should bring their home instruments to the concert. Students should also bring their mouthpieces as we don’t have any spares for some instruments. Thank you for your help with this!

The white long sleeved t-shirts for the band uniforms arrived today. These will be distributed to grade 7 students (and grade 8’s and 9’s who ordered new sizes) tomorrow. Students should already have their band vests, and they are asked to wear black pants and dark shoes and socks to complete the uniform.

Students are asked to arrive at Bluefield for the concert by 6:30. The concert will begin at 7:00 and we expect it to be about an hour and 15 minutes long. Students are asked to please stay until the end of the concert to hear our hosts perform if at all possible!

I look forward to seeing all of you tomorrow night at Bluefield!

The band students will be heading to Bluefield for a band clinic on Tuesday at 12:30 and will be returning to East Wiltshire at about 2:30.   I am very excited that the students will have the opportunity to work with Dr. Dale Lonis during his visit to the Maritimes.   

Dr. Lonis was a public school music teacher, university professor, international conductor, and Dean of the Faculty of Music at the University of Manitoba. He then entered the field of professional orchestra management. He remains active as an artistic and business consultant for professional orchestras. Most recently he has been involved in the development of Music Mentors International, and Cognitive Conductor Inc.   

Dr. Lonis is an engaging educator and hopefully the clinic will give the students some new ideas to apply to their studies.

The students have been working hard in band classes and rehearsals, and the music for the concert at Bluefield on October 30th is getting closer to “performance ready” every day.  Please encourage your child to practice for the concert at least every second day between now and Wednesday. Students will be assigned a new playing test at the end of the day today, so there should be lots of motivation to get the instruments out of the cases!

We will follow the following rehearsal schedule from Wednesday, October 23 to Friday, Nov. 1st

Wednesday, Oct. 23:  Grade 8 early am band

Thursday, Oct. 24: Grade 7 early am band  (Grade 9 am band is canceled due to the Duke of Edinburgh bike trip)  *I apologize to grade 7 parents for the short notice. Please e-mail me if your child cannot attend this rescheduled rehearsal.

Friday, Oct. 25:  Grade 7 early am band is canceled (I will be attending a conference in Nova Scotia)

Monday, Oct. 28:  Grade 9 early am band (Jazz band is canceled).  *Grade 7’s will rehearse as a full band during the school day.  Time to be announced.

Tuesday, Oct. 29:  Grade 9 early am band

Grade 9’s will attend a band clinic with Dr. Dale Lonis at Bluefield High School in the afternoon

Wednesday, Oct. 30:  Grade 8 early am band 

7:00 pm: Fall Concert at Bluefield High School

Thursday, Oct 31 : Grade 9 early am is canceled (Day after concert)

Friday, Nov.1: Grade 7 early am band is canceled (Day after Halloween!)

Long sleeved white t-shirts are being ordered for all grade 7 students tomorrow (Friday, October 18th).

Students in grade 8 and 9 who need replacement sizes are asked to come to the band room during their lunch break tomorrow to order the correct size.