OK everyone, its official.  I received our schedule for our first performance today for the Central Crossing Show (2/3/07)

Below is our tentative schedule:

I will provide a copy of the full roster of drum lines that are performing at an upcoming rehearsal.  There are several top level lines that will be competing, most notably Rhythm X. 

Please check this website often for show details and rehearsal details

Onward and Upward

Mr. Saurber

December 13, 2006

Dear Parents, Members, Staff and Supporters of the Hamilton High School Indoor Percussion Ensemble:

I am pleased and very excited to be a part of the inaugural season of the Hamilton High School Indoor Marching Percussion Ensemble.  I think this ensemble will be a tremendous asset to the performing arts at Hamilton High, and will represent our school and school district well throughout the state.  We held our organizational meeting on November 9^th, and had our first rehearsal on December 5^th.  I wanted to take this opportunity to re visit some of the topics we discussed on November 9^th and also pass along some new information.

Background

The Indoor Marching Percussion Ensemble (IMPE) has been formed as an extension of the fall marching band.  The purpose of the ensemble is to continue the training that the students received in the fall and offer them opportunities to not only hone the skills they already have, but to raise their skills and experience through different performance venues.  Mrs. Alfaro, as Director of Bands at Hamilton High School, will directly oversee this ensemble. 

The IMPE is open to any academically eligible student in grades 9 through 12, who is a member of the Hamilton High School Bands in good standing.  Students must be current on all fees from other ensembles, and they must not be in conflict with the attendance policies of other ensembles.  Since the primary focus of this ensemble is education, the IMPE is open to any student of any level of accomplishment and experience.  All we ask is a good attitude and a willingness to work very hard to achieve a high level of performance.

Since the IMPE is a performing arts ensemble, we naturally will be seeking opportunities to perform.  The scheduled performances at this point include up to seven events in our percussion circuit and two appearances at Hamilton High School basketball games.  We will be seeking other appropriate times to perform.  These hopefully will include performances at the feeder schools in an effort to strengthen the overall band program.

As with all educational endeavors, we must evaluate our progress in the IMPE.  That will be accomplished by performing at adjudicated events that occur throughout the months of January, February and March.  These events will be evaluated by regionally, and possibly nationally, recognized judges similar to the fall marching band contests.

Scheduling

As I created the practice and performance schedule for the IMPE, I tried to keep in mind all of the demands on a student musician’s time.  Accordingly, the schedule was developed to use the absolute minimum amount of rehearsal time required to successfully build and perform our show.  Therefore, it is imperative that all students wishing to participate in the IMPE have an understanding and commitment to the program.  Simply put - all rehearsals are mandatory.  A student that misses a rehearsal or performance must present a note from a doctor or parent explaining the absence before they will be permitted to return to the ensemble.  Repeated absences for any reason will likely result in removal from the ensemble. The directors have all discretion regarding student participation in the IMPE.

Rehearsals will be held at the High School or at the Freshman School.  Please refer to the attached schedule for locations and times.  Rehearsals will start promptly and end promptly.  Parents, it is very important that the students are picked up and dropped off on time.  We all need our sleep and time with our families as well as time to study.

Performances for the MEPA circuit will be held on Saturdays as shown on the schedule.  Please set aside the entire day on Saturday to participate in the performance.  Students will be transported via school bus to and from the competitions.  Other rehearsal times and dates will be announced as soon as the information becomes available.

Fees

When determining the budget for the IMPE, it was my goal to keep the costs to the students as low as possible.  However, the decision to actually have an ensemble was made after all of the yearly budget allocations had been made.  Essentially, we have no funding other than what is generated through student fees.  Therefore, it is critical that all student fees be paid as soon as possible.

The student fee for the 2007 Indoor marching season will be $80.00 (Eighty Dollars).  This fee will pay for the following items:  MEPA membership, partial tarp expense, scenery, and an electronic keyboard that will be used to produce all of the sounds that we do not have instrumentalists for.  We are being supported by the Hamilton City School District as they are funding a large portion of the cost of the tarp and providing school bus transportation to and from the competitions.  Please note that there is a deadline for the MEPA fee, and we may be looking at a lead-time issue with the tarp, so again, please get all fees paid ASAP. Checks can be made payable to “HHS BAND PARENTS”.

Additional out of pocket expenses for the students will include, but are not limited to, uniforms, replacement mallets/sticks, etc, food and drink on the trips, and other incidental fees.

Additional information/Contact Information

All information meant for public discussion will be posted on the band website.  It is my intention to also provide handouts for each student as necessary to convey any pertinent information regarding schedule, performances, etc.

I can be reached through my email address, which is rsaurber@hotmail.com for any questions regarding the show, fees, or anything else I didn’t mention. If you know that you have a schedule conflict, or are sick and unable to attend rehearsal, the student is responsible for contacting me in advance through email.  In an emergency I can be reached via telephone.  My number is in the phone book, and Mrs. Alfaro can reach me via my cell phone.

Eligibility questions, including attendance issues, fee issues, and academic issues should be directed to Mrs. Alfaro or, lastly, Mr. Sprague.

I am looking forward to a great year.  I hope everyone will turn out to support the IMPE at our performances as we enter this new arena of performing arts at Hamilton High School.

Sincerely,

Robert J. Saurber

Percussion Instructor

Hamilton High School Bands

RJS

Just a reminder, my E mail address is rsaurber@hotmail.com

Mr. Saurber

Hello Everyone. 

I wanted to tell all of you how pleased I was with rehearsal this evening.  I think for our first meeting we got a lot accomplished.  I am posting a list of things that we need to get accomplished and the time that is left to do them.

1. Get your fees in.  This must be done ASAP.  We need to get our tarp ordered and we need to get our Mid East Performance Association membership.  The tarp has a two week lead time.  We need to get enough money in to purchase the tarp by the end of the day on Tuesday, or we wont be able to order it until after the first of the year.

We need to get our MEPA membership so we can get our applications in for the shows we want to do. This is so urgent its not funny.

2. We need to recruit our actors by next Thursday or I will be forced to re write the story board for the second half of our show.  Get out and beat the bushes!

3. We need to get our music learned as soon as possible.  Our first performance is January 20th.  I want to have the whole show ready to clean by the end of camp in January.  I will get you the parts, you have to practice!

4.  We need a keyboard player and a bass guitar player.  Beat the bushes gang.

5. We need to get a set crew together to build our flats and also to help move our equipment for the shows.  The set crew will need to practice a couple of times before the 20th.

It would be really helpful to me if everyone would send a short note to my E mail addy so that I dont have to type everyone in. 

Please lean on everyone that has missed rehearsal. We need 100% attendance.

See you Thursday (Concert Tuesday)

Mr. Saurber

Something completely different

Percussion Books and Music

Black Knights Indoor Percussion Line

Incredidble Drumset Solo

 Some Neat Visual Ideas

Hi everyone.

Nice job today.  I think one of the things that we can learn from today's performance is what fatigue does to our level of concentration and focus.  The further we got into the parade, the more that little problems would crop up.  This is both bad news, and good news.  The bad news is that it occurred at all.  Since we are aware of it now, we can individually commit to increasing our mental toughness to make it less of a problem next time. 

The good news is that when I pointed out things to you during the parade, you were able to fix them. That is a sign of a good ensemble.

On a related subject of focus, this lesson today can apply directly to the fall season when we have many more distractions that are far more subtle, but still a big impact.  Things like exams, homework, job, parents, significant others, and a hundred other things, all can effect your playing and contribution to the ensemble as surely as the heat, humidity, and distance did today.

The mark of a champion is one that can put all that aside and focus on your music.

Regarding auditions

I anticipate that auditions should last about 5 minutes each.  There will be time for you to play your prepared peice, as well as a brief interview. 

I will be sending Mrs. Alfaro a sign up sheet for times as well as a sheet explaing what questions might be asked.

Please plan on having transportation arranged so that you are not stranded at school following your audition.

See you Thursday

Mr. Saurber

Hello Everyone,

There has been a death in my family.  Nothing has been scheduled, but the visitation may bet Thursday night.  I will let everyone know as soon as I know something.

Mr. Saurber

Hi Gang,

I wanted to review what we need to do for this coming week.  I felt we made good progress on Mambolero and I intend to start cleaning from the beginning to section C.

I am hoping that you all took time to work on your parts on your own.  That will make the learning process a lot less tedious as we plow through the rest of the piece.  Any time you spend at home will be rewarded by time we can cut off of learning notes, and instead we can make music

Now, I am going to continue beating on the next issue until things improve.  I don't want this to sound like I am coming down on the people who show up at rehearsal.  BUT-  the people that are not committed to rehearsal and not showing up, are hurting the ensemble.  I know that there are upper classmen who will return and expect to have their old instruments back. What is that going to do to those who have been here and put in the time?  Ultimately, I will do what is best for the ensemble and this program, but that might result in some very unpopular decisions.  Hey, thats why I get paid the big bucks.  Please urge your classmates who think that they are going to participate this fall, to come to rehearsal now!

One other thought: I am going to start asking people to cover pit parts for Mambolero.  This may or may not be the part you play this fall, but we need to be rehearsing the full ensemble now.  We cannot wait until after auditions.  So, if I ask you to jump on a part, even though it might not be the instrument of your choice, help us out.  It will pay off in the long run.

See you Thursday,

Mr. Saurber

Hello Everyone!

What a fine rehearsal we had last night.  I was very pleased with the progress that we made with our playing and marching.  I would especially like to commend the bass section for their focus and hard work.  I cannot tell you how happy I am that we are able to play split sextuplets in April.  That gives us such a head start for the fall season.

Now, following are the things that we need to keep in mind between now and the next time we are together.

Everyone:  The attendance issue is starting to become critical.  Please impress upon your class mates that these rehearsals are NOT optional.  We need to make it our standard procedure to never look back.  If you have missed rehearsals or have not practiced, the line is not going to wait for you, you are going to have to work harder to catch up.  We cannot allow those who are not committed to the excellence of this ensemble to slow us down for even one minute.

Veterans: your leadership was excellent last night.  I will continue to count on you to bring the rookies up to speed on things like the cadence, the cheers and general operations of the line.  I would much rather spend my time teaching than administrating.

Rookies: Another good week of progress. Good job.  Please make an effort to look at your audition peice.  If there are parts that you cannot play, ask for help next week, ask a veteran, or ask me.  DO NOT wait until the last minute to let someone know that you need help. 

All: please take some time this week to practice your roll step, and practice walking with good alignment and posture.

One bit of administration:  Rehearsal needs to start promptly.  Right now we are starting at 6:00. That means that we are lined up, with our instruments or other equipment and beginning the first warmups at 6:00.  If you are late, then as quickly as possible, get your instrument and fall into the ensemble.  We simply do not have the luxury of wasting time if we want to achieve our goals for the year.

Have a good week.  See you on Thursday.

Mr. Saurber

Hi Everyone.

I have been reviewing our calendar and realized that we had scheduled audtions the week of the Fitton Show which will also be our first performance of Mambolero.

Obviously, that won't work. PAA (pending Alfaro approval) I am pushing the date back two weeks, to June 1st. 

Please check here often to see any news updates.

Now, on a very serious note, we will only have four rehearsals prior to our performance, unless we can squeeze one in on the weekend.  I will post this thread on the forum, but I need to know if we can get together, when and for how long.

PLEASE THINK ABOUT THIS

Please urge your classmates to read this site frequently.  We have got to work together on this.

Mr. Saurber