416 FM 1187 South

Aledo, TX 76008

(817) 441-5197

Michael W. Ganus, AMS Director

Joey Qualls, AMS Assistant Director

John Lindsay, AMS Principal

visit the Aledo Middle School Band online at:   www.aledoband.com
 

AMS Band Newsletter
Volume 5 - Issue 13
April 27, 2007

Inside this issue
Awards Concert
Fiesta Texas Trip
End of the Year Party!
Band Auditions
Instrument Check In
Uniform Check In

Mark Your Calendar:

May 2007

1 Band Booster Mtng
7:30 p.m.
AHS Distance Learning Center

3 Fiesta Texas
Chaperone Mtng
6:30 p.m.
AMS Band Hall

4 Spring Trip Begins!
UNT Festival Performance
Magic Time Machine

5 Spring Trip Continues!
Fiesta Texas Trip!
Busses leave at 6:00 a.m.

14 MS Auditions Begin
AMS Campus

23 - 25 MS Auditions Begin
McAnally Campus

24 MS Instrument Check In

29 Uniforms Due Back (Cleaned)

28 No School!
(Memorial Day)

June 2007

2 End of Year Party
AMS MPC Parking Lot
6:30 - 9:00 p.m.

8 Last Day Of School

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Did You Know?
Fine Arts tied to higher academic ratings...

A 2007 Study by the Texas Coalition for Quality Arts Education has shown that participation in fine arts courses are directly linked to higher academic ratings and lower droop out rates.

Average student enrollment in fine arts courses is 17 percentage points higher in high schools and middle schools that are rated "Exemplary" than in those rated "Low Performing," based on data from the Texas Education Agency on 951 high schools. Schools with the lowest drop out rates on average have 52 percent of their students enrolled in fine arts classes while schools with the highest drop-out rates have only 42 percent of their students in fine arts courses.



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Contact Information

Aledo Middle School Band
416 FM 1187 South
Aledo, TX  76008
(817) 441-5197 voice
(817) 441-5133 fax

Awards Concert

2007 Aledo Middle School
Awards Concert

May 22, 2007
Aledo High School Auditorium

Be prepared for the finest concert of the year! All of the Aledo Middle School Bands will be performing at this end of the year musical blow out! This concert will feature selections from our award winning UIL Contest programs as well as a few fun tunes that we prepared for this special event.

We will be wearing Tux Uniforms
(make sure you child's uniform is pressed and clean)

Here is the schedule for this concert:

Developing Band
with Beginning Band!
Warm-Up: 5:45pm (Band Hall)
Performance: 6:00pm

Concert Band

Warm-Up: 6:15pm (Stage)
Performance: 6:30pm

Challenger Band

Warm Up 6:30pm (Band Hall)
Performance: 7:00pm

Advanced Band

Warm-Up: 7:30pm (Band Hall)
Performance: 8:00pm

The adjusted warm-up and performance times are to accommodate awards that will be distributed during this concert. Every student who is earning an award this evening has earned their award through our points system and/or through outstanding achievement.

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Fiesta Texas Trip

Fiesta Texas Spring Trip
May 4 & 5, 2007

Our Spring Contest/trip to is about here! We are very excited (can you tell?). You should have received a final itinerary as well as some of our trip rules and regulations in this mail in early April. If you did not, please contact Mr. Ganus ASAP. Please take a few minutes to go over these rules with your kids. Students who do not follow the rules will not have a good time on this trip (guaranteed).

Here are some pointers to make this trip go GREAT!


Tips to make your trip a blast!

  • Be sure to bring sunscreen and good footwear.
  • Wear a watch and keep up with the time. Don't be late to check-in's.
  • Be careful with your money and valuables.
  • Sweats for the ride home are recommended. Tour busses can get COLD!
  • No portable DVD players or PSP movies or I-Pod movies are allowed.
Extra Money?

You might consider bringing $20.00 spending money. You might want to rent a locker (prepare to pay $10.00).

Trip Clothing

Friday, May 4th - Students should come to school dressed in their tuxedo uniforms. They will need to bring their black band polo or their sweepstakes t-shirt and shorts/jeans and shoes to change into.
STUDENTS WILL NEED TO BRING THEIR UNIFORM BAG TO HANG THEIR TUXEDO'S UP IN AFTER THE STAGE PERFORMANCE.

Saturday, May 5th - Trip t-shirts will be handed out on Friday, May 4th. after we get back from The Magic Time Machine. Please plan to wear it on Saturday morning for the Fiesta Texas portion of the trip. When students get to the park they will need to keep this shirt on all day (required).

Important Links...

Here are links to the information that was mailed out about the spring trip. If you need me to mail another copy, please send Mr. Ganus an email (mganus@aledoband.com) or call (817) 441-5197.

Itinerary

Trip Rules and Regulations

Tips for a Successful Trip

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End of the Year Party!

Are you prepared for the most exciting party ever??

McAnally Intermediate & Aledo MS Bands
END OF THE YEAR BLOWOUT!!

Saturday, June 2nd
6:30 - 9:00 p.m.
Aledo Middle School MPC Parking Lot
(Located behind the baseball field on the AMS Campus)

ADMISSION: One Snack Item (see list below)
6th Grade Boys : 2 Liter Drinks
6th Grade Girls: Dessert Items (brownies, cookies, etc..)
7th Grade Boys: Chips and Dips
7th Grade Girls: Snacks (Chex mix, goldfish, etc..)
8th Grade Boys: Paper Plates and Plastic Cups
8th Grade Girls: Surprise ME!!

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Band Auditions

2007-2008 Band Auditions are here!

Auditions at AMS are from May 14-18
Audition at McAnally are from May 23-25

Students will be auditioning for band placement for the 2007-2008 school year. Auditions are based on two factors:
  • Performance on audition music (two prepared pieces, scales & sight reading)
  • Director recommendation (year long participation and performance)
Here is the band structure for the 2007-2008 School Year

Band 4 – Developing Band
This band is designed to help those kids who still need time to develop some of their fundamental skills. This group will have several opportunities to perform both with the entire middle school band, as well as on their own. Daily practice will be required for this class. A good attitude and excellent discipline are expected for this class.

Band 3 – Concert Band (Sweepstakes Award Winning Band - 2006-2007 School Year)
This band is a standard middle school band. There will be full instrumentation (all instruments). This band will perform at all concerts as well as their own pep-rally, UIL Contest and on the spring trip. Students in this band may audition for Region Band in the fall and will be required to perform for Solo and Ensemble in the spring. Solid instrumental skills and daily practice are required for this band. A good attitude and excellent discipline are expected for this class.

Band 2 – Challenger Band (Sweepstakes Award Winning Band - 2004 - 2006 School Years!)
This band is designed to challenge young musicians. This band will perform at all concerts as well as their own pep-rally, UIL Contest and on the spring trip. Students will be expected to audition for Region Band in the fall as well as perform for Solo and Ensemble. Solid instrumental skills and daily practice are required for this band. A good attitude and excellent discipline are expected for this class.

Band 1 – Advanced Band (Sweepstakes and First Division Awards - 2000 - 2007)
This band is our most advanced ensemble. This band will perform at all concerts as well as their own pep-rally, UIL Contest, the spring trip and several additional performances. Students will be required to audition for Region Band in the fall as well as perform for Solo and Ensemble. Solid instrumental skills and daily practice are required for this band. A good attitude and excellent discipline are expected for this class.

Results from auditions will be posted at each campus on Friday, June 1st.

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Instrument Check In

School-Owned Instrument Check-In
Monday,
June 4th

All school owned instruments will need to be checked in on Monday, June 4th. All instruments will be assessed for damage, and a list of those damages and your liability will be mailed home by Wednesday, June 6th. Any damage that was listed on the Instrument check-out form will not be charged to you. Please remit a check for all damages by Friday, June 8th.

Here is a list of damages that you will be charged for: Dents in the instrument (unless noted on the Instrument Check-Out Form), broken braces, new damage to the finish (deep scratches), damage to the case, mechanical damage (frozen valves & slides, broken water-keys, missing pieces).

All damage will be assessed by a certified instrument repair technician. All repairs must be handled through our approved repair shop, Johnny Paul's Music Shop.

If you wish to dispute any of the damages charged, please contact Mr. Ganus and he will be happy to sit down with you and go over each charge.

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Uniform Check In

Uniform Check-In:
May 29th

All Uniforms Must Be Dry-Cleaned


All uniforms need to be dry cleaned and turned in by Tuesday, May 29th. All Aledo MS Band members need to have their uniform dry-cleaned before returning them. Make sure that your child's uniform is in it's original uniform bag, and that it is hanging up nicely. If, for some reason, the uniform bag is damaged, please send the uniform back with the hangers taped together and a name on the uniform (pinned to the jacket or labeled on the hanger). If the uniform bag is damaged or lost, please include $5.00 for bag replacement.

Students who do not have their uniforms cleaned before returning them will have a $10.00 charge placed on their final report card. Report cards with charges will not be mailed in June, and all charges must be paid before it will be released.

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This newsletter is a communication of the Aledo Middle School Band.

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The Aledo Independent School district does not engage in the practice known as “spamming.” 

Email addresses are not sold or distributed.
If you have any concerns or comments, please contact Mr. Michael Ganus at (817) 441-5197.