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
May 2008
May 2, 2008

Inside this issue
Spring Trip
Awards Concert
Band Auditions
Summer Band Camp 2008
Instrument Check In
Uniform Check In

Mark Your Calendar:

May 2008

6
Marva Collins Awards
8
Schlitterbahn Chaperone
Meeting
6:30 p.m. MS Band Hall
9
Spring Trip Day 1
10
Schlitterbahn
13
Band Booster Meeting
7:30 p.m.
15
Aledo HS Spring Concert
7:00 p.m.
AHS Auditorium
17
Flute Festival 2008
19
McAnally Intermediate
Spring Concert
7:00 p.m.
AHS Auditorium
20
AMS Spring
Awards Concert
6:00 p.m.
AHS Auditorium
27
Instrument Check In
29
Uniform Check In
(must be dry cleaned)
June 2008
4
End of School!!
Have a GREAT Summer!

Did You Know?
Paul Harvey Said...

“Should we not be putting all our emphasis on reading, writing and math? The ‘back-to basics curricula,’ while it has merit, ignores the most urgent void in our present system – absence of self-discipline. The arts, inspiring – indeed requiring – self-discipline, may be more ‘basic’ to our nation survival than traditional credit courses. Presently, we are spending 29 times more on science than on the arts, and the result so far is worldwide intellectual embarrassment.”

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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

Spring Trip

Spring Trip 2008
May 9 & 10, 2008

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 ($7.00).

Friday, May 9th - Students should come to school dressed in their tuxedo uniforms. They will need to bring their black band polo and shorts/jeans and shoes to change into (beginners will need to wear their band t-shirt this day).

STUDENTS WILL NEED TO BRING THEIR UNIFORM BAG TO HANG THEIR TUXEDO'S UP IN AFTER THE STAGE PERFORMANCE.

Saturday, May 10th - Trip t-shirts will be handed out on Friday, May 9th. after we get back from The Magic Time Machine. Please plan to wear it on Saturday morning for the Schlitterbahn portion of the trip. When students get to the park they should not wear this shirt (they may swim in another shirt if they want to). We will wear this shirts again once we leave the park.

If you need me to mail another copy of the trip rules or the itinerary, please send Mr. Ganus an email (mganus@aledoband.com) or call (817) 441-5197.

Awards Concert

2007 Aledo Middle School
Awards Concert
May 20, 2008
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:

AMS Jazz Band - Premier Performance
Warm-Up: 5:30pm (Stage)
Performance: 6:00pm Beginner Band with Applied Music
Warm Up: 5:30 p.m. (Band Hall)
Performance 6:15 p.m.
Concert Band with Developing Band
Warm-Up: 6:00pm (Band Hall)
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.

Band Auditions

2008-2009 Band Auditions are here!

Auditions at AMS are from May 14-16
Audition at McAnally are from May 21-23

Students will be auditioning for band placement for the 2008-2009 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 2008-2009 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
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
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
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 by Monday, June 2nd.

Summer Band Camp 2008

Looking for a fun MUSICAL experience this summer?

How About
BAND CAMP 2008
(It is nothing like the movies!)

There are a number of wonderful band camps available to your kids this summer.
Here are some links and information about local band camps...

Tarleton State University - Stephenville June 12-15 Link for More Information	Texas Christian University - Fort Worth June 15-19 Link for More Information
Kennan Wylie Percussion Camp June 24-26 Link for More Information	Yamaha Sounds of Summer Percussion Camp June 23-24 Link for More Information

Mr. Ganus will be teaching at the Tarleton State University Band Camp in June. He would love to have a great crew of AMS kids in camp with him! Forms for all these camps are available from Mr. Ganus or by following the links provided with each camp picture.

Instrument Check In

School-Owned Instrument Check-In
Tuesday,
May 27th

All school owned instruments will need to be checked in on Tuesday, May 27th. All instruments will be assessed for damage, and a list of those damages and your liability will be mailed home by Friday, May 30th. 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 Tuesday, June 3rd.

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.

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 Thursday, 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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If you have any concerns or comments, please contact Mr. Michael Ganus at (817) 441-5197.