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ONLINE BAND HANDBOOK
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A Letter to Parents from the Director of Bands
Penny Snead
Director of Bands Shawnee Mission Northwest High School 12701 W. 67th Street Shawnee Mission, KS 66216-2599 nwsnead@smsd.org (913) 993-7261 Band Office (913) 993-7200 Main Office www.smnwbands.com |
I care about your kids. I know these are the BEST kids in the school. They’re smart, hardworking, driven, and often over extended. Most of them are in several honors classes that demand a high level of commitment. I never want Band to interfere with my students’ success in other classes. I hope that in working together, we can help them manage their time well, and organize their lives to encompass all activities.
I will always allow a student to miss marching rehearsal if he/she needs help in another class. I will expect them to be in Band by 7:40 or they will be counted tardy. I have had students come to me completely stressed because they have a big project due in a class or a lot of homework and it’s the night of a Thursday rehearsal. I will do whatever I can to help with the stress even if it means missing band rehearsal. Fair and Reasonable I try to be fair and reasonable in all situations. For example: If a student has a volleyball game during a Thursday night rehearsal it would be reasonable for them to go to the game. If a volleyball practice should conflict with the Shawnee Mission Marching Festival, it would be fair and reasonable to expect the student to come to the marching festival. Conflicts There will be times when we have a conflict; a student cannot be in two places at one time. Should this situation arise the conflict will be worked out by the administration so that the student does not have to make a choice or be placed in the middle. The Shawnee Mission School District has an Activities Handbook that includes a hierarchy of activity conflicts covering every conflict I have ever had to deal with. The important fact to remember is that the student should not have to choose and should not have to feel any repercussions for missing an activity that is in direct conflict with another. In the case of Band, a co-curricular activity, the student will need to make up the performance grade in some manner acceptable to the student and the teacher. As always, should you have any questions or concerns, do not hesitate to contact me at your earliest convenience. Sincerely, Penny Snead, Director of Bands |
Bands at Northwest |
Marching Cougar Pride – The Marching Cougar Pride includes students from freshmen through seniors. Freshmen must audition for the group in order to participate. Once a student reaches his/her sophomore year an audition is no longer a requirement. Rehearsals begin at 7AM and continue through first hour. On block days (usually Thursday) when we do not start the school day with 1st hour, we do not have a 7AM rehearsal. The marching season lasts roughly until the first of November. Once marching season is over students are no longer required to report at 7AM. The Marching Cougar Pride performs for all home football games and takes a pep band to all in district away games. Other requirements on the marching band calendar are: band camp, weekly evening music rehearsals, and approximately three Saturday commitments.
Symphonic Band – A select concert ensemble comprised of freshmen through seniors who qualify for the group. Auditions for this band occur in early November and are judged by outside professional judges. The band rehearses during first hour second semester. The Symphonic Band has more performances than any other band during concert season. Uniforms: The Symphonic Band wears formal dress for all concerts. Men wear tuxedos and women wear long black dresses. We have dresses for the girls and an inventory of tuxedo jackets for the guys. A dry cleaning and maintenance fee of $20.00 will be charged for the use of the dresses and/or jackets. Concert Band – This group is comprised of freshmen through seniors. Concert Band meets third hour first semester and second hour second semester. Students (freshmen – senior) who choose not to march first semester should enroll in this class. Freshman Band – Second semester the band program divides into three separate classes and Freshmen will meet 3rd hour. This excludes freshmen percussionists. Freshmen may audition for Symphonic Band. If they make the group their schedule will be changed to 1st hour. Uniforms for Concert and Freshman Band: All black, “dress up” clothes. Girls: Black slacks, not skirts and guys may not wear tennis shoes or jeans. Think of dressing for a professional interview. Guys should wear ties and may or may not wear a sports coat or suit. Jazz Band – This ensemble is chosen by audition in the spring of the previous school year. The Jazz band performs frequently and students must have an excellent understanding of jazz style and a high level of musical skill. This class meets 7th hour all year and is under the direction of Mr. Doug Talley. Students must be enrolled in a regular band class in order to enroll in Jazz Band. Uniforms: Men wear coat and tie for performances and women wear appropriate and comparable dress. For informal concerts the band will wear jazz shirts that they may purchase through Mr. Talley. Percussion Class – This group prepares younger percussionists for Symphonic, Concert, and Marching Band. Students are asked to bring their own drumsticks, practice pads, and yarn mallets to class each day. Uniforms: Dress for percussion ensemble is black dress slacks and a long sleeved button down collar dress shirt. Ties are not necessary. Pep Band – During football season we take a pep band to all away Shawnee Mission games. Attendance is optional but students who wish to letter in band should attend. Basketball pep band starts in mid December and performs for home boy’s and girl’s games. This band is a lot of fun and students are encouraged to give it a try. After the season starts the time commitment is usually one or two evenings a week. |
Grades |
Grades in Marching Band will be calculated as follows:
40% - Performance attendance, rehearsal attendance (see below for attendance policy) High school band is a performance class. Missing a performance for an unexcused reason will seriously damage a student’s grade. Thursday evening rehearsals allow us to perform our music at the highest level possible. Students have had these rehearsal dates since the beginning of the year and are expected to attend. Work is never an excuse for missing a rehearsal or a performance. If there is a conflict with another school activity, that conflict will be resolved by the District Activities Hierarchy Policy. This takes the student, his/her parents, and the teachers/coaches out of the equation so that no one will feel uncomfortable. 30% - Daily Classwork (i.e. having instrument, music, drill book, being on time to class, having a workable attitude, behavior.) 30% - Playing tests and written assignments |
Marching Festivals |
SM Marching Festival, Monday, 10/3, South District Stadium, 7PM, admission free. Rain date: 10/10.
Central States Marching Festival, Saturday 10/15, All day, Manhattan, Kansas KBA Marching Festival, Saturday, 10/22, Topeka, KS, All day, Washburn University |
Absences and Tardies |
Most important to remember about absences: An excused absence must always be requested by a parent, not a student, by phone, voice-mail, e-mail or written note. Absences from performances will only be excused under extreme circumstances, and must be requested well before the performance. For more clarification, read on…
Absence From Performance: Band is a performance-based class, thus performances carry great weight in determining grades. Each performance is the culmination of weeks of hard work. Only under the most extreme circumstances will a missed performance be excused. If an emergency will keep you from attending a performance, a parent should contact a director before the performance. As members of an ensemble, we count on each other. Please consult the band calendar and plan to be at all band performances. Absence From Rehearsal: For regular school day rehearsals, the school’s policy for being excused is to be followed. If a student must miss a rehearsal outside of the school day, a parent must contact a director by phone, e-mail, voice mail or written note. Please consider the same criteria as for an excused school absence. Each member of a performing ensemble is important. We have no “second-string” to send in. We rely on each other during rehearsals and performances. Please note that work is not an excuse for missing a band rehearsal or performance. There will be conflicts with other school activities that will require you to miss a rehearsal. Please communicate your conflict with a director. Your conflict will be excused but please remember that you have a responsibility to your fellow musicians to have your music rehearsed and memorized. TARDY POLICY All students must be at the assigned location, in your seat, with all equipment and music to be considered ‘on time’ for a rehearsal or performance. You are subject to Shawnee Mission Northwest tardy policy. Set those alarms! When a student is tardy for a 7:00 AM Marching Band rehearsal three times in one season, the student and parents will be informed that the following tardy (the fourth) will result in an office referral. The fifth tardy will result in the student being benched from the next performance. |
Concert Bands
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What do I need for class?
Your instrument in good repair. Reed players should have at least 4 good reeds at all times. Brass players should have valve oil, slide oil, and a snake to clean out your instrument. Percussionists should have Mike Balter 4B mallets (green) and a pair of SD General drumsticks. Any student wanting to rent a district owned instrument will need to pay the rental fee of $50.00. Checks should be made payable to: Shawnee Mission Schools. Music: You need your book and music every day. Please have a pencil for class every day. Concert dress: We wear all black “dress clothes” for concerts. Guys should wear a tie. Attire must be school appropriate. Girls please wear black slacks, not a skirt and not a dress. Calendar You have two performance dates, one each quarter. The fall concert is Tuesday, October 11th, NW Auditorium. The winter concert is Wednesday, December 7th, NW Auditorium. Report time for concerts is 6:30 and performance time is 7PM. Clear your calendars now for these dates. (See attached calendar.) Grades 40% Classwork (This includes having all materials for class, being on time to class, and behavior.) 30% Tests and quizzes 30% Concerts ABSENCES & Tardies Most important to remember about absences: An excused absence must always be requested by a parent, not a student, by phone, voice-mail, e-mail or written note. Absences from performances will only be excused under extreme circumstances, and must be requested well before the performance. For more clarification, read on… Absence From Performance: Band is a performance-based class, thus performances carry great weight in determining grades. Each performance is the culmination of weeks of hard work. Only under the most extreme circumstances will a missed performance be excused. If an emergency will keep you from attending a performance, a parent should contact a director before the performance. As members of an ensemble, we count on each other. Please consult the band calendar and plan to be at all band performances. Absence From Rehearsal: For regular school day rehearsals, the school’s policy for being excused is to be followed. If a student must miss a rehearsal outside of the school day, a parent must contact a director by phone, e-mail, voice mail or written note. Please consider the same criteria as for an excused school absence. Each member of a performing ensemble is important. We have no “second-string” to send in. We rely on each other during rehearsals and performances. Please note that work is not an excuse for missing a band rehearsal or performance. Please do not leave your stand partner empty handed if you have the music! Tardy Policy All students must be at the assigned location, in your seat, with all equipment and music to be considered ‘on time’ for a rehearsal or performance. Students that are late will lose grade points and be subject to Shawnee Mission Northwest tardy policy. Set those alarms! |
Misc.
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School owned instruments – The school district requires a rental fee for school owned instruments. The summer fee is $27.00 and the yearly fee is $50.00. Checks should be made out to Shawnee Mission Schools. This money goes directly to the school district and is used for maintenance of district owned instruments.
Transportation – The school provides transportation for students for all performances on the band calendar with the exception of the following: KMEA Honor Band auditions and concert, District Symphonic Band Concert held at SM East, and Regional & State Solo and Ensemble Contest. KMEA Honor Band Auditions and Concert: This is open to 10th – 12th graders only. Auditions are Saturday, Nov.12th and are held at Olathe East High School. Students are responsible for their own transportation. Auditions will take most of the day and students need to be at the high school by 7:30AM. Students who make the band will perform in the concert Saturday, December 6th. This band rehearses all day, performing a concert in the afternoon. I have music now for this audition. This audition comes up very quickly at the end of marching season so plan ahead if you intend to audition. Students who make this band are eligible to audition for State Band. Solo & Ensemble Festival: 4/8 - This event occurs on two levels – Regional and State. The Regional festival is held at Blue Valley High School. Most of the same rules or procedures apply to both Regional and State festival. Solos that are accompanied must be played with an accompanist. Start looking for an accompanist now and plan on paying them for their work. You must have an original copy of the music for the judge. No copies of any kind will be allowed in the performance room. Ensembles must also have an original score for the judge. If a student makes a superior (or a 1) rating at the regional level, he/she may then participate in state. State Solo and Ensemble will be held on 4/29 at a sight to be determined. State Contest and SM Symphonic Band Festival: April is the month for State Contest. To help prepare for this, the district hosts a concert in the SM East auditorium on Tuesday, 4/4 where all of the high school symphonic bands perform for each other. Admission is free and students are expected to attend the entire concert. State Contest is April 12th, during the school day and both Concert and Symphonic Bands will perform. Performance times will be announced approximately two weeks in advance of contest. Parents are invited and encouraged to attend the concert and support the bands. Bands will be judged by a panel of three judges and will receive a rating of I – V. Lettering requirements for Band:
**A student worthy of a letter in band should be in good standing in the class, should have an excellent record of being on time to class and rehearsals, and should display appropriate behavior at all times. SMNW Band Boosters The Band Parent Booster Group supports every activity the Band does from the first day of Band Camp to the final Senior Banquet. The program could not function without the help of our Band Parents. This is a great and fun group to be involved in and we strongly encourage you to be a part of the organization. |
Band Handbook Acknowledgment Form
The SMNW Band Calendar of Events, Class/Ensemble Descriptions, Classroom/Rehearsal Etiquette & Expectations, Grading Policy, and contact information can be found in the SMNW Band Handbook. Please print it out and keep it for your reference!
Parents, please review the SMNW Band Handbook and read it along with your student. Then fill out the attached form and return it with your student to class by Friday, August 26, 2016! Thank you for your time!
Band Handbook Acknowledgment Form
Parents, please review the SMNW Band Handbook and read it along with your student. Then fill out the attached form and return it with your student to class by Friday, August 26, 2016! Thank you for your time!
Band Handbook Acknowledgment Form