March Events
Perry Band Olympics Results
Calendar corrections
Waukee North West Blue Note Jazz Festival: March 8
Concert Band concert: March 10
Concert Attire
Band Placement
Drum Major auditions
Section Leader auditions
Marching Band Percussion auditions
Senior Photo Video
Summer Dates
PABC Garage Sale
Civic Center Scholarships
Perry Band Olympics Results
On February 22, 2025, Urbandale High School Instrumental Music Department entered 93 events into the Perry Band Olympics Solo & Small Ensemble Contest. Performing alongside students from across the state of Iowa, Urbandale’s students earned 46 Division-I ratings. Additionally, 19 students/ensembles were further highlighted against nearly 1000 other entries with these “podium finishes” within their respective categories. Results can be viewed here.
Corrections to the Band Calendar of Events
Hoover Jazz Fest was included but that festival was cancelled this year.
The correct date for IHSMA Large Group Contest is Saturday May 10…it is incorrectly listed as May 11
North West Blue Note Jazz Festival
Saturday, March 8, 2025
Northwest High School
655 NW 10th Street Waukee, IA 50263
Jazz I and II will perform at Waukee North West Blue Note Jazz Festival on Saturday, March 8 Itinerary
Spectators should plan to park in the parking lot immediately south of the school, east of the stadium. This lot can be accessed from NW Sunrise Drive, which runs between 6th and 10th streets on the south side of the school. Admission for the festival is $15 for adults and $10 for K-12 students. Tickets may be purchased at the door with a credit card, but spectators are encouraged to pre-order their tickets by going to https://www.vancoevents.com/us/CXHM Please note: cash is not accepted for events at Northwest High School.
Concert Band Concert
Monday, March 10, 2025.
7:00 PM
This concert will feature all three UHS concert bands: Symphonic Band, Wind Ensemble, and Wind Symphony.
Call time for students is 6:20 p.m. for a 6:30 p.m. warm-up.
Everyone helps clear the stage, dismissed when everything is put away
Students must be wearing appropriate concert attire in order to perform. Many area schools have purchased long black gowns for the women and tuxedos for the men. We have chosen to give students some liberty in their choice of clothing for their concerts. However, in order to maintain the appropriate decorum in the formal concerts, we ask that all members of the J-Hawk Bands follow these guidelines when choosing their concert attire.
Suit option:
Black dress shirt with collar and tie based in royal blue.
Black dress pants (suitable for a crease in front) and black belt (exclude cargo pants, denim, corduroy, etc.)
Black dress shoes with black socks (suitable for polishing; exclude athletic shoes and socks, sandals, flip-flops, or other casual footwear)
Black suit or sport coat optional but recommended (if wearing a suit, you may substitute a white dress shirt)
Dress option:
Floor length black dress with sleeves or floor length black skirt with black blouse
Optional accent accessories should be royal blue (such as a scarf or head band)
Black dress shoes (Color: flat black close-toed and flat heel with skin-toned hose.
Exclude athletic shoes and socks, sandals, flip-flops, or other casual footwear.
Proper decorum for formal concerts is that no skin is showing from shoulders to the floor.
2025-2026 Band Placements
Students should be practicing feverishly for 2025-26 band placements, which will take place in lessons from March 31 – April 11, 2025. Students will be evaluated on scales, music reading skills, tone quality and technique, and history of attendance, attitude, etc. Exact band requirements can be found here. All UHS Band students have Sightreading Factory installed on their ChromeBooks. This is the software that will be used during Band Placement. Accessing Sightreading Factory has been explained in rehearsals and lessons but any student that still has questions should talk to a director.
2025-26 Drum Major Auditions
Drum Major Prep Sessions – March 27 and April 4 from 7:00 to 7:50 a.m.
Auditions will be held April 10. Students will sign up for a specific time. Sign up when posted, don’t delay!
Audition Materials:
– Vocal Commands
– Four Progressive Conducting Exercises
– Interview With Directors
*Drum majors are required to audition for All State or SCIBA honor band in the fall.They must attend the All State mock auditions in order to continue improving throughout the marching season.
2025-26 Section Leader Auditions
Any student interested in becoming a section leader must attend all three sessions on April 11, 17, and 18 from 7:00 to 7:50 a.m.
Audition Materials:
– Vocal Commands
– Marching Fundimentals
– Rehearsal Techniques
– Interview With Directors
Marching Band Percussion Auditions
All percussionists in Band next year, must attend two of the three audition sessions on Tuesday April 8, 15 and 22 from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm. Audition material will be shared next week in rehearsal.
Senior Video
Seniors! Our Awards Concert on Monday May 5 will feature the Senior Photo/Baby Photo video. Send your name, senior photo, and baby photo to Miley Seliquini to be included.
Dates for Summer and Fall 2025
Rehearsals for the 4th of July Parade will take place on July 1, 2, and 3 with the parade on July 4.
Band Camp will take place from August 4 – 15, 2025. Attendance at camp is vital to students’ feelings of success and the band’s quality of performance. Make plans to be home during the camp dates.
We are working on next year’s official calendar of events and hope to have that ready in April. More specifics about summer practices and rehearsal dates will be included in the full calendar at that time.
As a reminder, you can subscribe to the J-Hawk Band Calendar electronically using this link:
https://www.google.com/calendar/ical/i7d3csg6oincr3dnp1gqklh97k%40group.calendar.google.com/public/basic.ics
PABC Garage Sale
The Performing Arts Booster Club Garage Sale (benefitting the band, vocal, and drama departments) will be held on Saturday, April 12. Please begin setting aside donations now as you start thinking about your spring cleaning; more information on how to donate will be available after spring break. Thanks for your help with making this a great fundraiser for Performing Arts at UHS!
Civic Music Association Scholarships
The Civic Music Association of Des Moines was established in 1925. Their mission is to engage, enrich, and educate the central Iowa community through provocative, world-class musical performances by legends and rising stars. They offer some fantastic scholarship opportunities for students offering funding that can be used for music lessons, instrument rentals/purchase, and summer camps/programs. Applications are accepted through April 1st! https://civicmusic.org/studio/scholarships/