Upcoming events and articles:
Weather: Delays and Cancellations
Make-up lessons
SCIBA Honor Band
Iowa Lakes Jazz Band Contest
All-State Jazz
Band Summit
Solo and Ensemble Contest
Letters of Recommendation

Make-Up Lessons
Students have until January 10th to schedule any missing lessons from 1st semester. Recording assignments are no longer accepted.  Intervention on Thursday and Friday is an available option for makeup lessons.  Students that study privately, please have your lesson teacher email a director confirming lessons.

SCIBA Honor Band
Congratulations to the 18 students who auditioned for the 2025 SCIBA Honor Band; you make our program better.  And a round of applause to the nine students that were accepted.  A formal press release can be found here and an itinerary here.

Iowa Lakes Jazz Band Contest
Friday, January 24, 2025, Jazz I will attend the Iowa Lakes Jazz Band Contest Iowa Lakes Community College in Estherville, Iowa.  An itinerary will be posted soon.

All-State Jazz
The Iowa All State Jazz Bands sponsored by JEI have provided hundreds of students an opportunity to interact with America’s leading jazz educators and master musicians. Selection to these groups is by recorded (blind) audition. Students interested in applying will submit recordings of their playing using a prescribed – downloadable – etude, samples of improvisation and scales of their choosing.  For more information and audition material, go to this link, and talk to a director to get registered.  Your audition material can only be submitted by a director and must be completed by February 24, 2025

Band Summit – Saturday, February 1
The 15^th Annual Band Summit will include all band students in grades 7 – 12. The day will start at 8:00 a.m. for high school students. It will include sectionals with local professionals and a full group clinic rehearsal in the morning with Dr. Danny Galyen from the University of Northern Iowa. The afternoon will include high school bands serving as mentors and teachers for younger band students and a public performance at 1:30 PM. The concert will feature joint performances with UMS & UHS students together and The Band Summit Video!.

A detailed schedule for the day is published here. The pizza lunch for UHS students and snacks for UMS students will be provided by the Performing Arts Booster Club. The concert is free. Thank you to our volunteers who have signed up to help serve at this event! It’s a great opportunity to meet the next generation of J-Hawk Band members.

If you have photos that might be perfect for the Band Summit video, please email or provide a link to Mr. Doggett by January 10, 2025 for possible inclusion.  If you would like to be interviewed for the Band Summit video, please see Mr. Doggett.

Solo & Ensemble Contest
The Urbandale Solo and Ensemble Contest will be held on Tuesday February 11th at UHS followed by Perry Band Olympics at Perry High School on Saturday February 22nd.  Schedules for both events are currently being created and will be communicated in the February newsletter.

For students choosing to work with a staff accompanist, a rehearsal schedule is being created based on the accompanist’s availability.  For now, please be available for the afternoon’s of Sunday January 26, February 2 and 9.

Participating students should have already completed the following tasks:

1. Order their official copy of the music from Rieman’s or another music outlet.
2. Soloists should have weekly lessons with band staff or a private teacher.
3. Pay registration fee.  The online payment has been opened back up by Activities.

Student Recommendations (a teachable moment)
Spring is the time of year when many students seek recommendations for scholarships, camps, college admissions, and summer jobs.  This is a teachable moment for parents and faculty to help children use mature etiquette in asking for recommendations.  Please consider reviewing these tips with your child(ren).  These have been adapted from guidelines used at Port Washington High School, NY. 

1. Remember letters of recommendation are not entitlements; they are earned.
2. Ask for a letter of recommendation in person. (We are writing the recommendation for you, so you should be the person to ask.)
3. Provide all of the necessary information in an organized manner (and in writing)
   • To whom the recommendation should be written
   • For what purpose it is being written
   • Does the reader of the recommendation provide any instructions? If so, include them.
   • What is the deadline?
   • Provide an envelope with the reader’s name/address, etc.
   • If the writer is to comment on your participation, honors, awards, etc., provide a list of your participation, honors, awards, etc. (called a curriculum vitae, or c.v.)
4. Ask at least 2 weeks before the deadline. (It takes time to craft a well-written recommendation that reflects the uniqueness’ of the student.)
5. Ask someone who knows you.
6. Assess your behavior now and in the past. (Ask teachers who know you best and have seen your best efforts.  Don’t expect a letter if you’ve made little or no contributions to the class)
7. The letter of recommendation is not for your eyes
   • Sign the waiver if one is provided. Do not ask if you can see the letter. It is up to the writer to make that choice. These letters are generally confidential and should at least be sealed and most likely mailed directly by the writer.
8. Say Thank You!