Upcoming Band events:
Volunteering Opportunities
Drake Honor Jazz Band
Urbandale Solo & Ensemble Festival
Perry Band Olympics
Civic Music Association Scholarships
March Events

 

Volunteerism:
We are currently in need of volunteers for our Solo and Ensemble Festival on Tuesday, February 11th and Perry Band Olympics on Saturday, February 22nd. Please consider volunteering and click the link below in order to get signed up!  The jobs are easy and you support our students when you volunteer.

https://signup.com/client/invitation2/secure/785327232092/false#/invitation.  

Thank you! We appreciate your help and support!

 

Drake Honor Jazz Band
Tuesday February 4
Congratulations to the students selected for the Drake Honor Jazz Band. The Drake University Honor Jazz Band festival is an opportunity for the most talented students from high schools around the region to play together and work with the respected jazz musicians on the Drake University faculty.  The festival has four grade level bands that include the following Urbandale students:

The evening concert will be held in the Performing Arts Hall in the Harmon Fine Arts Center at 7:00 pm and is free and open to the public.

 

Solo/Ensemble Festivals: ALL STUDENTS PLAN TO ATTEND BOTH EVENTS
– Urbandale Solo Festival: Tuesday, Feb. 11th –
UHS Solo and Ensemble 2025 – Accompanist Schedule
UHS Solo and Ensemble 2025 – Student Schedule
Families are encouraged to attend our Solo and Ensemble Festival Tuesday evening. The event will be held within our music wing from 5:00 PM – 9:00 PM.

– Perry Band Olympics: Saturday, Feb. 22nd – Perry Band Olympics Urbandale Schedule

Note for Perry Band Olympics: We WILL NOT  be taking buses to the Perry Band Olympics. Students should check the schedule attached above and arrive approximately 1 hour prior to your assigned time.

Perry High School
1200 18th Street
Perry, IA 50220

Other Reminders
• Students performing a solo should have their own original copy of the music
• Music can be ordered through Rieman’s Music, JW Pepper (online), or other music outlet
• Keep practicing

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/

 

March Events 

Northwest Blue Note Jazz Festival
Saturday, March 8, 2025
Jazz I 2:40 pm performance
Jazz II 6:30 pm performance
An itinerary will be posted soon with details about the day.

Concert Band Performance:
Monday, March 10, 2025
Time – 7:00 PM performance, standard itinerary: on-site at 6:20, rehearsal at 6:30
This concert will feature UHS Concert Bands Symphonic Band, Wind Ensemble, and Wind Symphony.

2025-26 Band Placements
Band placements for the 2025-2026 concert bands will take place shortly after spring break.  Students will be assessed on the following skills:
Music reading – sight-reading via the “sightreadingfactory.com”
Technique development – Major scales and chromatic scale
Tone quality
History: attendance habits, quality of participation, and attitude.
A list of requirements for each concert band can be found HERE.  Let us know how we can help with your preparation!