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Concert Band
| Here is the concert band performing at Universal City Walk in Orlando Florida.
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The Concert Band is made up of mostly 9th and 10th grades. They perform 4 concerts along with other performances through the year. This is the group most freshman will be in when you join band at Cretin-Derham Hall.
Current Concert Band students:
One of the music theory related items we study in class are musical intervals. Click here to link to the Musical Intervals Tutor web page to practice hearing the intervals.A few reasons to study music intervals in addition to other elements of music is that not all music looks like a scale you play in a book or as part of a warm-up. While they are good warm-ups, Mr. F thinks of a few reasons why to study intervals:
- Not all music looks or sounds like a warm-up scale; melodies have combinations of stepwise and leaps.
- Train your ear to make better judgements and adjustments on your instruments on in-tune vs. out-of-tune.
- Improve your music reading skills; if you can identify the interval, I believe you can read the music faster.
All this requires practice of course.
Grading Rubrics for Class
| Concert Band Mid Trimester Grading Rubric |
End of the Trimester Grading Rubric |
| A 2 lessons, 2 pep bands |
A 4 lessons, 4 pep bands |
| A - 2 lessons, 0-1 pep band |
A - 4 lessons, < 4 pep bands |
| B+ 1 lesson, 2 pep bands |
B+ 3 lessons, 4 pep bands |
| B 1 lesson, 1 pep band |
B 3 lessons, < 4 pep bands |
| B - 1 lessons, 0 pep band |
B- 3 lessons, 0 pep bands |
| C+ 0 lessons, 2 pep bands |
C+ 2 lessons, 4 pep bands |
| C 0 lessons, 1 pep band |
C 2 lessons, < 4 pep bands |
C - 0 lessons, 0 pep band |
C- 2 lessons, 0 pep bands |
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D+ 1 lesson, 4 pep bands |
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D 1 lesson, < 4 pep bands |
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D- 1 lesson, 0 pep bands |
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F 0 lessons, any pep bands | Be sure you bring to class everyday the items you need for class:
Instrument, music, pencil, accessories or other necessary equipment.
Most of all bring a positive attitude towards attaining your goals and having fun.Daily stuff needed
- Please be ready every day for a pencil, instrument, and music check! You will need to have some scratch paper ready as well.
- Our success as a band depends on how much you practice as an individual outside of rehearsal!
- Other assignments maybe given throughout the trimester. The assignments will count towards your grade. The grade you receive on your assignment may affect your grade if that assignment grade is unsatisfactory. This can reduce your grade from an A to an A- in most cases. The teacher will determine when and if your grade is reduce. Please talk to the teacher about your grade if you have a question. Do this before the end of the trimester.
Read this if you are taking Honors Credit...
Honors credit is available for 10th, 11th, and 12th grade. In addition to the general credit requirements honors persons will give a live recital performance in front of the class and go to an outside performance and write a concert report. Go to the course requirements page using the link on the left-side column of links for more information.
Advice on your recital performance...
For the recital, you need this to be your best performance (you always want to give your best performance anyways!). Take it seriously and prepare the music ahead of time just as you would for any concert or contest. Please be sure to check in with the teacher on your performance piece to make sure all is well. Do this even if you are taking private lessons, performing in an ensemble or using Smart Music accompaniment. It is better to check in many times instead of showing up and performing. Even the best musicians should check with their teacher for any advice they may have before the performance; just play your piece for them before or after school or send them a recording of your performance to get some advice on the next step. The performance typically will be towards the end of the trimester. Remember the day you signed up for and come prepared to play in front of the class on that day. Listen to their feedback and apply it as usefully as you can in your next performance.Those pursuing solo/ensemble contest in the Spring will substitute their contest performance for their recital performance.
Advice on writing your concert report...
When writing the report consider how the musicians performance relates to what you do in class as a student? How do you think you get to that level? Are there things you need to do that the performers are doing? Should they/you be doing something in addition to what they/you are already doing? Ask your self these questions as you listen to the concert and think about these questions when you write your report.
When you're at the performance, take some notes either on a separate sheet of paper or in the program for you to refer back to. Make on outline of your paper covering all the major parts and important details. Properly documenting titles and names is also an important item to remember- refer to your English class notes on writing research papers.
Late papers result in a grade reduction for each day late; 1 day late= 1 grade reduction (i.e. A goes to a B), 2 days late= 2 grade reductions (A goes to a C). Don’t forget to include proper grammar and cohesive sentence structure.
When submitting your papers through email, please make sure you have formatted your paper correctly and saved it either as a Word document or a .pdf file. While not every one has MS Word at home, you my come to school and use the computer here to save your paper as a Word or .pdf document before you email it to your teacher.
Concert Report Outline PDF: Blank Concert Report Outline.pdf
Concert Band Assignments
1. Required Events
These include events such as concerts, parades, field shows, large group contest, and other events which are mandatory events to attend. While it is our goal to perform well at these events and the majority of our time in class is spent doing just that. Each event is 200 points a piece making these events a very important part of your grade.
2. Lessons
4 lessons are required each trimester and are 100 points a pieces (400 total points). Weeks are assigned based on the instrument you play- Woodwind or Brass/Percussion. Please plan on taking a lesson during the assigned week. You may sign-up before/after school and during class. Please inform the teacher about your lesson before you actually have it. Teachers reserve the right to keep you in class for whatever reason.
Lessons last about 20 minutes (half a class period during a normal schedule). This includes travel time to and from class.
If you miss a lesson for what ever reason, chances are you can sign up for the following week, however, do not take the "prime" lesson spots at the end of the week- you may be asked to move your lesson to an earlier time.
Students may also opt. for private lessons outside of class (you can still take lessons if you have questions on your band literature). The student must submit the instructor's name, phone number or email address to Mr. Fairweather. Once this has been done you will be exempt from taking lessons at CDH for that trimester.
3. Pep Bands
4 pep bands (10 points each) are required for each trimester (roughly half of the the offered amount). Usually more are presented and the student then chooses which ones they want to attend. The more pep bands you attend the more points you will get towards your grade and the more playing experience you will gain. Post season games where the pep band attends will also count towards your grade as specifically determined by the director.
Please remember that your etiquette in the stands is very important. your representing not only the everyone at school and those specifically in band, but your also representing yourself. Poor conduct will be grounds for loss of credit for that event.
4. Assignments/Tests/Quizzes
While tests and quizzes are seldom given they are an important part of measuring what you have learned. Tests and quizzes usually are on theory related material.
Assignments usually consist of activities using Smart Music software which can be done at home or in the practice rooms. Smart Music assignments usually consist of exercises, method book assignments, orientation assignments, intonation assignments, parts of music, entire pieces of music, recordings of your performance, or custom files created by the teacher usually involved in some kind of performance. Points totals vary depending on the length or importance of the assignment in your musical training. Usually students will have a few assignments or tests/quizzes in addition to all the music you have assigned to you. Most of the time the assignment is related to what you are performing in class. Most of the time you will be able to retake quizzes and tests as many times as you wish.
In the opinion of Mr. Fairweather, attaining at least 90% correct is a concert-ready performance. Further determination and consultation of your performance (Smart Music does not grade articulation, dynamics, and phrasing) may have an impact on your grade (determined by a recording of your performance when you submit your assignment). Grade levels are the same as standard grade levels, however, please practice your music and aim for 90% correct as your goal when practicing your music.
It is to your benefit musically to complete the Smart Music assignments by the due dates. These assignments coincide with our concerts and can really help you practice since Mr. Fairweather provides you with feedback of your recording. Due dates will be done before final concert preparations. Assignments may be turned in after the due date, but do not expect feedback from the teacher after the concert.
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