The Northwest Area Concert is quickly approaching! Selected band students will be traveling by bus on Tuesday, May 1st to Morton MS to practice with other elementary band students from this area of the district. A permission slip is required for this field trip and was sent home with selected students on April 6th. Please CLICK HERE to download a copy of the permission slip.
The Northwest Area Concert Performance is on Tuesday, May 1st in the Northwest HS Gymnasium. Please note that if your band student attends the area concert practice in the afternoon, they are expected to attend the concert performance that same evening- we need everyone's participation to make this performance a success. Participating students should arrive at 7:00 pm. The concert begins at 7:30 pm. Chorus, band and strings will all perform on this concert. The concert should be over around 8:15-8:30 pm. Family and friends are encouraged to attend- cost for admission is $2.00 per adult. Tickets can be purchased at the door that evening or you can send money with your student to school to purchase them from me.
The selected students will perform the four pieces of sheet music we have been working on this quarter. This music is generally longer in length but much more fun to play than the shorter tunes in the Sound Innovations book. Below are some reminders about the sheet music:
Sheet music is very expensive- students should not lose or damage the music! OPS has purchased one copy of the sheet music for each Prairie Wind Band student. The expectation is that all sheet music be returned before the end of the school year. Please know that parents/guardians will need to pay to replace sheet music that is lost or damaged so it cannot be used again in future school years.
All Prairie Wind Band students will continue to learn this fun sheet music throughout the 4th quarter. Students who demonstrate they can proficiently play the sheet music and exhibit the behavior expected from a responsible band student will be invited to participate in the Northwest Area Concert on Tuesday May 1st, 2018 in the Northwest HS Gymnasium. This concert will begin at 7:30 pm- participating students should plan to arrive at 7:00 pm.
Students can practice the sheet music using the recordings at the very bottom of this webpage under the Sheet Music Recordings tab. Note that there are slow tempo, medium tempo and fast tempo recordings for all songs except Midnight Sky (this song is too slow to slow down any more!).
In order for students to borrow this sheet music, a Permission to Use Sheet Music form must be signed by a parent/guardian and returned. This form must be returned before any sheet music can be loaned to any band student. CLICK HERE to download a copy of the Permission to Use Sheet Music form.
The last performance of the school year will be on the Prairie Wind Spring Concert on Monday, May 14th at 3:00 pm in the Prairie Wind Gym. All band students will perform on this concert that should last about 45 minutes. This performance is free to attend for family and friends.
Practice is an essential component to building any skill. Learning to play a band instrument is no exception. Beginning band students should be practicing about 10-15 minutes a day (total of about 60-80 minutes per week). Students should keep track of their practice time on the band calendar. The next practice check is scheduled for Thursday, April 26th.
-Mr. Cosby
Phone #: 402-659-2618
School #: 402-491-0859
Email: thomas.cosby@ops.org
If you have any questions, concerns or you are just curious about your child's musical experience in band lessons, feel free to contact me at any time! My contact information is just below...
Happy Practicing!
Mr. Cosby
Omaha Symphony
New York Philharmonic
Free Metronome
Smartmusic