When: Thursday, December 15th at 7pm. Please arrive by 6:40 to unpack and get set up.

Where:Wiley Media Center

Dress: Concert black and white, with optional festive decor :)

What students should bring:
instrument, music stand, Standard of Excellence book, sheet music (Continuing Band students only), and plenty of family and friends!

Reminders to students:
1. Since we’re sharing this concert with the Wiley Dance and Chorus students, the media center is going to be SUPER crowded. Please listen carefully to the volunteers, and strive to conduct yourself like a pro at all times!

2. Keep up your practice – 15 minutes a day, 5 days a week!

3. Make sure to have fun – this concert is a celebration of your musical accomplishments! :)

So, you’ve just done an excellent job at your first concert of the year–congratulations! Concerts are the perfect time to show off all your achievements in band, and enjoy the fruits of all the work that you’ve been doing. But, during the days after the concert, many band kids find it tricky to balance the satisfaction of the performance with the need to continue growing as musicians. Here are some tips to help you with the transition that happens after a great performance.

1. Bask in your glory. - If you’re happy with your performance at the concert, take some time to enjoy those feelings of success and accomplishment. After all, you deserve it! Take some time to reflect on the work you’ve done, and the results you achieved. You may even want to reward yourself by doing something you really enjoy!

2. But don’t bask too long. - One of the keys to being an excellent musician is constantly striving for improvement. Celebrating your success is very healthy, but only if you balance it by looking ahead toward the progress you can make in the future. Make sure to jump back into your practice habit as soon as you can after the concert, and challenge yourself to play even better than you did at the show.

3. Set some goals. – One of the most helpful things you can do to fire yourself up after a concert is to set some small goals to achieve in your practice. If there are some tunes you’d like to learn in the book, try setting a goal to learn their pitches or rhythms by a certain date. Or, beef up your technique by setting goals for smoother phrasing, more precise tonguing, and more accurate pitches. When you set goals, you give yourself a solid understanding of the results you want–and this understanding can help you figure out how to get where you want to be!

If you’re having trouble getting back into the swing of practice after the concert, please let Ms. Thompson know; she will be happy to help you!

As our first concert of the year approaches, it can be very easy to start feeling nervous. If you’ve got the pre-concert jitters, don’t worry!–nerves are a natural part of performing, especially when you’re just starting out. Luckily, there are many actions we can take to calm our nerves before a concert. Try these four easy tips to help you feel relaxed as showtime approaches!

1. Practice! - Detailed, thoughtful practice is one of the best ways to take the bite out of stage fright. If you practice often and do your very best in the weeks leading up to the concert, you’ll feel much more confident and secure with your music on the big night.

2. Prepare for a smooth concert day. - Even if you’ve practiced well, the way you handle the day of the concert can make or break your performance. If you wait until the last minute to buy concert clothes, forget where your instrument is, or arrive late to the performance, you can be assured that you’ll be a nervous wreck–and you probably won’t perform as well as you could have. Make sure instead that you plan for a smooth, relaxed concert day. Check to see that your clothes fit, and lay them out where you can find them. Put your instrument and music together so that you won’t forget either. And arrive a little early, so that you can get a feel for the stage and have a few relaxing moments with your band friends before showtime.

3. Perform before the performance. - Play for your family and friends, and get all your stage fright out of the way before the concert!

4. Don’t feel like you can’t be nervous. - Many people think that if they’re nervous on stage, they’re doing something wrong. Actually, a little bit of nerves on stage can be a good thing! So, instead of focusing on trying NOT to be nervous, focus on getting out there and doing a great show. Even if you’re scared to death throughout this first concert, the experience will help you learn to manage your nerves and feel more confident at your next show!

When and Where? Thursday, October 13th at 7pm in the Wiley Media Center. PLEASE ARRIVE AT 6:30!

How to dress? Students should dress in white tops and black skirts/pants, and black shoes. Parents and friends, please dress comfortably. :)

What to bring? instrument, music stand, red book, a cheering section of family and friends

Musical reminders for kids:
1. How quickly can you into ready position?
2. Ping together!
3. Keep your horns up until the conductor’s hands go down.

It’s hard to believe, but our first Wiley Band concert of the year is in less than one month, on Thursday, October 13th at 7pm in the Wiley Media Center! For those of us who have never experienced a band concert before, it may be tough to know how to help our children get prepared. Even Continuing Band families may feel a little rusty on concert prep, since we haven’t had a concert since May! So, here are some easy tips to help ensure that all our band students and families have a great Fall Concert experience.

1. Put it on your calendar! – Right now, please grab your calendar and make a note of your child’s show. Wiley Band performances are not optional events; rather, they are vital to your child’s musical education. When you make a commitment to attend your child’s performances, you not only model responsibility for your child, but you also show them that you care!

2. Get your concert clothes ready. – In the Wiley Band, our students wear a standard outfit when performing. Our young ladies wear a white blouse, black pants or long skirt, and black shoes, and our young gentlemen wear a white button-down shirt, black slacks, and black shoes. To reduce the amount of pre-concert stress, purchase your child’s concert clothes NOW! If your child is in Continuing Band, remember that he or she may have grown since our last concert. Have your child try on her outfit early, so that you know long before the concert if your child needs any replacement clothes.

3. Encourage daily practice. – Nothing blasts away stage fright like preparedness. If your child practices 15 minutes per day, 5 days per week, he or she will be completely prepared to succeed on the concert, and will be more likely to have a fun and memorable experience.