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Rookie Basics |
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8045 Highway 51 South Brighton, TN 38011 Band Office: 837-5820
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Rookie Basics Welcome! The BHS Band Boosters welcome all new and returning band members and their families to the 2009-2010 year with the BHS Band. We are looking forward to an exciting marching season and another wonderful year for the Brighton High School Band. There are many opportunities that are offered through the band program here at BHS. These include the marching band program, Symphonic Band, our Jazz Band and more. We believe that music will enhance your child's education as well as his/her success throughout life. The BHS Band Booster program is here to support and encourage all band members throughout their many musical endeavors. We look forward to your active participation in our booster program as we support the band programs at Brighton High School. The following information will introduce you to "Rookie Basics." We hope this will help explain some of the craziness that goes on in the fall. Please do not hesitate to ask a veteran parent any question you may have. They will do their best to answer or point you in the right direction. Again, please do not hesitate to ask any question that you may have. Thank you in advance for your support and assistance for a fabulous year! Sincerely,
PS: If any veteran parents remember something that we can pass along, please let us know!
A survival guide for your first year in the BHS Band Program - useful for veteran parents too...The following web page is the product of former "new band parents" who spent a good bit of time in our "freshman" year in various stages of confusion. In the many hours we spent watching practices, picking up our kids, and going to competitions we have all felt confused, lost and totally bewildered at one time or another. We hope this document will help ease you through the transition from "freshman" band parent to "veteran" band parent. (Many thanks to all those parents who came before us; and to the other bands who have produced similar information!) For most of us (parents and students alike), the transition from middle school band programs to high school band programs is huge, especially in marching band. The increased expectations come with greater rewards, in terms of your student's accomplishments and the pride you will have in watching his/her accomplishments. This document is our attempt to share with you some of the finer points of making the most of your "freshman" year as a band parent. The Brighton High School Band is supported by the BHS Band Booster program. The Boosters consist solely of volunteer parents in order to help provide your students with an enjoyable and rewarding band experience. Please join us in meeting this challenge by volunteering your time and talents. Your student will reap the benefits. We welcome all of our new parents and look forward to getting to know you and your students!
Marching Fundamentals and Performance Training-a.k.a. BAND CAMP Marching fundamentals and performance training is conducted in July during the three weeks prior to the start of school. The staff and students work very hard for about eight hours a day, five days a week. During training, they learn the music and marching routine for their fall show. Generally, the first week consists of 3 half-full days for “new” wind players to learn marching fundamentals. Guard & Percussion usually have scheduled times during this week to begin learning their fall show as well. Full band camp is for 2 weeks from 8-5, Monday-Friday. The schedules can also be found on the web site, www.brightonband.com. The kids get quite a workout. Be prepared to hear about running, calisthenics, and plenty of sweating. It's an experience the kids "love to hate," and will talk about for years to come. Band camp culminates with Meet-the-Band Night, a performance for the band families. It's great fun to come out and see how far the kids have come in just three weeks. We usually feed the band kids a hamburger dinner after their performance, and sell plates to friends and families. Another major benefit of band camp is that when your freshman student arrives for the first day of high school, he or she will already be a part of a well respected group and will have a whole new group of friends (across all grades) to help with the transition into high school. Marching Band Season The Marching Band season starts with band camp. Practice continues after school during the week, usually Tuesdays and Thursdays. Please check with your child and/or the website for schedule changes. The booster program also offers an email to alert you when Mr. Findley sends a newsletter home, when a fundraiser starts, or when major changes occur on the web site. (See the Booster Page.) Football Games The band performs their show at half-time of all varsity football games (Friday evenings), as well as playing in the stands during the game. The band has a roped off section in the stands and many of the band parents sit together near the band -- a great opportunity to get to know other parents. Competitions The marching band competes against other high school bands on many Saturdays in the fall. Most of the competitions are “local” (within an hour or so of Brighton) and one or two are out of town. It is a great opportunity to watch all the bands compete and cheer our kids on. So, please come on out and support our BHS Band students! Every competition will be listed on the Calendar of Events page on the web site. Your student will be told the call time for each event and an approximate time for our return. We leave from the school and travel to competitions in a convoy. The band buses & support vehicles park separate from general parking. Be aware that some competition sites charge for parking, and there is usually a general admission fee of up to $10 per person. Don't forget to send a few dollars with your band student so they can buy food and drinks from the competition concessions. Please read Marching Competition Etiquette. Uniforms Your student will be issued a marching band uniform consisting of a jacket (with baldric), pants, gauntlets, hat, and gloves. You will need to provide black socks and purchase MTX marching shoes (shoes are ordered during band camp for around $35). The shoes & gloves belong to the student, so keep track of them. There is a $5 charge for gloves that need to be replaced. The uniform guidelines are on the web site, but replacement of a complete uniform is around $350. Color Guard members are issued a separate uniform. There may be other pieces that individual color guard members are required to purchase as part of their uniform. The color guard instructor will advise the color guard member of any additional items that are needed. Weather Bands do perform (and rehearse) in the sun, wind, and rain. The experienced parents go to the competitions prepared to sit through unpleasant weather and cheer for all the bands. Rain gear and ponchos are better than umbrellas (which tend to block the view of the shows and cause rivers of rain to run on the laps of people behind you). If it rains during a competition, the bands may need to march in the mud. If the field conditions are poor, the band may do a standstill performance on the track. Most bands want to avoid standstills because no points are given for marching in a standstill performance; the higher the points the better the score. (The band directors may choose not to attend a performance if there is a high probability for rain.)
HELP NEEDED! WE ARE ALL VOLUNTEERS! During marching season, the band needs many hands behind the scenes to make the show successful. As your student enters high school, this is one of the few opportunities you may have to stay involved with their activities. They realize very quickly that Marching Band doesn't happen without a lot of parental support. The Band Boosters will be looking for parents to help with the following PLUS MORE: Chaperones These are the parents that stay with the band for all performances and trips, ensuring each band member's safety and well being. Our chaperones also help the band students get prepared for competitions by passing out uniforms and hats, adding plumes, etc., and checking in the uniforms when done. Chaperones help prepare and organize food when we feed the band students at competitions. Pit Crew and Equipment These are the work horses of our show every year. They assist in getting equipment on and off the field as well as loading and unloading the equipment from trailers and trucks. Our chaperones also help with the pit as needed. Uniforms We need about 12 - 15 volunteers to wash the uniforms as needed. *No special talents or equipment are required, and we provide the laundry detergent. Many hands make short work, the more volunteers we have, the fewer uniforms each volunteer will be laundering. From time to time other basic assistance may be needed. Let the Uniform Mom know if you are able to help. Concession Stand The Concession Stand at all football games is one of our best money-makers. We work with the Football Boosters and split the profits evenly. We must have 6 people for every Home Varsity game. Several years ago the band boosters realized a need for more food & snack choices. We now have our concession trailer set up for varsity games as well. We do not sell anything that directly competes with the main concession stand, and give the Football Boosters 25% of our profits (including funnel cakes). We need about 4 or 5 people for the trailer. In addition, we cook funnel cakes from a tent next to the trailer. Funnel cakes are a big seller, and we need about 4 people for this as well. As you can see, added up we need about 15 people to run concessions for each Varsity game. We also provide workers for the other football games for Brighton High School as well, usually 2 people per event. We ask every family to work at least 1 game, or donate $25 to the band to make sure we can pay workers if necessary. Fundraisers We will have several fundraisers during the 2009-2010 school year. Jennifer Wilbanks is our Vice President of Fundraising, and she will be looking for someone to chair these fundraisers. Remember, we always need volunteers when it is time to collect money and distribute items. Contact Jennifer if you are able to help. Kroger Cards & GoodSearch are "no cost" ways to help earn the band money. Fundraiser Page
The Cost of Marching Band There is a band fee required for each student participating in the band program. Fees are laid out in the BHS Band Handbook. If there is an issue with paying the band fee, please contact Mr. Findley. We don't want to exclude any student. Band fees are used to help offset the expenses of running the band program here at BHS, including band camp, uniforms, travel, instructors, food & drinks, etc. Check the band handbook for more information. Fundraisers In years past, we had Fair Share fundraisers as part of our band fees. The 2009-2010 School year will see changes in the band fundraising programs. "Fair Share" fundraisers are now eliminated. We will still encourage everyone to participate in the fundraisers we have, including Kroger cards, and any fundraising opportunities for the Spring Trip. (This will give your student the opportunity to earn all or part of their trip costs.) Fundraising information is laid out in the band handbook.
Helpful hints to save you time, gas & grief Mr. Findley, the instructors, and the Boosters want this to be a positive experience for all the students and their families. Here are some helpful hints (learned from our own and many other band parents' experiences):
**Keep at least one (1) extra pair of black socks in the car during marching season. That way you won't have to make an extra trip to Wal-Mart before a performance. Don't hesitate to ask any of the veteran band parents or Booster Board members. We've all been there and are happy to help. We hope this has been helpful. Anytime you feel lost, tap a "vet" parent on the shoulder and ask for help. Our main goal is for every band member to enjoy their Brighton Band experience!
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