Newsletter 1.11.08

1) Congratulations to All City auditioners
2) Friends of Music at West, March 3 - Save the Date!
3) Teen Strings magazine
4) Young Musicians Mentoring Program
5) Finals, including Advanced Symphony Orchestra
6) Violin for sale

1) Congratulations to all who auditioned for this year's All City Orchestra. The final list will be officially announced early next week - West had a large number of auditioners and a high percentage of accepted players! More information about the concert will be announced in later newsletters.

2) Thanks to all who came out to listen to Superintendent Sandi Husk at the last Friends of Music meeting at McKay. In two months, the Friends of Music meeting will be at West. Members of our orchestra will perform at the beginning of the meeting - Ed John will be in attendance. Please save the date, Monday, March 3, 6:30-8:00pm, and come see what this very important advocacy group is all about.

3) The Music Booster group has paid for a subscription to Teen Strings magazine - students have all been invited to take an issue of Teen Strings (available in the orchestra room). We will get 50 copies 4 timesa year of this great, cutting edge, string-centric magazine. To see the website of the parent magazine, Strings Magazine, navigate to: www.stringsmagazine.com

4) In February we will launch the Young Musicians Mentoring Program. Students at all the West area elementaries and Walker middle school have contacted their orchestra director to request a mentor from the high school to work with them. High school students who sign up to be part of this program will be matched to a younger orchestra student and will be required to give them 4 coaching/lesson sessions. At the end of the 4th session, high school students will receive $20 from their student (not a large sum, but enough to honor their time). All orchestra students at West are welcome to sign up with Ms. Silberman to have a young student assigned to them. More information about the program will be available in the next week or two. Please contact Ms. Silberman if you want more information.

5) All students are expected to attend their regularly scheduled music class (at the appointed time as per the West finals schedule) for their final. All students are playing in a small group ensemble - in a duo,trio, or quartet - so their presence is crucial and mandatory. If any student is very sick or there is an extenuating circumstance causing a student to have to miss school, please contact Ms. Silberman so thatsubstitute arrangements can be made. A grade can not be assigned to students until the final has been completed. Since Advanced Symphony is a credit class, we have to have a final. The Advanced Symphony final time is an extension of the Thursday final schedule - our final time is 11:15 - 12:45 (after the 8th period final) on Thursday the 24th. Again, attendance at this final is considered mandatory. Any excuse must be cleared with Ms. Silberman well in advance of this final.

6) A Salem resident, Dave Davis, has sent information about a violin (bow and case) he has for sale. It was apparently his mother's instrument that she played as a child. It has been valued at $3,500 but he is willing to sell it to a high school student for $1,750 (and maybe even less if there's cause). The instrument is in good condition. For his contact information (and for help with considering this instrument) please contact Ms. Silberman.

Happy studying and practicing...