2018 Spring Tour: Virtual Trip Meeting and Required Documents

Hello there, Galveston trip people!

We normally have a face-to-face trip meeting that lasts about an hour, but I decided to try something new this year: an online "virtual" trip meeting. I'm hopeful that it will save us all time and allow us to get all of the information at the pace that we can manage. Please keep in mind that it must be completed prior to Friday, get on it early. Here is the link to the online trip meeting: https://edpuzzle.com/assignments/5a9c9127e10bbf40d1bcb523/watch

You will need to create a free account (or you may login with an existing Google account). Doing so will allow you to save your progress (in case you can't watch the video in one sitting) and will allow me to make sure that everyone has attended the meeting. The video must be viewed completely by 11:59 PM on Thursday evening. If you do not complete this, you will not be allowed to go on the trip. Get started on this early and get it knocked out. The video is about 30 minutes and it will save your progress if you get interrupted. STUDENTS: Make sure you have at least one parent or guardian watch this with you.

Second, all of the documents referenced in the video will be printed and distributed in classes on Monday; however, you may view and print them yourself via Dropbox. Here's that link: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/a4r0j5faw6bxt74/AAAfGjKoU-5CvcowhGwNYbMZa?dl=0

Everything else should be covered in the video and the documents linked in this video. DO NOT WAIT until the last minute on this stuff. We will leave you home if you don't meet these deadlines:

• Trip meeting COMPLETED prior to 11:59 PM on Thursday.
• All trip documents RETURNED by class time on Friday.

Thanks for your help with this. Don't hesitate to email me if you have questions on any of this...just don't wait until the last minute. We're looking forward to a great trip!

2018 Summer Choral Programs

We highly encourage your student to attend an All-State Choir Camp. These camps greatly improve their competitiveness and preparation toward the All-Region & All-State Choir audition process. They will have a blast and be months ahead of the competition. The workshops that we host locally are NOT a substitute for the time and intensive training that happens at one of these camps. If your student is serious about competing in the all-state choir auditions next year, then they cannot afford not to go to one of these camps.

The camps for this summer (which will be over next year's music) are already taking registrations. We have taken the time to compile a list of the camps that we are aware of, so that you can make an informed decision as to which camp best suits your family's summer schedule and budget. The spreadsheet containing all of the pertinent information can be found via this link.

Please be aware that even though most camps have a registration deadline the first or second week in June (most by 6/15), some of the camps are full by mid-February. Baylor University, for example, is usually full within the first few HOURS of registration. So, find a camp that sounds good and register ASAP.

Keep in mind that our booster club offers a couple of scholarships each year to students who excel in the all-state process and demonstrate dedication to advancing their skills. You will need to go ahead and register and put down the deposit on your own.

2018 Central's Got Talent Audition Results

We want to congratulate everyone for auditioning. There were so many talented performers! The judging panel deliberated for hours in making their decision.

Congratulations to the following acts for making it into the talent show (in no particular order):

• Forever Gayle (solo) 
• Paige Harris (solo with guitar) 
• Drew Eisenbach (solo) 
• Autumn Pineda (solo)
• Nick Martinez (dancing)
• Aubrey Mollock (solo)
• Josh Vetter, Everett Bailey, Alec Richey (band)
• EC Holguin (electronic music)
• Brianne Vargas (dancing)
• Alec Richey & Analisa Rios (duet)
• Makayla Haire (solo)
• Alfredo Antu (comedy)
• Jael McCullough (solo with piano)
• Zoe Flores (solo)
• Bryant Cobb (solo)
• CJ Banda (solo)

The following individuals are on stand-by (in case an act folds or is found ineligible):

• Gaige Martin (dancing)
• Chrystian Fleming (solo with ukulele) 

Everyone will need to confirm their acceptance in the talent show by signing up for a tech rehearsal time slot. This needs to be done by 1pm Friday, January 19. Also, if you are using a recorded track, Mr. Gilmore needs an MP3 copy of it by 1pm on Friday, January 19.

"Merry and Bright" GAO Catalog Fundraiser

We'll be kicking off our next fundraiser in classes on Friday, November 3. There are many wonderful holiday items in the catalog. Please see the flyer (linked below) for more information about our kick-off event on Friday.

Be Prepared

Students: please bring a list of names and phone numbers to class on Friday of friends and family members who you will want to ask for help and are likely to support you in this fundraiser. You may need to ask your parents for help on this. Aunts, uncles, grandparents, family friends, neighbors, church friends, parents' co-workers, are all great places to start. As in everything, the effort you put into this fundraiser will determine what you get out of it.

Attachments

1. Fundraiser Flyer
2. "Merry and Bright" Catalog PREVIEW

2017 Military Salute Show News #1

One of our BIG events and fundraisers is the Annual Military Salute. It's coming up on November 7. If you have not been, you will LOVE this event. It is going to be awesome but we need your help!

Each choir performs patriotic/inspirational musical selections, we feature several talented student soloists and small groups, the combined choirs perform a really cool multimedia presentation with the songs from each branch of the armed forces, we close with a multimedia presentation of God Bless the U.S.A. Additionally, we have a Wall of Honor, decorated with history-rich remembrances of family members from generations past and present who have served that we enjoy after the concert with complimentary coffee, tea, and desserts. All of this is a big "thank you" to our men and women in the armed forces and teaches our students to respect and appreciate those who serve. It is one of our favorite events each year. The concert will be at 7pm at First Presbyterian Church, San Angelo. We expect the concert to run about 70 minutes. As always, we will have dress rehearsals in the church after school for all groups. Please have your child reserve that entire afternoon for this event. They will also be fed before they perform.

Parent Meeting

Our booster club is having a general membership meeting on Monday, October 30, at 5:30pm in the CHS Choir Hall. Students will already be here enjoying the Halloween Social, so once that gets started the adults can step into the other room for a brief meeting. There are so many areas where your help is needed: decorations: food service, ushering, parking lot attendants, student supervision. Please come to this meeting to learn more about how the event works and to sign-up for a spot to help. No one will have to miss seing their child perform! Please sign-up for an area to help out here, especially if you are unable to attend the meeting on Monday: https://goo.gl/forms/guptR3jBsyhfvA2k2

Tickets

This is a ticketed event. Everyone attending will need a ticket or will be free with military ID. Students will be sent home with tickets later this week. They are receiving a very small initial number of tickets to ensure that we don't oversell the sanctuary at First Presbyterian. The white tickets are $5 General Admission tickets. The yellow tickets are an invitation to an active duty/reserve/veteran service member to attend for free. The yellow ticket is not valid on its own - it's just to help us have a headcount. For them to gain free admission, we ask that they come in their uniform and/or show their military ID. This is ONLY for people in the services. Family members, young children, etc., will still need to purchase a normal, white ticket.

This first round of ticket sales will be due on or before Wednesday, Nov. 1. We need all money and/or unsold tickets returned in the same envelope they were issued. Once those are returned, we will be able to distribute more tickets on Thursday.

These tickets serve as a way for students to raise money for their trips and future choir expenses. The only way students will receive fundraising credit is by selling tickets in advance. Any tickets sold at the door will go into the general fund.

Submit Names of Deployed Family Members 

One of our traditions at this concert is that we honor those family members currently deployed. We read their names aloud and place a yellow flower on the stage in their honor and in the prayer that they come home safely. For us to have enough flowers donated, we need to collect all names by Monday, October 30. Submit a name here: https://goo.gl/forms/bw7nXRaaZP6D7qsm2

Signup for Wall of Honor Space 

Another tradition is our Wall of Honor. We decorate a hallway with posters, uniforms, pictures, helmets, and other memorabilia of everyone's family members who are or have served in the military. We've had stuff from the Civil War, World War I, etc. It is really neat and a special way to honor the memory of those who have given so much for our peace, security, and freedom.

This year, we plan to decorate the hallway of the reception area where we will gather to enjoy desserts, coffee, and tea after the concert. The space is limited and we want to make sure that we leave a spot for your items. Please visit the following link to signup for a space: https://goo.gl/forms/p3HeRwZUfZ7Cmm6Y2

Thank You

Look for more information to be posted on the website and emailed home soon.

Real Men Sing Event Details

We have the rare opportunity to participate in a FREE regional workshop and concert that's designed to encourage and promote life-long singing for guys. The students will spend the day learning music and attending workshops with STORM FRONT (2014 International Barbershop Harmony Society Champion Quartet) along with other male singers from around our part of the state.

Details

Who: All men in the CHS Choir Program
When: Leave CHS at 7am, concert is at 4pm, return around 8:30pm
Where: Wagner Noel Performing Arts Center in Midland
Cost: FREE

Students will need to wear comfortable school-appropriate clothing for the rehearsals and workshops. The performance at 4pm will be in tuxedos. Students should be bringing their tuxes back to school this week, so they will only need to remember to bring black shoes and socks on the day of the event.

This event has been listed on the paper calendar and the web calendar since the beginning of school. If you have a school-releated conflict, please fill out a conflict form immediately.

Parent Help

Also, we are still in need of at least one parent chaperone to come with us. Please email me if you are interested and available. Thank you.

2017-2018 High School Region Choir Audition Results

Members of the Central High School Choir who competed in the HS Region Choir Auditions.This past week, over 50 students from Central High School traveled to Permian High School in Odessa, Texas, to compete in the TMEA Region 6 High School Region Choir Auditions. The auditions were the culmination of months of hard work and intense preparation by the students and directors involved in the competition. Central High School had a very successful day with 22 students earning a spot in one of the two high school region honor choirs, and 14 of those students advancing to the next round of competition in November. With this recent success, the Central High School Choir Department has set a new local record for number of students auditioning, number of students placing in a region choir, and number of students advancing to future competition.

Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA)The Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) sponsors the Texas All-State audition process to promote students' dedication to their musical knowledge and skill and to encourage TMEA member directors to support their students in this development.

All-State is the highest honor a Texas music student can receive. Over 1,700 students are selected through a process that begins with over 64,000 students from around the state vying for this honor to perform in one of 15 ensembles (bands, orchestras, and choirs). This competitive process begins throughout the state in auditions hosted by 33 TMEA Regions. Individual musicians perform selected music for a panel of judges who rank each instrument or voice part. From this ranking, a select group of musicians advance from their region to compete against musicians from other regions in seven TMEA Area competitions. The highest-ranking musicians judged at the TMEA Area competitions qualify to perform in a TMEA All-State music group. These All-State students participate in three days of rehearsals directed by nationally recognized conductors during the annual TMEA Clinic and Convention. Their performances before thousands of attendees bring this extraordinary event to a close.

The All-State audition process for high school choir students leads ultimately to qualification in one of four All-State Choirs that perform at the annual TMEA Clinic/Convention: Treble Choir, Tenor-Bass Choir, Mixed Choir and a Small School Mixed Choir.

Results for San Angelo Central High School Choir

Soprano 1:

• Shaylee Caudle - Mixed Choir (13th chair, 1st alternate to Pre-Area)
• Makayla Haire - Treble Choir
• Zoe Flores - Treble Choir
• Camille Faught - Treble Choir
• Andrea Thompson - Treble Choir

Soprano 2:

• Analisa Rios - Mixed Choir (6th chair, advances to Pre-Area)
• Gloria Treviño - Treble Choir

Alto 1:

• Leighann Sweet - Mixed Choir (2nd chair, advances to Pre-Area)
• Drew Eisenbach - Mixed Choir (11th chair, advances to Pre-Area)
• Lilli Bright - Treble Choir

Alto 2:

• Taylor Powell - Mixed Choir (4th chair, advances to Pre-Area)
• Bethany Wheeler - Mixed Choir (5th chair, advances to Pre-Area)
• Christa Carroll - Mixed Choir (12th chair, advances to Pre-Area)
• Leilani Herrera - Treble Choir

Tenor 1:

• Vincent Ward - Mixed Choir (12th chair, 2nd alternate to Pre-Area)

Tenor 2:

• Kaden Wright - Mixed Choir (3rd chair, advances to Pre-Area)
• Alec Richey - Mixed Choir (11th chair, 1st alternate to Pre-Area)
• CJ Banda - Mixed Choir (12th chair, 2nd alternate to Pre-Area)
• Vinh Dinh - Mixed Choir (1st alternate)

Bass 1:

• Bryant Cobb - Mixed Choir (2nd chair, advances to Pre-Area)
• Brandon Medina - Mixed Choir (7th chair, advances to Pre-Area)

Bass 2:

• Pete Mireles - Mixed Choir (11th chair, 1st alternate to Pre-Area)

Congratulations to all of these students for their hard work. You will be able to hear the TMEA Region 6 High School Honor Choirs in concert on Saturday, November 4, at Permian High School in Odessa, Texas.

Fall Concert Wrap-Up

Thank you all for a wonderfully smooth fall concert. It was a short one, but all the groups are off to a great start. Mrs. Vaught and I both thank you for getting the students there on-time and in-uniform. In our normal fashion, it's full speed ahead toward the next big events and we have some more deadlines approaching. Please take a moment to skim this message for the areas that apply to you and your student, then read those areas that apply very closely. Thank you!

Uniform Return

We made the decision this year to have students return their uniforms after each concert. We have had major problems in the past with students losing their uniforms, getting them mixed up with other students, leaving them wadded up in their closet, trying to wash them in washers and dryers, and students moving out of the school district and not returning their uniform. It will be much easier to schedule picture days and to do run-out performances if their uniforms are here. We will take a grade on the timely return of the uniforms. The good news is, is that this is an EASY grade boost for students. We are asking that all uniforms be brought back during their class time before next Friday (Oct. 13). Please make sure to follow this procedure when returning uniforms:

• Please do not bring them before school or during 1st period. Any time after that is acceptable. Directors will be visiting middle schools over the next couple of weeks and we are likely to not be in the choir hall until the end of 1st period.
• All parts of your uniform must be together, hung-up, and with your name on it.
• Please make sure that uniforms are returned in a bag of some kind that does not wrinkle or damage the uniform. You may use a garment bag, dry cleaner's bag, trash bag, etc.
• Students will bring in their uniform, present it to a teacher who will inspect and mark the return of the uniform off a list, and then have the student hang their uniform up on the correct hanging rack.

Sponsor Card Fundraiser

We are needing to close-out our sponsor card fundraiser so that we begin on our next fundraiser as soon as possible. If you have not already turned-in the proceeds from sponsorships, the unsold cards, or the complete combination of the above, we need to receive that immediately. We're asking that those be brought back no later than Wednesday, October 11. Please remember that students are responsible for returning any unsold cards and/or paying for any lost cards.

Corpus Christi Trip - 1st Payment Past Due

The payment plan for everyone going on the trip is that $80 is due by the first of each month until the trip is paid off. Everyone's first monhtly payment of $80 is now past due. Because of the fall concert and the weekend, we are giving everyone an extension of a week. Please get this caught-up by Wednesday, October 11. After that date, students who are still behind may be moved to the waitlist or removed from the trip completely.

9th Grade Region Choir Entries

Congratulations to all who auditioned this past weekend at the high school region choir auditons. For those 9th graders who did not make the cut or those 9th graders who decided to wait and only audition for this competition, they have the option of auditioning for the 9th Grade/Middle School Region Choir. We must submit our entries this week. That is a hard deadline. The entry fee is only $10 and if they went and auditioned this past Saturday, we will waive that audition fee for them. If this is their first competition or if they did not follow-through on the auditions last week, they will be responsibe for a new $10 entry fee for this competition.

Real Men Sing!

We have a rare and unique opportunity for the young men of west Texas to practice and perform with an international championship barbershop quartet. All men in the choir program will go to Midland next Saturday (10/14) to rehearse and present a concert with other young men and adults from around this part of the state. This is a required event for all men in choir (Men's Choir and Chorale). If a student has a conflict, they need to complete a conflict form immediately. This will not automatically excuse them, but we can begin a dialog about potential alternate assignments. This event will be at no cost to the students. We will leave San Angelo at 7am and will return around 8:30 or 9pm. We will also need at least one adult chaperone to attend.

The Next Big Thing: Annual Military Salute

Our next performance as an entire department will be on Tuesday, November 7, at First Presbyterian Church. This is one of our awesome annual traditions that draws a huge crowd and salutes our military and veterans with patriotic and inspirational music. We'll be sharing more news about this with you very soon.