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For the Parents and Boosters of the Fort Atkinson Orchestras     February 2004

FOR AN ENSEMBLE:
Hi, my name is                                                                               .
Hi, my name is                                                                               .
etc., etc., for however many of you there are.
We are from Fort Atkinson Middle School/High School.
We are going to perform (title)                                           by (composer)                                        .
An interesting aspect of this piece is:                                                                                                    .

            

High School & 8th Grade Orchestras' Field Trip to the Madison Symphony
( http://www.fortschools.org/hswebs/OrchestraBoosters/FieldTrip.htm )
Tuesday, March 30, 2004 - at the Oscar Mayer Theater in the Madison Civic Center.
     Conductor, John DeMain, and the Madison Symphony Orchestra will play various symphonies. Two high School students, as part of the High School Concerto Competition, will guest-solo with the symphony. The performance is at 10 am. Students will need to bring money to eat lunch on State Street. Contact Mrs. Nielsen if you would be interested in chaperoning: 563-7811 ext. 1122 or nielsenp@mail.fortschools.org Field Trip permission slips will be handed out after District Solo & Ensemble.

What to do if your string breaks
( http://www.fortschools.org/hswebs/OrchestraBoosters/Links.htm )
     Occasionally a string will break - often with no warning. Strings do wear out and get old. If a student's string does break, they are responsible for getting a replacement string.
     Unfortunately in these days of tight school budgets, there is not the money to stock enough strings to supply all seven orchestras, or even one of them. The easiest thing to do is to call your local music store, or e-mail them, and request the string you need. The store's representative, who generally visits the Fort Schools at least once a week, can deliver it to Mrs. Nielsen. They will give you the cost of the string so you can write them a check to be delivered to their store representative . Strings can also be ordered from mail order suppliers such as Shar. Or a road trip to the music store is always interesting. Mrs. Nielsen is always glad to put the new string on for a student.

Practice, Practice, Practice
     It is most important to play every day, even if only for five minutes, than to skip a day entirely. Set goals.
They help students develop a healthy, daily practice routine. Also, please help them remember to take their instruments and music to school on lesson days.

Geranium Sale
     The days are getting longer, the December snow has finally left us and signs of Spring abound.
But the surest sign of Spring is the arrival of the Orchestra Boosters' Annual Geranium Sale Fund-raiser.
  
      This fund-raiser provides money to be used for school concert expenses, music-oriented field trips, partial scholarships for summer music camps, and youth orchestra tuition.  As in the past, we are selling and delivering coupons which will be redeemed for the actual flowers when it is time to plant.
     Orders will be taken from Thursday, April 1, 2004 until Wednesday, April 21, 2004 by Orchestra members.
On Wednesday, April 21, Orders and money (checks or money orders only, payable to Orchestra Boosters - NO CASH) will be turned in and coupons received.
     Geranium Coupons may be redeemed In May and June for the 4-inch pot transplants from: Blodgett Garden Center 1222 Janesville Ave., Fort Atkinson, WI
     Order Forms and further information will be sent home at the end of March and will be available at the Dessert Concert.

Summer Music Camps
( http://www.fortschools.org/hswebs/OrchestraBoosters/Camps.htm )
     Deadlines for Summer Music Camps will be coming up soon.
     These are a wonderful opportunity for grades 6-12.

Scholarships
( http://www.fortschools.org/hswebs/OrchestraBoosters/scholarships.htm )
     Forms may be obtained from Mrs. Nielsen or found on the web site.  
     These forms are to be turned in when you turn in your Geranium Money on April 21, 2004

Web Site
     As you may have noticed this newsletter is riddled with web links. The Orchestra web site was the first of the music booster sites to be created. This was done "In self defense". As parents we try to keep on top of our children's activities - to get them where they need to be at the correct time with the correct materials and dress.
      To do this we need to keep informed. Many times notes/forms from teachers do not make it out of the back pack or desk into the hands of parents. To help over come this, the web site was developed to contain all of the information and forms a parent would need to keep on top of Orchestra happenings. Please visit it regularly.   www.fortschools.org  Click on the link (lower right menu): Music Boosters; then click on Orchestra Boosters.

      " . . . No education is complete without music." National Commission On Music Education