Windsor High School
Choral Department
Handbook
2013-2014
Mr. Michael Sellman, Choral Director
Phone: 636-464-4476
E-mail:
Web site: https://sites.google.com/site/whschoral/
Twitter: Concert Choir - @whsconcertchoir
CCT - @whscct
Freshmen Honor Choir - @whsfhc
WHS Choir Handbook – Rev. 8/8/13
Contents
Introduction 3
Why I Teach Music 4
PERFORMING GROUPS AND OPPORTUNITIES 5
Concert Choir 5
Concert Choir Treble (CCT) 5
Freshmen Honor Choir 5
Men’s Choir 5
Women’s Choir 5
All-District Choir 6
All-State Choir 6
MCDA 9-10 Honor Choir 6
MSHSAA State Large Group Contest 7
MSHSAA District Solo and Ensemble Contest 7
MSHSAA State Solo and Ensemble Contest 7
RULES AND REGULATIONS 8
Attendance 8
Tardy Policy 8
Discipline 9
Suspensions: In-School & Out-of School 9
Performances Privileges 10
Transportation 10
Fund Raising Activities 10
PERFORMANCE DRESS 11
CHOIR GRADING POLICY 12
Weekly Rehearsal Grade Sheet 13
Make-up Work and/or ISS Assignments 14
CHORAL DEPARTMENT AWARDS 16
Varsity Letter 16
Fred Waring Choral Award 16
National School Choral Award 16
ATTACHMENTS Inserts
Travel Release Form
Calendar
WHS Choir Parents’ Volunteer Survey
Bullying Incident Report Form
Dear Windsor High Choir Parents, Students, and Friends:
The school year shows outstanding promise for the Windsor High Choirs. I want to take this opportunity to welcome you to the choral program. I am anxious to make this year a success!
This handbook was designed with the belief that communication and support are keys to achieving our musical and organizational goals. It will provide you with important information about the choral program. Inside you will find guidelines for performing groups, grading and lettering policies, calendars, a directory of members and much more. Please read this handbook carefully and share it with your parents. The guidelines and rules which follow are designed to provide a quality experience for everyone and are necessary in order to have a successful year. Your support of these policies will result in a more positive experience for all involved.
The enclosed calendar is provided to help you with your planning. It is not a complete listing, but the best that can be provided to you at this point in time. As more performing opportunities arise, they will be added to the calendar. Periodic calendar updates will be given to the students. In addition, please check the choir web site for updated information. I will also monitor my school e-mail and continuously maintain the various Twitter accounts for choirs. Please contact me by e-mail or by phone whenever you have a question or concern. E-mail is the preferred method of communication.
Remember that in order for the choral department to achieve success, we must all give our best effort. Every member of the choral department is important. What is good for the group is good for the individual also. Keeping these ideas in mind will help make this an excellent year.
Please contact me if you have any questions. Many problems can be solved through effective communication. Best wishes for an outstanding school year.
Sincerely,
Mr. Michael Sellman
Director of Choirs
WHY I TEACH MUSIC
1. MUSIC IS A SCIENCE: It is exact, specific and must be 100% correct - 99% is no good. It is unalterable. It demands exact acoustics.
2. MUSIC IS MATHEMATICAL: It is rhythmically based on the sub-division of space into fractions which must be done instantaneously and not worked out on paper.
3. MUSIC IS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE: Most of the musical terms are in Italian, we sing in Latin, German, Portuguese, Czech, French, and Italian to name a few, and musical notation is certainly not English, but a highly developed kind of shorthand.
4. MUSIC IS HISTORY: Music has always reflected the environment and times of its creation.
5. MUSIC IS PHYSICAL EDUCATION: It requires fantastic coordination of fingers, hands, arms, lips, and facial muscles in addition to extraordinary control of the back, stomach and chest muscles which must respond instantly to the sounds the ear hears and the mind interprets.
6. MUSIC IS ALL OF THESE THINGS, BUT MOST OF ALL MUSIC IS ART: It allows a human being to take all of these dry, technically boring techniques and use them to communicate emotion!
That is the one thing that science can not duplicate. . . humanism, or feeling, or emotion, or call it what you will.
THAT IS WHY I TEACH MUSIC - not because I expect anyone to major in music; not because I expect anyone to perform music all their life; not so you can relax; not so you can have fun. . .
BUT. . . so you will be human; so you will recognize beauty; so you will be sensitive; so you will appreciate the intangible; so that you’ll have something to cling to; so that you will have more love, more compassion, more gentleness, more good. . . in short, more life.
Of what value is it to make a prosperous living unless you know how to live?
THAT’S WHY I TEACH MUSIC!!!
Performing Groups and Opportunities
The Windsor High Choral Department consists of several choral ensembles.
The following are course descriptions:
Concert Choir:
Concert Choir is an auditioned, mixed voice choir. This ensemble learns complex music at a rapid rate. They perform at Christmas at Windsor Castle and compete at MSHSAA State Music Contest annually. In addition to preparing Concert Choir repertoire, the women will perform with CCT and the men will perform with Men’s Choir. This choir is highly selective. Students must possess and maintain the highest character to retain eligibility.
Concert Choir Treble (CCT):
CCT is an auditioned women’s ensemble. Membership requirements are similar to those of Concert Choir, however as balance is not as much of a factor, this choir can hold a larger number of voices. This ensemble learns complex women’s music at a rapid rate. CCT competes at the MSHSAA State Music Contest annually. Like Concert Choir, students must possess and maintain outstanding character to retain eligibility for CCT.
Freshmen Honor Choir:
This is an auditioned, mixed voice ensemble reserved for only freshmen. This ensemble was created to provide an environment for the freshman who is serious about singing, yet still needs more time for vocal development. Students will sing 3 and 4 part arrangements of appropriate difficulty. This is a select ensemble. Students must possess and maintain outstanding character to retain eligibility.
Men’s Choir:
Men’s Choir will perform 3 and 4 part music. This is a choir designed to help the student navigate the male voice change and we will spend a great deal of time teaching and reinforcing proper vocal production. Men’s Choir will be joined by the men from Concert Choir at performances.
Women’s Choir:
Women’s Choir is open to any young woman who wants to improve her voice. We will cover vocal production, breath support, diction, and music literacy.
All-District Choir:
Any choir student who meets the MSHSAA eligibility requirements may elect to audition for the All-District Choir. The auditions take place in late September, and are held at Hillsboro High School. Those students auditioning will be transported to and from the audition site. Each school district is allowed a limited number of audition entries, based on the size of each high school. If the number of WHS students wishing to audition exceeds our allotted entries, a preliminary audition will occur to determine which students are allowed to audition for the choir.
At the audition, the student must perform a predetermined Italian art song with a recorded accompaniment, and sight read. The sight reading portion will consist of key signature identification, melodic sight reading, and harmonic sight reading.
If the student is selected for the choir, he/she must practice with their director weekly to show progress in learning the literature, attend the All-District rehearsal held in November, and attend the rehearsal/performance day for All-District Choir in November.
All-State Choir:
The top 20 junior and senior All-District Choir members for each voice part are eligible to audition for All-State Choir. Auditions will take place the night of the All-District rehearsal in November. Students must perform a predetermined piece of choral music with a recording of the other voice parts. For example, a tenor would perform with a recording of the soprano, alto, and bass parts. There is no sight reading component for this audition.
If the student is selected for All-State Choir, he/she will attend 2 rehearsals over winter break, as well as the MMEA Conference held annually at Tan-Tar-A Resort in Osage Beach. The conference spans 4 days and 3 nights, and is held in late January.
MCDA 9-10 Honor Choir:
This is a state-wide honor choir, reserved for freshmen and sophomores. To audition, the student must perform an art song, the top and bottom pitches of their range, and perform “My Country ‘Tis of Thee” a cappella. A nice thing about this audition is that it is not live. Auditions are to be recorded and submitted electronically. This may reduce the stress of auditioning for some students.
If the student is selected for the choir, he/she will perform at the MCDA Conference in Jefferson City, in late July. The student must also practice with the director on a regular basis to ensure that the music is being learned to the appropriate degree.
MSHSAA State Contest – Large Group:
This is a state sanctioned event held in late March or early April. Concert Choir and CCT compete annually at this event. Students will be transported to and from the event. It is held at Jefferson College’s Hillsboro campus, in the fine arts theatre. Parents are more than welcome to attend and admission is free. Please check with your student for our performance time if you plan on attending.
Our performance is adjudicated on a scale of I-V, with I being the best possible rating. We have enjoyed establishing a tradition of earning I ratings at this event and look to add to that tradition this year!
MSHSAA District Solo and Ensemble Contest:
Students may elect to prepare a vocal solo or small ensemble entry for this event. This is a time consuming endeavor for the student, the accompanist, and the director. Students are asked to be respectful of this by taking the commitment very seriously. The contest is held at Jefferson College’s Hillsboro campus, in March.
Soloists and ensembles must perform 2 pieces in front of a judge. They will be rated on a scale of I-V. Entrants are expected to rehearse weekly with the director and accompanist. Missed rehearsals may result in the cancelation of that student’s event.
MSHSAA State Solo and Ensemble Contest:
Students that earn a I rating at District Contest, go on to compete at the state level. State Contest is held in May on the campus of University of Missouri Columbia. The requirements are the same as with District Contest, however, the judging is far more rigorous!
Rules and Regulations
Attendance:
Please see your student handbook for the WHS attendance policy.
The classroom policy for absences is simple. If the absence is excused, the missed rehearsal can be made-up for. If the absence is unexcused, it cannot. For each missed rehearsal stemming from an excused absence, the student will be allowed to document 25 minutes of additional practice to make-up the rehearsal. This form must be signed by a parent/guardian. If this rehearsal occurs in the choir room, and is supervised, no documentation is required.
In the event that a student is absent for a performance or Christmas at Windsor Castle rehearsal, the make-up policy is similar. If the student’s absence is excused, the performance/rehearsal can be made-up. If the student’s absence is unexcused, it cannot.
Excused absences must be approved/verified by the director. Generally, the only excused absence for a performance is illness or bereavement. I understand the fact that life happens during the school year. However, a director’s over-acceptance of absence can quickly turn into the students’ lack of commitment. Please bring any possible conflicts to me as soon as possible so that we can work to resolve them in a way that benefits everyone.
Tardy Policy:
Please see your student handbook for the WHS tardy policy.
In the classroom, 2 tardies will be the equivalent to 1 excused absence. The make-up process is the same. This also applies to after school performances and rehearsals.
Discipline Policy
MEMBERS OF THE WINDSOR HIGH SCHOOL CHORAL PROGRAM are to set a positive example. When you are a choir member your every action reflects on our program. As a member of the choir, you are afforded opportunities that other students do not get. As a result, your level of citizenship and quality of character must reflect the fact that you are able to handle that responsibility.
All rules governing the behavior of individuals at Windsor High School will be in effect at all choir rehearsals and performances. Any student found in violation of any of the rules and regulations outlined in the Windsor High School Student Handbook will be referred for disciplinary action as so stated.
Respect for other students, parents, faculty members, staff, and administrators, is expected of all students, at all times. In addition, students are expected to respect and care for the school facility and school property. YOU represent Windsor High School. You are to act accordingly. If you have questions about how to act or what to do, ASK!