JHS Bands' Trip to Seattle in April

The Space Needle, Pike's Market, a long road trip in a bus with fifty other kids: all of this and more awaits Jefferson High School's Concert and Jazz Bands this April when they travel to Seattle to perform in the Heritage Festival. However, performing is not all that they will be doing. Over the course of four days and three nights, they will get to experience Seattle and bond as a band, creating memories that they will keep for life. 

Not only are Jefferson's bands, under the direction of Heather Clark, going to Seattle, but the Sweet Home High School Symphonic Choir, led by Mr. Clark, will be accompanying them as well.

This past year, the bands have been working at a concessions stand at Oregon State University's home football games to raise money for their trip. While the fundraiser has been quite successful (students have raised $5,571 total towards their trip), the bands are not finished fundraising yet.

This Valentine's Day, Saturday, February 14th at 7:00 PM, the Jefferson Concert and Jazz Bands will be hosting a Valentine's Cabaret at Jefferson High School. Cheesecake and sparkling cider will be served as people listen to four different musical groups, including the Jefferson bands, Outspoken (OSU's premier male a capella group), and the Albany Swing Band. There will also be time for dancing.

Reservations will be taken up until Tuesday, February 10th. $10 reserves you a seat along with cheesecake and sparkling cider. $5 will get you in the door to enjoy the music and dancing.

To make sure that we provide enough cheesecake, we must have you reserve your seats in advance. To reserve a seat--or even an entire table--contact Heather Clark at (541)327-3337 ext. 232 or heather.clark@jefferson.k12.or.us. Also, see www.jeffersonbands.blogspot.com for more information.

Thank you for your support of the Jefferson High School bands!

(Article to be published in the Jefferson Review newspaper on February 5th, written by Amelia Kaspari, Band President.)

JHS Pep Band

Xochitl at the drums at Saturday night's basketball games.

The band has one more pep band appearance: Tuesday, February 10th. Go Lions!

7th/8th Grade Band Unit: 1/25-1/30

This week's unit is articulations. The articulations we are focusing on are accents (>), staccatos (.),  marcatos (^) and slurs. Accents are meant for moderately sharp, percussive attacks that can be used at any dynamic level. A staccato causes a note to be short and separated from the following note. Marcatos are generally meant for very percussive attacks at loud dynamic levels. Slurs are arcs that signify that the only the first note of the slur should be tongued. 

JHS Pep Band Polo Shirts

7th/8th Grade Band Unit: 1/19-1/23

This week's units are note names and accidentals.

There are 7 letters of the musical alphabet: A, B, C, D, E, F and G. These letters repeat themselves forwards (if going up) or backwards (if going down), going from space to line to space to line, etc. In treble clef, A is in the second space. In bass clef, A is in the bottom space.

Accidentals alter a note. Sharps (#), flats (b) and naturals are all accidentals. Sharps raise the note. Flats lower the note. Naturals take away sharps or flats on a note.

Playing Tests Tuesday 1/19

JHS Concert Band: Sight-Reading Playing Test in Cut Time

7th/8th Grade Band: 144 A (in Standard of Excellence Book) 

             or 69 (in Essential Elements Book)

6th Grade Beginning Band: 28 (in Essential Elements Book)

JHS CB Unit: 1/12-1/16

This week's unit is the Cut-Time Time Signature (also known as 2/2), and the note and rest values within that time signature. When there is a two in the bottom of a time signature, it means that the half note gets the beat. When the half note gets the beat, every note and rest become half as long as in 4/4 time--and therefore become twice as fast. 

7th/8th Grade Band Unit: 1/12-1/16

This week's unit is crescendos and decrescendos. These are musical markings that indicate a gradual increase or decrease in volume. Playing crescendos and decrescendos create a lot of interest in a piece, but can be difficult to do effectively.

JHS CB Unit: 1/5-1/9

This week's unit is 2/4, 3/4, 4/4, and 5/4 time signatures, and the notes and rests within those time signatures. Time signatures are symbols made up of two numbers that specify how many beats are in a measure (by the top number) and what note value constitutes one beat (by the bottom number). When there is a 4 in the bottom of a time signature, it means that the quarter note is equal to one beat.

7th/8th Gr. Band Unit: 1/5-1/9

This week's unit is dynamics. Dynamics refers to the volume at which a section of a piece, or even a single note should be played. In music we see the following notations: pp (pianissimo), p (piano), mp (mezzo piano), mf (mezzo forte), f (forte), and ff (fortissimo). These are dynamic markings, listed from softest to loudest. In an ensemble setting, one person must compare their volume to the volume of those around them to ensure that they are playing the correct dynamic. It is a skill that requires a lot of practice and a lot of listening.

Beginning Band Unit: 1/5-1/9

This week's unit is rhythm. Rhythm is made up of sounds (notes) and silences (rests). These sounds and silences are put together to form patterns of sound, which are repeated to create rhythms. It is important to learn the written language of rhythm in order to become an independent musician.

JHS CB and JB Winter Concert Repertoire

Valentine's night, we'll be putting on concert/desert/dance as a fundraiser for the Concert and Jazz Bands' trip to Seattle, WA in April. So, in keeping with the Valentine's theme, the music we'll be playing is based on love--although many of the pieces are upbeat and even dramatic. The Concert Band will be performing "Heartbeat Five" by Gary P. Gilroy, "Annabel Lee" by Douglas E. Wagner (based off of the Edgar Allen Poe poem of the same name about two lovers), and "Black Granite III" by James L. Hosay (a piece dedicated with love "To the men and women whose names are forever engraved in the Vietnam Memorial"). The Jazz Band will be performing "This Can't Be Love," arranged by Lisa DeSpain (from the Broadway musical, "The Boys of Syracuse"), "The Creole Love Call," arranged by Mark Taylor (originally by Duke Ellington), "Goodbye My Heart," by Mike Smukal, and "Hallelujah I Love Her So," arranged by Mark Taylor (originally by Ray Charles).

7th/8th Gr. Band Mid-Winter Concert Repertoire

For the 7th/8th Grade Band's next concert, I have chosen pieces that have all been inspired by a literary work. Not only will we use these pieces to develop our musicianship (through the study of dynamics, crescendos and decrescendos, note names and accidentals, articulations, key signatures, and musical terms), but we will use these pieces to explore the relationship between music and                                                        written literature.

"The Pit and the Pendulum" by Michael Story is based upon the dramatic short story of the same name by Edgar Allan Poe, written in 1842. "To a Skylark" and "I Saw Two Clouds at Morning," both by Kevin Mixon, are based on poetry. The poem, "To a Skylark" was written by Percy Bysshe Shelley, and "I Saw to Clouds at Morning" was written by John Gardiner Brainard.

Mrs. Clark is Back

On August 18th, my husband and I were blessed by the long awaited arrival of our daughter, Callie Anne. But, now Callie is four months old and I am back from my maternity leave--and looking forward to the 2009 year!

JHS Band Room

Welcome to the Jefferson High School Band/Choir Room! Here, Jazz Band and Concert Band take place.

JMS Band Room

Welcome to the Jefferson Middle School Band Room! Here, the following classes take place: 6th Grade Woodwind Beginning Band (for flutes and clarinets), 6th Grade Brass Beginning Band (for trumpets, french horns, trombones, euphoniums and tubas), and the 7th/8th Grade Band.