Bedford MS Bands

Hello all!

Our final Spring concert is upon us and I think the program is shaping up to be a wild success. Please come to support your students as they play one more time for this school year. We will be handing out some awards for both classes and one 8th grader will receive a special award at the end of the night before our final piece.

Concert time is 7:00 pm in Schafer Auditorium on Thursday. Your student must be there at 6:30 to warm up. 7th grade will go straight to the stage with their instruments and the 8th grade will warm up with Mr. Berger in the cafeteria.

Dress for the concert is as follows: students may wear jeans as long as they contain no rips or holes. Khaki pants are more than acceptable. They may wear BLACK leggings. Try to wear dress shoes or nicer shoes other than sneakers, but we understand if that isn’t an option. No T-shirts (long or short), gentlemen may wear button up dress shirts or a polo, and they must be tucked in. Ladies can wear a dress, top, or skirt. Everything of course for both guys and gals must be school appropriate.

Have a wonderful weekend everybody!

Hello parents and students,

This week we performed at the annual Fine Arts Festival at the high school. We so appreciate your cooperation with that concert being rescheduled after it was canceled on Tuesday. The event was a huge success and the combined middle school band was HUGE! Our next big concert is on May 10th and will feature the 7th grade band as well as the 8th grade band. They will each be performing four to five pieces, and awards will also be presented to individual students at the end, such as “most improved,” and “Director’s Choice.”

Since the beginning of this semester, I have seen these students begin to grow into fine young players and band members. They have shown that they can work hard, take instruction, and I have even seen increasing enthusiasm for playing and continuing band into high school. Please keep encouraging your kids to come to band every day with a willingness to learn and to become a little better or a musician, after all it is much more fun to play your instrument when you are good at it 🙂

Have a wonderful weekend!

Good Friday to you all! The 6th Graders have the Fine Arts Festival coming up next week on Tuesday, here is everything you need to know:

• Call time for the concert is 6:30. That does not mean students get there at 6:30, it means that they are siting in their seats with instruments out ready to tune and do last minute preparations.
• The concert begins at 7:00
• The students will be given a Fine Arts Festival T-shirt (which the $5 paid for), but they are expected to wear either jeans or khaki pants. If your student wants/needs and alternative pants option please have them run it by me first.
• We will play four tunes including STAR WARS, for which they will be joined by the Red Band from the high school.

If your student is going into high school next year they have the opportunity to join the Marching Band or Color Guard. Marching band has been a huge part of my life and some of my best memories are from the activity, which without I would not be doing what I am doing today. I have handed out to a few students the marching band commitment form, which they are to return to me by April 5th with a $25 installation fee. I would highly encourage your kids to join the band. If you have not seen a marching show before, it is unlike any other. For some students marching band is the reason they stay in school but it is one of the most rewarding experiences you can gain from high school.

Thank you all so much for your students. They are a pleasure to work with every day and I am looking forward to continue working with them next year. Have a happy Easter weekend!

Good afternoon! After a wonderful trip to Washington D.C. and a couple more days of spring break we are back to it in the band room preparing for our next performances, the soonest of which is the 6TH GRADE  performance at the Fine Arts Festival. This will take place on Tuesday, April 3rd at 7 pm, coming up VERY SOON! PARENTS make certain that your 6th grade student has turned in the permission slip to participate in this performance. We rehearse at the high school with the other middle school bands the morning of the concert. Also we need $5 for them to wear the T-shirt that will be given to all the 6th graders at the concert.

The 7th and 8th graders will be holding their final concert on Thursday, May 10th here at Bedford Middle School.

Finally, I have submitted grades for all of your students so they should have an overall class percentage. Most of their grade is determined based on their participation in class as well as their attendance at concerts. Other parts of their grade include playing tests and written assignments.

Have a wonderful weekend everybody!

Hello all! Our trip to Washington D.C. is coming up very soon but not before our preview concert at the middle school. The concert is at 7:00; HOWEVER, your student must be there no later than 6:30 so we can set up, tune, and do any last minute adjustments. Please make sure that you stay after the concert for the meeting regarding details of the trip. We will be departing for D.C. at 6:30 am on Monday morning and arriving back in Bedford at 10:00 am on Thursday morning. There are a lot of fun activities planned that will take us through much of our capitol to see historic sights and locations.

Even if your student is not going on the trip I would highly encourage that you and they come support their peers at the concert on Thursday.

Once more, CALL TIME for the students on Thursday is 6:30. Have a wonderful weekend!

BUTTER BRAIDS are in! Come and get them until 6:30 in the lower BMS Band room

We have now had our first after school rehearsal with all of the students going on the Washington D.C. Trip in March. Windbreaker shirts for this trip will be available the night of the concert on March 8th, they are $25. These shirts will be worn the day of the concert, which is at the Navy Memorial Building.

We have three more after school rehearsals: Wednesday (2/28), Thursday (3/1), and Tuesday (3/6). If you have any questions, please contact the band department.

Butter Braid deliveries will be here at around 1:00 on the 27th and they will be available to pick up until 6:30 that evening.

If you have a sixth grade student please have their permission slips for the Fine Arts Festival signed and in as soon as you can. The majority of the students have not yet turned this in.

Have a great weekend everybody!

Hello parents and students!

This past week the 8th grade class performed in a side-by-side concert with the BNL Wind Ensemble. They sounded great and I heard only positive things about the experience for the students. Our next big item on our semester agenda is the trip to Washington D.C.

Our preview concert for the tunes we will be playing in the capital will be on March 8th, an exact time for the concert will be sent out soon. Directly after the concert there will be a meeting and presentation by the music travel agency that is helping us go on this trip.

Butter Braid orders will be arriving on the 27th, and they will be available to pick up until 6:30 that evening.

For our 6th graders, we have the fine arts festival later in the semester. They need to bring in $5 for the T-shirt everyone receives at this concert so please get that to us as soon as you can as well as the permission form.

I have so enjoyed getting to know your students and help them along with their musical progress. Enjoy your weekend and we’ll be back on Monday!

A small correction on my part, make sure that we have the order forms for the Butter Braids as soon as possible, money collection will be due at another point. Sorry if I caused any stress from that!

Hello BMS parents and students! We have got a big week coming up and there are a few things to keep in mind going into the weekend. Have your students bring in their Butter Braid fundraiser forms as soon as possible, preferably Monday. We receive the delivery of the tasty treats on February 27th, and the students will be able to pick up their orders in the lower band room until 6:30 pm.

The Washington D.C. trip, March 12-15, is just over a month away. Final balances for the travel company will be arriving soon. The meeting for this trip will be help directly after the concert on March 8th.

The 8th grade side-by-side concert is next week on Tuesday at 7pm at the High School. Please be sure to have the students arrive at the school by 6:15 for warm up and final concert prep. Regarding the students’ instruments, there are some that have mechanical issues, making it difficult for them to play consistently all of class. Our repair from Conrad’s Music man comes every Wednesday during third period and fixes the instruments for free. He is VERY good at what he does so if there is something wrong with your student’s instrument, make sure they leave it in my office on Tuesday before he comes.

I am so happy with the significant progress all the classes have made this week in their playing abilities and their musicianship. Each day they get stronger and are able to play more and more consistently, which allows me to realize some really fine players in each group. They have been working hard and are really enjoying the classes we give them each day. Our goal is to provide a dynamic range of activities for them to reinforce all of the characteristics of great musicians. Have a wonderful weekend!

-Augie Merback

Hello, parents and students. My name is Augie Merback and I am filling in this semester as the new band director at Bedford Middle School. I have spent a week now with the groups here and I am so excited to work with all of them. As you all know we will be traveling to Washington D.C. later in the semester and the students should now be working to raise money with the Butter Braid fundraiser. We are working through music for that as well as rehearsing tunes for the side-by-side concert coming up in February at the high school. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to drop me a line at the school. Have a wonderful weekend!