  Hi Spectrum Band Families,
I wanted to send a quick note of thanks to all of you for your hard work this year. Folks, this was truly an outstanding year filled with so many personal student accomplishments as well as many highlights in the band room, in concert, and on parade. Be proud of yourselves! I have to be honest when I say that I really missed being at Spectrum in the last two weeks of June. I so value the one-on-one conversations and class discussions about our achievements this year and hearing about all of your plans for the summer. Here’s hoping things are resolved soon. I want to thank each and everyone of my students for their hard work and dedication to music this year! It has been a pleasure teaching you and I’m really looking forward to coming back next year. To our band parents – thank you for all of your help and for supporting the band program at Spectrum. We couldn’t have done this without you. Thanks for driving your kids to morning rehearsals, encouraging them to practice and do their best, and for supporting all of our events and fundraisers. It truly goes a long way and for that I am so thankful. Also, thank you for your kind words and submissions for the Black Press Teacher Award – I was absolutely floored when I got the phone call from Black Press. This means so much to me and I am honoured and humbled to be the recipient of this award. I truly had no idea and would like to sincerely thank you all for your support. I feel truly blessed to teach you and work with you as parents. Re: Year End Concert DVDs – The DVDs are now finished however I am teaching out of town for seven weeks. I will pick up and deliver or mail your DVDs out when I get back to school mid-August. Best wishes for a safe, happy, and well-deserved summer! Cheers, Jamie Davis Hi All,
It was great to meet some new parents at our Meet The Teacher Night on Thursday! Also, a big thanks to the students and parents that helped with our "Morning With A Pro" on Saturday for our middle school music students! It was a great morning with lots of learning! We are moving in to a big week this week with lots of info to know. Here we go… 1.) Classes **Band 9/10 can turn in Practice card Week 2 for marking. Now on week 3. Monday – Band 9 Tuesday – Band 10, 11/12 Wednesday – Band 9 Thursday – Band 10, 11/12 Friday – Band 9 2.) Performing Bands All performing bands are running (with the exception of the Pit Orchestra which will start soon) Jr. Jazz Band: Monday Lunch, Tuesday AM, Wednesday Lunch Sr. Jazz Band: Tuesday Lunch, Wednesday AM, Thursday Lunch Jr. Concert Band: Friday AM Sr. Concert Band: Monday AM, Thursday AM 3.) Uniform Sewing Night Thank you to everyone that attended a uniform sizing night last weekend. The band parents will be holding a sewing night on Wednesday night this week in the Band Room from 6-8pm (lots of hemming, organizing, and maintenance things to do to keep our bands looking awesome). They are looking for volunteers to come out and help as it's a big job. New sewing experience is necessary as there are a lot of non-sewing jobs to do too. Please contact Lynda Charchuk and Jen Lindsay if you are able to help. 4.) The Great Apple Pie Event Pie orders have been extended to Monday September 24th!! :) Please turn in all forms and money by Monday at lunch. Incomplete or late orders cannot be filled. Apple Donations – apple donations can be brought to the band room anytime on Friday this week. If you have to bring them earlier please let me know. Apple Pickers – We have had a number of community houses and orchards donate apples but they require people to come and pick. We are currently looking for parent volunteers with vehicles to help drive students to these locations. Please email Sue Pyke if you are able to help with this. Some students have indicated that they are interested in picking apples – I will be checking with their teachers this week to make sure this is okay. Friday – Parent volunteers are needed from 4pm – 8pm to help with set-up in the kitchen / cafeteria. Saturday – The big day! We start at 9am in the school's cafeteria and go until the last pie is made. We need lots of help!! Students should be signing up themselves and any parents that are coming in the band room – this helps us to know how much lunch to make. Parents, you are welcome to bring your own peelers, knives, boards, etc but please make sure that they are clearly labeled. Pies will be ready for pick-up starting at noon. Please make arrangements to pick up your order as there is no storage available at the school. Sunday – Last order pick-up from 10:00am – 12:00pm at the school. 5.) Upcoming Dates to Note Friday, 28 September – Payment due Band Tour ($400 - $800 if no deposit provided in May/June) Friday, 28 September – Set Up Apple Pie Event (students 4pm-6pm, parents 4pm-8pm) Saturday, 29 September – Apple Pie Making Day (9am-5pm w/pick up starting at noon) Sunday, 30 September – Apple Pie Final Pick up (10am-12pm) October Saturday, 13 October – Bottle Drive (9am -1pm) Have a great week and see you on Saturday!! Jamie Davis  Hi Everyone,
Thank you to the Marching Band for your performance at the Esquimalt Buccaneers Day Parade on Saturday! A quick story... One of Victoria's professional bassoonists, Cuyler Page, has been in all of the same parades as us this year and asked me to pass this on: (He was the gentleman riding the large penny-farthing bicycle in front of us yesterday morning). He remarked that our band did NOT sound like a typical marching band... Instead we sounded like a marching CONCERT BAND with lots of attention to balance, dynamics, phrasing, and quality sound. He said he enjoyed our performances and likened the sound of the Spectrum Marching Band to Frank Battisti's bands and marching bands. (Mr.Battisi is one of the most renowned American high-school & college band directors, famous for his work with sound concepts and repertoire in the concert band genre. Mr. Page was a student of Frank Battisti's.) Well done Spectrum. :) 1.) Morning Band - All morning rehearsals are now finished. PLEASE HAVE ALL concert band music folders returned to the band room on Monday morning for music sorting/returns. This includes ALL MEMBERS WHO PLAY WITH THE BANDS OUTSIDE OF THE TIMETABLE. 2.) Jazz Bands - Sr. Jazz Band meets for the last time on Monday at Lunch. Jr. Jazz meets for the last time on Tuesday at Lunch. PLEASE HAVE ALL music and music folders at those classes for music sorting. 3.) Band Classes Monday - Band 10, Band 11/12 (Concert Band music sorting sessions) Tuesday - Band 9 Wednesday - TBA (Need to consult with PE Teachers) Band 11/12 = English and Study Blocks Thursday - TBA (Need to consult with PE Teachers) Band 11/12 = English and Study Blocks Friday - Celebrations Day - Short classes/year book signing. Schedule TBA. Thanks everyone! Cheers, Jamie Davis  Hi Everyone, THANK YOU all for the wonderful concert on Tuesday night at the Alix Goolden Hall! Thanks to all of those family members and friends that attended and supported our musicians. A special thanks to our Band Grads for their words and support. Congratulations to all of our award winners!  If you have photos or videos - can I get a copy? I would love to share these with our students as we head to the end of the year. Thanks! 1.) Marching Band / Esquimalt Buccaneers Day Parade - Saturday, June 9th.
There is a FINAL marching band practice on Friday at 7:30 am. The running order for the Esquimalt Buccaneers Day Parade can be found here. Student need to meet on Old Esquimalt Rd at 8:00am. We should be done by10:45 am. 2.) Year End - Equipment / Instrument Returns BAND 9 STUDENTS - Please make sure that you have your folders at school tomorrow. ALL music folders, school-owned instruments, marching band instruments, drums, flags, flag-holsters, carol band folders, loaner instruments,sticks and mallets MUST be returned to the band room (for inventory /repairs / cleaning purposes) on MONDAY, JUNE 11th. Students needing instruments to complete requirements and for summer practice will be able to sign them out again. 3.) Uniform Return Nights We will be holding 2 uniform return nights: Wednesday, June 13th and Thursday, June 14th from 6pm - 8pm in the Band Room. Please pick a night to drop off your uniforms (deposit cheques will be returned after auniform inspection) ***Please do not bring uniforms to school as uniformsare handled by the Band Parents Association.*** 4.) Final Dates to Note June 15: Band 9, 10, 11, 12 Requirements and Practice Cards are DUE (Note that this has been extended from June 12th. June 16: Last Bottle Drive and Student/Parent Appreciation BBQ (9am - 1pmat Spectrum) June 20th: Spectrum Band Parents Association Annual General Meeting &Elections (7:00pm, Library) Thanks, everyone! Jamie Davis  Hi Everyone,
I hope you all had a great weekend! 1.) THANK YOU to our Marching Band members who did an AWESOME job at the (SUNNY!!) Oak Bay Tea Party on Saturday morning! COLOUR PARTY and DRUMLINE members need to return flags, banners, harnesses, drums, and sticks to the school for our practice this week. Thanks to our parent volunteers whobraided hair, helped with rides and walked the route with the band. 2.) Morning Band This Week Monday - LAST Jr. Jazz Tuesday - LAST Sr. Concert Wednesday - None Thursday - None Friday - LAST Marching Band 3.) Period 1 and 2 Classes Monday - 9s Tuesday - 9s & 10s Combined, 11s/12s Wednesday - 9s Thursday - 10s, 11s/12s Friday - 9s 4.) Year End Band Concert - THIS TUESDAY NIGHT - 7:00pm Please DOWNLOAD THE RUNNING ORDER FOR THE YEAR END CONCERT HERE. Note that the location is at THE VICTORIA CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC. A map is provided with information about parking for this concert. Students MUST be inside the Conservatory, ready to go at 6:00pm. Please leave lots of time to find parking. ****HELP NEEDED****: We are in need of 3 -4 trucks and/or vans to transport equipment to downtown. We will meet at Spectrum at 3:05pm, load and head to the conservatory for set-up. PLEASE LET ME KNOW ASAP IF YOU AREABLE TO ASSIST. THANKS! CD Orders - The concert will, again, be recorded by Hi Cee recordings. A double CD is being produced featuring all of our tunes. ($15 each, please make cheques payable to Spectrum Band Parents Association). I hope you are looking forward to this show. Your kids have been working very hard and it should be a great night! 5.) Esquimalt Buccaneers Day Parade - SATURDAY, June 9th I will have more information as soon as I get our marshaling information from the organizers. We still have an 8:00am call time. As always, don't hesitate to ask questions. I can't believe we are almost at the end of the year! Thanks everyone!! Jamie Davis Hi Everyone,
I would like to send my thanks and congratulations to everyone that participated in our band tour to Alberta this past week. This was an excellent trip and our students were top-notch, representing Spectrum with pride! We received compliments at EVERY tour stop about how well behaved the group was, how well they performed in concerts and clinics, how polite they were, and how positively the entire team interacted! We had 5 performances (1 was even for a high school aged audience where YOUR KIDS chose the repertoire they wanted to perform AND put together an awesome program for them) and 2 clinics/workshops over the past week. Audience members were impressed and delighted by their high-energy, passionate, and FUN performances! Bravo! On top of this, we had a lot of fun at the various activities and events that we went to. Be sure to check the "Spectrum Community School Band" Facebook Page for photos and videos! Thank you so much to our parent chaperones, Carol Davis, Nancy Laughy and Dave Lee who were amazing all-around! This trip wouldn't be nearly as successful without your thoughtfulness, support, and hard work over the past week! Thank you ALL for your leadership, teamwork, music and attitude! Enjoy the rest of your Spring Break! Sincerely, Jamie Davis Hi Band Parents and Students,
BandFest at UVic was a huge success for both of our concert bands! Your kids were all professional, focussed and very hardworking at the festival! Both groups played very well and each one had an amazing clinic with a professional conductor. We also had a chance to listen to other groups perform as well. Students were attentive, respectful of the other groups AND offered positive and critical comments in discussion about what other bands were playing! The Senior Concert Band received a rating of "Excellent" on Thursday! This is a huge accomplishment for this group as they performed a challenging program of Grade 4 (advanced high-school) and Grade 5 (college/university) level pieces. One of the adjudicators commented that, "This IS a fine band playing literature that most high school band would not attempt in performance!" The Junior Concert Band received a rating of "Superior" from the adjudicators! I am so proud of this group and how far they have come in the last few weeks and months. John White (adjudicator) wrote, "Wow! What a wonderful performance. For a relatively young band there is excellent attention to detail - quality tone, attention to dynamics, ENERGY, and tone quality." Congratulations! Students, you should be extremely proud of yourselves and what you have accomplished - especially at such a busy time for performing arts at Spectrum. Thank you all and BRAVO! I couldn't be happier!Thank you to all of the parents that helped with driving students and equipment back and forth to UVic! Cheers, Jamie Davis WOW! Congratulations to our Marching Band! I have no hesitation in saying that this was, by far, the BEST performance of the Spectrum Marching Band in 5 years. I am totally proud of all of my students that participated in this event - it was a long road and a steep learning curve for some but we did it... AND IT WAS AWESOME!
The weather was terrible and we were pretty much soaked as soon as we stepped off the bus. Not one student complained about the rain, the cold, or the wait to start. You were all classy and team-players from 5:00 AM right until we got home. Several kids have even come up to me and said that they made new friends! While I love listening to our kids play I also enjoy listening to spectators comments ABOUT our kids: "Looks great!" "Yeah, Victoria! Welcome to Vancouver!" "You sound great!" "Look how good you all look!" ... "Yeah Spectrum! That was MY school! So proud of you all!" Thank you to our chaperones: Sue Issel, Carol Davis, Dave Lee, Jen Lindsay, Nancy Laughy, Dorothy VanNice, and Doug Butler! Today would not have been possible without your help and caring for these kids. There was a small hiccup with coverage for the parade. I am hoping that TSN or Global will air portions of the parade tomorrow. Don't worry! We have lots of video from the chaperones and pictures will be available soon (I'll let you know). Visit our MEDIA PAGE to see videos and pictures from the parade! Once again... congratulations and THANK YOU for all that you do at Spectrum for Band! Proud of you! Sincerely, Jamie Davis |
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Slideshow photo credit: Doug Butler - www.doug-butler.com