December 20, 2019 - Band Updates

1. TODAY IS THE LAST DAY for Minnesota Trip Registration We hope you can join us on this year's cultural weekend trip to Minneapolis and St. Paul (open to all band, choir, and orchestra students).  Click here for enrollment details. 2. Jazz Cabaret Ticket Deadline 1/3  Make sure to get your Jazz Tracs tickets ASAP.  Don't miss it! 3. Last chance for Pep Band  There is only one remaining pep band this semester!  If you have not yet fulfilled your one pep band requirement for the semester, make sure to show up on January 7th at 6:30pm, or stop by an ASR (both halves) for a make-up. Also check out the pep band calendar for Semester 2. 4.  Don't forget Concert Listening  There are still a number of students who have not fulfilled their concert listening requirement for the semester.  The classical music scene tends to thin out in January.  Check out the Isthmus Calendar for some opportunities.  (Remember that anything in the jazz, classical, or world music genres counts.) 5.  Solo/Ensemble Registration  for the new online registration form for solo/ensemble.  A few details: 

• All registration is now online!  Fees will be posted to FeePay after registration closes - no more bringing checks.

• Participation at solo/ensemble festival is optional, but all students will be preparing at least one performance piece as part of class.  Block 6 and 7 will be preparing solos, Block 1 will be preparing ensembles, and students in Block 3 may choose either a solo or an ensemble.

• If you are performing more than one event, please fill out a separate form for each.

• All registrations are due JANUARY 7TH.  So don't worry if you're not quite ready to register - you can do it after the break.

--  Michael Ver Voort Music Teacher & Director of Bands  Middleton High School 

December 16, 2019 - Band Updates

1. Minnesota Trip Registration Deadline -  Registrations for our 2020 cultural weekend in Minneapolis (March 13-15) are due this Friday, December 20.  Check out the webpage for more information.  Note that the registration fee will not be posted to FeePay until school resumes in January. 2. MHS Concerto Aria Competition Registration -  Registrations for the Concerto/Aria Competition are due before break.  See Mr. V or Mr. Kurr for a form if interested.  Students perform a concerto for a panel of judges, and the winner(s) get to perform their concerto with the orchestra in March.  All instrumentalists and vocalists are eligible. 3. Jazz Cabaret Ticket Deadline -  The deadline to order tickets for Jazz Cabaret is January 3rd - don't miss out! 4.  Fruit Sale Chocolate Covered Nuts -  If you were not able to come back last Saturday for your chocolate covered nuts, please see Mr. Kurr as soon as possible to pick them up. 5. Upcoming Pep Band Opportunities:  Thursday, December 19th  Tuesday, January 7th Remember that all students need at least one pep band before the end of the semester.  If you can't make it to either of those two remaining options, make sure to complete an ASR makeup! 6. Upcoming Concert Listening Opportunities:  December 18 -- Hikarigaoka Girls High School Band (Japan).  Sun Prairie HS, 7:00pm, free and unticketed.  January 7 -- MHS Concerto-Aria Competition.  MHS PAC, 6:00pm, free and unticketed. --  Michael Ver Voort Music Teacher & Director of Bands  Middleton High School  (608) 829-9680  mvervoort@mcpasd.k12.wi.us

December 16, 2019 - Jazz Cabaret 2020

Dear Jazz Band Families,

Jazz Cabaret 2020 is right around the corner!  Get your tickets soon! 

If this is the first year your student has participated in one of MHS's jazz bands and you are new to Jazz Cabaret, you are in for a treat.

The Middleton High School Jazz Cabaret has been around for more than ten years. During that time, the Cabaret has experienced a variety of changes, venues, and expansions resulting in the Cabaret that we have today--a dinner and concert with MHS's four jazz bands. 

The MHS Jazz bands: Jazz Lab, our introductory band; our three auditioned bands--Cardinal Big Band, Jazz Orchestra, and our award-winning 7 O'Clock Jazz band practice throughout the year. Students learn to improvise and learn to play swing, funk, and Latin rhythms.  Students are exposed to the music of the great masters--Dizzy Gillespie, John Coltrane, Duke Ellington, and others.  The jazz band students, numbering over one hundred, are able to showcase their skills and talents, in two major events each year.  The first event is Jazz Cabaret held in January. The second event is Jazz Tracs held every spring. 

Jazz Cabaret 2020 is slated to be an upscale evening beginning with a social hour and smaller Jazz Combos followed by dinner, and music reminiscent of the era when big bands played in sophisticated nightclubs to an appreciative audience. 

The Jazz Cabaret is a fun and inspiring evening for the students and a memorable and enjoyable evening for families. 

Please save the date: Friday, January 10, 2020, 6 pm at the Madison Marriott West. 

It is a night you won't want to miss!  

Visit the website:  middletonbandorchestra.org  to purchase your tickets.  

All tickets must be purchased online.    Thank you!   See you on January 10th! Lisa Downs  MHS BOPA Jazz Cabaret Chair  MHSBOPAjazzCabaret@gmail.com