Welcome to 2009! I hope everyone had a wonderful and restful holiday season. Now it is time to get back to the grind and truck our way to the next concert.
As far as the Middle School Band, there is a piece which I have picked to play that will wind up being our Pirates from last year. The parts in and of themselves are fairly easy, it is when we put them together that it will be a daunting task.
For the beginners, we will again get back to some basics to reinforce any notes they may not be too confident on, and will continue going through book 1 of the Essential Elements series.
In Music Enrichment, we will continue to pursue our quest of recorders and will start to have performance quizzes every couple of weeks. This will simply consist of them playing individually for me, and I will judge them on how well they play (sound, how they play, correct notes, no squeaking), and will grade them based on a 12 point rubric. This is a system they are already used to, so there should be no surprises here.
I look forward to what will hopefully be a rewarding spring. If anyone has any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me here at school via email or phone. My email is mhowell@pca.k12.de.us, and my extension here at the school is 137. The email will be the best bet, as I do not always get an opportunity to check on my phone. As always, thank you for all your support.

Yours in Music,
Michael Howell
Band Director
Providence Creek Academy