Band Festivals.

About

The MBDA Band Festivals were created in an effort to:

  • Provide a challenging and rewarding band experience for first and second year band students;
  • Provide an opportunity for first and second year band students to bring a positive attitude and a renewed enthusiasm back to their home band program; and
  • Provide an opportunity for Minnesota beginning band directors to help promote enthusiasm and excellence within their band programs.

The Minnesota Band Directors Association is pleased to be hosting Beginning Band Festivals on the morning of Saturday, May 10th, 2008. This event is being planned to serve first year band students from throughout the state of Minnesota. Morris will also be a site for a Second Year Band Festival to be held on the same campus as the BBF, and share a concert to conclude the festival. Festival Students will be nominated by their directors, and will be accepted until openings are filled. The fee per student is $15, payable to MBDA, and this will be refunded if the band is full at the time the application is received. This can be paid by the individual student or by the school.

Eight nominees will be accepted from each participating school.

The three beginning band festival sites this year will be:

Marshall, hosted by Amy Labat on Saturday morning, May 10th. This site can host 100 participants.

Guest Conductor will be Donna Larson. Donna is currently in her 27th year of teaching and has been Director of Bands at Red Rock Central Schools in Lamberton since 2003. She previously also taught in Slayton, MN and in South Dakota. Donna served as director of the Slayton Community Band (1985-2002) and the Amazing Worthington City Band (2001-2007). She also regularly serves as an adjudicator for the Minnesota State High School League music contests.

Ms. Larson has a B.A. in Music Education from Saginaw Valley State College, Saginaw, MI and a M.S. in Educational Technology from Walden University, Minneapolis, MN. In addition to her instrumental music activities, she teaches online music history courses for the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, TX. She is a member of the MBDA, MMEA, and MENC.

Repertoire for this festival includes:

  • Ceremonium by Robert W. Smith
  • Dance of the Jabberwocky by Rob Grice
  • Of Gentle Spirit by William Owens
  • American Spirit March by John Higgins
  • Double-Oh-Eight by John Edmondson

Morris, hosted by Dot Vick on Saturday morning, May 10th. This site can host 100 participants. Guest Conductor will be Pamela Sweet of Moorhead. Pam Sweet has been teaching beginning band in Moorhead, MN since 2003. She earned a Bachelor of Music Education from South Dakota State University and a Master of Music in conducting from Southern Oregon University. Pam is a member of the National and State Music Associations, as well as a member of Minnesota Band Directors Association. Pam plays flute in the Lake Agazzi Community Band and is an active church musician.

Repertoire for this festival includes:

  • Ancient Hunters by Sean O’Loughlin
  • Bennetts Switch by Les Taylor
  • Jupiter from “The Planets” Arr. Smith and Story
  • Spitfire by Michael Story
  • Popcorn Prelude by Mike Hannickel

Thief River Falls, hosted by Brad Thompson on Saturday, May 10th. This site can host 100 participants. Guest conductor will be Linda Samuelson. Linda has been the Director of Music at Northland Community and Technical College since 1999; in this capacity she directs the NCTC jazz band and community band as well as teaches music lecture classes in World Music, Jazz History, Music Fundamentals and American Popular Music. She received her Bachelor's in Music Education from Lawrence University Conservatory of Music in 1991 and earned her Master of Music degree from Baylor University School of Music in 1995, with emphasis in saxophone performance. In 2007 she completed her Certificate in Applied Ethnomusicology from Bethel University. She also has five years public school teaching experience in various locations in Montana including Brady, Denton and Deer Lodge. Linda is a member of the Music Educators National Conference, College Band Directors National Association, Minnesota Band Directors Association, and Pi Kappa Lambda the National Music Honor Society.

Repertoire for this festival includes:

  • Clouds by Anne McGinty
  • Song of the Telegraph by David Shaffer
  • Midnight Sky by Brian Balmages
  • Thunderbolt Peak by Timothy Johnson
  • Legend of the Alhambra by Mark Williams

Morris is also the site for a Second Year Band Festival to be held in conjunction with the BBF. The philosophy of a Second Year Band is to help fill the need for our second year musicians that may not be ready for an MBDA Honor Band audition, but still could benefit from a musical experience outside of your program. This year's Second Year Band Festival will be held on Saturday, May 10th with conductor Adam Tervola-Hultberg of Perham and the band can host 100 participants.

Adam Tervola Hultberg currently works as Band Director and Music Instructor at Perham-Dent Public Schools located in the heart of Minnesota's most densely populated area of lakes. He is responsible for grades 7-12 bands as well as general music courses at the middle school and high school levels.

Adam earned his Bachelor of Music Education degree and Bachelor of Arts degree in Sacred Music from Bethel University in St. Paul, MN. Adam assumed many student leadership roles while at Bethel. He has completed coursework for a Master of Arts in Education from Hamline University in St. Paul, MN. Adam is gathering data in collaboration with the MMEA Mentoring Project. His capstone will be entitled, "How does mentoring, incorporating Cognitive Coaching (SM) affect the efficacy of young music educators?"

Mr. Tervola Hultberg stays active as a freelance trombonist in various community ensembles including the Park Rapids Area Community Band and The Upper Mississippians, a swing band emphasizing music of the 1920's and 1930's. Adam currently serves as President-Elect of the Minnesota Band Directors Association. Adam and his wife Amy reside in New York Mills, MN.

Repertoire for this festival includes:

  • Academic Festival Overture by Brahms/Arr. Akey
  • Slippery Slide Rag by Ed Huckeby
  • Ancient Voices by Michael Sweeney
  • The Tempest by Robert W. Smith
  • The Stars and Stripes Forever by Sousa arr. Story

Hosting Information

Festival Hosts are responsible for:

  • securing a guest clinician/conductor
  • securing section coaches
  • purchasing/organizing a snack for students
  • putting together folders of music for students
  • creating a printed program
  • setting up performance site and sectional rooms
  • securing custodial help if needed
  • Distributing printed music to directors after the event
  • Hosts should be MBDA members. Pay for Festival Hosts is $150.

Guest Conductor Information

The guest conductors are responsible for:

  • selecting an appropriate program for the festival (four or five pieces)
  • forwarding titles/composers/publishers to Coordinator by March 1st
  • working with percussion section coach during sectionals
  • rehearsing the band
  • conducting the concert
  • Pay for clinicians is $250. Clinicians should be MBDA members.

Proposed Schedule for the Day

The tentative schedule for the day is as follows:

  • 8:00–8:30 Registration
  • 8:30–9:15 Band rehearsal
  • 9:20–10:00 Sectionals
  • 10:00–10:20 Snack
  • 10:25–11:45 Band Rehearsal
  • 12:00–12:20 Concert for parents

Other Information

The section coaches are responsible for handing out folders at the start of the sectional; for introducing the students to the music; and if time permits, for offering a short master class to the students. Section coaches are also to be available to help during rehearsals. Pay for section coaches is $50. All section coaches should be MBDA member.

Student or parent volunteers from the host school district may be helpful the day of the event by: assisting in registration as students arrive; guiding students to their sectional sites; serving and cleaning up after their snack; setting up and tearing down sectional rooms and band performance site.

Budget: The fee for participants is $15/student. Checks made out to "MBDA" must be sent in with nomination forms. If students are turned away because bands are full, checks will be mailed back to band directors.

Student Participation Numbers: To ensure that the festival participant fee collected covers all expenses for the festivals throughout the state, a minimum of 65 participants is necessary. If a site cannot attract 65 or more students, the festival will be cancelled and all checks returned to the directors of the nominated students.

Band directors, please print out the Beginning Band Festival Nomination Form and Second Year Band Festival Nomination Form and distribute them to your most deserving students. We will accept a maximum of eight students from each school (or in the case of schools that have more than one director, five students per director), and would like you to nominate students who show an enthusiasm for playing their instrument and who will represent your school well. Please remember to nominate our friends in the low brass section as well as those in the flute and percussion sections! The final deadline for receiving nominations is April 10th, but remember that we are accepting nominations on a first come, first serve basis!Please remember that in order to participate in this as well as other MBDA events, you must be a member in good standing of MBDA. This link is for an Online Registration Application.

Send your nomination forms and registration fees to:

Dot Vick
MBDA BBF Coordinator
403 Nevada Avenue
Morris, MN 56267

You will receive confirmation for your students via e-mail after your registration has been received.

Remember: If you are the only director in the school, you can nominate eight students from that school. If there is more than one director in the building, each director can nominate five students from that building. If you teach in more than one building, you can nominate up to eight students from each building. Every director who nominates must be a MBDA member.

If you have questions, please feel free to contact Dot Vick at: dvick@morris.k12.mn.us

You will also find on this website a letter to parents explaining this event that you can print and distribute to parents of nominated students.

Documents

2007-08 MBDA Beginning and Second Year Band Festivals

Past Band Festivals