Team Meeting & Calendar Updates

CFHS Band Fam!

This message is for all students in the CFHS band program, grades 9-12. Some of this information might not pertain to you but please read it completely so that you don't miss any important details that do impact your participation.

You should have gotten an email from the high school about tonight's virtual code meeting and subsequent team meetings.

To clarify, as in the past few years, there will be no 'official' marching band team meeting. Olson and I, however, will be available for a question and answer session for anyone who logs in. If you are involved in a fall sport or competitive activity, you should go to that virtual meeting instead of the band Q&A session. If you have a question but aren't able to attend, you can always email us!

Our summer rehearsal for Wednesday, July 29 at 6pm in the high school parking lot is still happening. See you there!

We had a meeting yesterday with Mr. Thompson (CFHS Activities Director) and the school and band program have been collaborating with the Chippewa County Health Department, the Western Wisconsin Marching Band Circuit, the Big Rivers Band Directors Association, and the Wisconsin School Music Association (WSMA). We have learned that at least initially at the start of the school year the band will not be performing at halftime of football games.

We are waiting to hear the results of a vote by the WSMA Board of Directors on what the State Marching Band Championships might look like. A few of the shows in our Western Wisconsin Circuit are either still happening, or have been postponed to October. 

We will still have marching band. We will still have camp, learn music and drill, and we will still perform. It might not look the way we were expecting, but this band is nothing if not flexible - we have been stranded in the McDonald's parking lot too often to not be able to roll with the punches.

The current plan looks like this:

• The first week of band camp (August 3-7) is cancelled.
• The second week of band camp (August 17-21) is happening. 
• Band Camp on August 17-21 will be from 8am to 12pm Monday through Friday.
• All students in grades 9-12 are invited to camp. Students in Symphonic Band and Wind Ensemble (mostly grades 10-12) are expected to attend, students in Varsity Band (grade 9) are encouraged.
• The Wednesday rehearsal on August 12 is cancelled.
• We need to wait to see what our remaining performance opportunities look like. They might be virtual, they might be in-person, they might be some strange hybrid that no one has thought of yet.
• The competitive component of marching band is likely not happening, but performances opportunities still will.
• Students in grade 9 who wanted to participate in the competitive component of marching band will instead be involved in grade 9-12 performance opportunities.

Does this leave you with questions? I bet it does! We are thinking of new questions every day and slowly creating answers. If you have fresh ideas we are interested in hearing them. If you have questions that come to mind right now, you can either email them to us or join us for the marching band Q&A session this evening - the link was sent to you from the high school activities office.

Looking forward to making this coming year a memorable one. New traditions will be forged and a new trail will be blazed. At the end of the day - we are going to have a LOT of fun!

​Ren and Ole