CN Band Newsletter 10-14
From the Director's Desk
Week 9 Update & Announcements
This week is it! It’s time for our first competition in San Jose. We had a great stadium rehearsal last weekend where we had our first full run through. We now have a baseline and know what we are working with. We had a great rehearsal last night and made many improvements.
This part of the season is my favorite part. We have installed most of the productions and now we get to focus on making it the best we can, looking for excellence and resonance. We hope you will join us Friday evening for our Homecoming football game where the band will perform their entire program at the end of the game.
We also hope you will join us Saturday at Independence High School for our first competition.
Bronco Star of the Week
Congratulations to Sabella Sanchez for being named our Bronco Star of the Week for Week 8!
Not only is Sabella a leader by example on the field with a consistent great attitude. She is also a Cross Country Star! We were super proud of her last weekend when she ran a race early Saturday morning, finishing in the top 20 at a very competitive meet but, she also earned a top 3 all time CN finishing time and improved her PR by 1 minute!!!
And then, raced over to Buchanan to participate in rehearsal all day. It is really fantastic to have students who can excel in music and other activities.
That is truly being a success in mind, body, and spirit! Way to go Sabella! Keep up the great work!
📅 Calendar: Week at a Glance
Monday: Music sectionals
Tuesday: Concert Band
Wednesday: Review part 5 on the field and full run through
Thursday: Review part 1 and 2 on the field and full run through
Friday: 12:00pm students released from class for lunch time pep rally outside (Wear show shirt)
6th/7th Period – Pregame/Review all parts of show and full run through
Homecoming football @ Buchanan
Saturday: AM Rehearsal WBA Competition @ Independence High School, San Jose
📅 Calendar Updates
Homecoming Football - Friday Oct. 16
WBA San Jose - Saturday Oct. 17
Band Parent Meeting - Tuesday October 20 5:30pm Lecture Hall
Get caught up on all current events, upcoming events, volunteer opportunities, travel updates etc.
Football vs. Clovis HS - Friday Oct. 23
WBA Cupertino - Saturday October 24
All Clovis Week - Wind Ensemble Brass & Drumline - Tuesday October 27
Trunkotreat - Tuesday October 27
Fall Concert - Wednesday October 28
Football vs. Buchanan - Friday October 30
Happy Halloween - Saturday October 31
💳 National Concert Band Festival Updates
The MFA National Concert Band Festival Pledge form was due October 6. Thank you if you have completed the form. If not, please do so ASAP
Note: If you wish to donate by check, complete the form and skip the payment page
I am getting some more information about family wishing to travel. There will be a friends and family package available from Music for All where you can purchase hotels and events through them directly. That registration will open on January 8, 2027. There is no guarantee you will be placed in the same hotel as the band. Travel will need to be arranged on your own. The family and friends registration will close on February 26, 2027.
For information about the friends and family packages please visit this link: https://festival.musicforall.org/ffpackages/
If you wish to be on a similar schedule as the band you will want to select the 4 night package. *** This does not mean you will be with the band at all their events. You will have a separate itinerary but will be there for the band’s performance and banquet if you wish***
🎺 Calendar Sales
BREAKING NEWS
The Clovis North Bronco Band & Color Guard 2027 calendar sale has been extended one more day!! You have until 11 pm WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 14th, to make your purchases. Hey, that’s today!!! 😃
These full-colored wall calendars are filled with 📸 pictures of performances, rehearsals, ✨competitions, and 🤪 fun candid moments featuring the band, 🥁percussion, & 🚩 color guard and are sold on a pre-order basis only, so don’t pass up this last opportunity to get in on the action!!
Birthday 🎂 shout-out options are also available for that little something to make it extra special. And these make wonderful gifts 🎁 for family and friends!
Head on over to our website to place your orders:
🎺 Program Updates
SPIRIT WEAR
Spirit wear orders are in!! If you ordered spirit wear and have not picked it up, please contact Carol Lesser at 559-287-9067 to schedule pick up.
Marching Band
We will be learning the end of the show beginning this week and will be ready for a full run-through next Saturday night at our stadium rehearsal
Wind Ensemble
Link to kick-off presentation - Clovis North Wind Ensemble - National Concert Band Festival Parent Meeting
Winter Guard
Rosters for Varsity and JV Winter Guard have been announced. We will have some informational meetings as we begin to prepare for the winter guard season.
🎵 Music Tests & Pass-Offs
We have completed initial pass offs for part 1-3 of the show. We will begin part 4 next week. Please diligently work to retake tests as needed so your grade does not suffer.
Retake Policy: If a student does not pass, they will review material with their section leader and schedule a retake with Mr. Lesser or Mr. Vargas (before school, lunch, or after school).
Retake Frequency: Retakes are limited to once per day after adequate preparation.
💰 Fundraising & Upcoming Events
Holiday Catalog
This fundraiser ends this Friday, October 16. So, let’s hit this one out of the park!!!
Pie Sale
Get ready. Our annual pie sale begins on Monday, October 26. This is a great way to prepare for the holidays and for the entire year. These pies are super tasty and also store extremely well in your freezer. Be on the lookout for information.
FMCMEA Honor Band Auditions
Audition registration for FMCMEA is live now. Here is the registration link:
All CN Wind Ensemble members must audition for FMCMEA. It is strongly encouraged that concert band members do as well. Please complete registration before Friday, November 6.
The audition material is the Golden State All State Band excerpts plus the CBDA chromatic scale. Wind ensemble members will perform their audition in front of the class prior to the FMCMEA audition date
WBA @ Independence High School
Our first competition is this Saturday in San Jose at Independence High School. The schedule for the day is on Cuttime. For more information, please visit westernbands.org.
You can find schedules for the first three competitions on Cuttime.
Golden State Tournament of Bands
GSTOB will be upon us before we know it. This event takes many volunteers to host bands for a great day of fall pageantry. We share the hosting responsibilities with four of our CUSD sister schools. The volunteer slots needed below are in addition to our regular help at contests like chaperoning, pit crew, and feed the band. Our responsibilities for the day include:
Director/judge hospitality: This is led by Donna Nakamura. If you are interested in being part of the hospitality team please reach out to her.
Entry gates @ Baseball field outfield. You monitor the groups entering the staging area. We need
1 more volunteer from 5:30-8:30pm
Main spectator entrance. You check wristbands and WBA passes for entry and reentry. We need
2 volunteers from 5:30-8:30pm
WE ONLY NEED 3 MORE VOLUNTEERS FOR FIELD MANAGMENT AND A FEW MORE TO HELP WITH HOSPITALITY!!! This is awesome. Let’s get them filled by Friday October 23. We sincerely appreciate your time helping us provide a quality experience in Central California as well as helping facilitate a great fundraiser for the band.
Thank you!
WBA CHAMPIONSHIPS
WBA Championships will be upon us before we know it. This event takes many volunteers to host bands for a great day of fall pageantry. We share the hosting responsibilities with four of our CUSD sister schools. Be on the lookout next week for the list of volunteer slots we will need. This will be a larger commitment than GSTOB and it will take additional family members and friends to help volunteer to make sure we provide a first class CHAMPIONSHIPS experience for ALL the bands that will be traveling from all over California to participate.
🎶 Fall Concert & Attire Guidelines
Mark your calendars! Our Fall Concert is scheduled for Wednesday, October 28. Students will need the following concert attire:
Gentlemen: Black suit or tuxedo, white long-sleeve dress shirt, black bow tie, black dress socks, black dress shoes (marching shoes acceptable). (Note: Wind Ensemble students will have distinct requirements announced soon).
Ladies: Black dress pants or slacks, black blouse or sweater, black stockings/socks, black dress shoes (flats).
Pit Crew Volunteers Needed
We still need 5 volunteers for pit crew for Friday’s performance at the football game and Saturday’s competition at Independence HS in San Jose.
Anyone available?
Please email davidgabrielson@cusd.com
Hello Band Family!
Our first band competition of the season is THIS WEEKEND in San Jose!
I can’t wait to see our Bronco Band Family there! One of the things we love about competition days is sitting together as a group to cheer on our amazing Bronco Band and Guard. It makes the experience even more fun!
Keep an eye out for a Remind text with our seating location so you can find us and join the fun!
If you have any questions on competition day, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at (559) 960-0801. I’m happy to help!
Looking forward to seeing everyone there as we cheer on our students and show them some Bronco Band Family love. Let’s go, Broncos!
Trunk or Treat
Join us for our Annual Bronco Band Trunk or Treat! Tuesday, October 27!
Let’s make this our BEST Trunk or Treat yet! We’re looking for Band Family volunteers to help make this event a success by decorating their cars and donating bags of candy.
Here’s how you can help:
Decorate a Car: Sign up to decorate your vehicle and hand out candy to our Bronco Band members! Cars will back into spaces along the curb outside the band room. All cars must be decorated and ready to go by 8:45 PM.
Donate Candy: Sign up to donate bags of candy to help make the night extra sweet!
Important: Please sign up for either or both opportunities on the CutTime Calendar so we can plan accordingly!
Our Bronco Band members will join the fun as soon as rehearsal ends and their instruments are put away. The good news? Students are welcome to wear their costumes to rehearsal that evening!
Thank you for helping us create a fun and memorable night for our Bronco Band family. We can’t wait to see everyone’s creative costumes and festive car decorations!
Calling All Wind Ensemble Parents and Guardians!
Leanne Calderaro and Donna Nakamura are interested in bringing together a group of Wind Ensemble parents and guardians to explore fundraising opportunities to help support the Music for All trip to Indiana.
They have one particular fundraising idea they’d like to gauge interest in: partnering with a former band family who provides catering services.
The concept would involve offering pre-made, ready-to-bake meals that families could purchase and pick up on designated evenings during the week. We know how busy everyone’s schedule can be, so this could be a convenient way to support our students while making mealtimes a little easier for our families.
If there is enough interest, we think this could be a great opportunity to raise funds for our band while providing something practical and valuable to our community.
If you are interested in helping organize, participating in the fundraiser, or sharing other fundraising ideas, please reach out to Leanne Calderaro with your name and contact information.
We’d love to hear from you and work together to make the Music for All trip a success for our students!
Please reach out to:
Leanne Calderaro
Text cell: (559) 408-3718 or
Email: leannecalderaro@gmail.com
We look forward to seeing everyone at our upcoming events!
Have a fantastic rest of your week.
David Lesser
Director of Bands
Clovis North Educational Center
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