Category Archives: General Information

2015 Taste of the Trucks & Community Night

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Many of Indy’s favorite food trucks will be coming to Carmel on Friday, October 16 from 5-8 p.m. for Carmel Band’s Taste of the Trucks 2015! The event will be held at the CHS Football Stadium in the west parking lot.

The CHS Marching Greyhounds will take the field to perform this year’s program, “9 Lives” at 8 p.m. The evening will also include our Raffle drawing to win a BMW or Mini-Cooper, music by a DJ and the CHS Parent Pep Band, along with activities for kids of all ages, a bake sale and more.

Proceeds will benefit the CHS Marching Greyhounds. Admission to the Taste of the Trucks area will be $5.00 per person at the event, with kids six and under admitted for free. Raffle tickets to enter our annual Car Raffle can be purchased during the event until 7:30 pm!

Carmel Clay Schools – Best Community for Music Education

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Carmel Clay Schools Celebrates Nationally Recognized Music Program

Carmel, Indiana – The NAMM Foundation has named Carmel Clay Schools among the Best Communities for Music Education in the United States.

On, Tuesday, May 19, 2015, Dr. Nick Wahl, Superintendent of Carmel Clay Schools received the special certificate from Mr. Steve Purcell, District Manager for Paige’s Music of Indianapolis during one of the ‘in class’ concerts given by the high school band program.  Paige’s Music is a local member of NAMM.  The National Association of Music Merchants sponsors this prestigious award each year through the NAMM Foundation. 

Carmel Clay Schools been named one of 388 school districts in the nation as a Best Community for Music Education by The NAMM Foundation. The district is recognized for demonstrating an unwavering commitment to providing comprehensive music education for all students.

The Best Communities for Music Education survey acknowledges and celebrates schools and districts, their administrators, teachers, board members, parents and students across the United States for their commitment to and support of music education. Participants in the survey answer detailed questions about funding, graduation requirements, music class participation, instruction time, facilities, support for the music program and other factors in the community that affect access to music education for all students. More than 2,000 schools districts / schools participated in the survey.

In completing the survey for the award, Mr. Soo Han, Director of Orchestras and Department Chair of the William H Duke Center for the Performing Arts at Carmel High School, said, “We are so fortunate to have the finest elementary and middle school music teachers in the entire country. Each teacher’s approach and style of teaching students is unique and varied, but at the core are practices based in world class pedagogy and love and passion for kids.  What we accomplish at the high school level would never be possible without our amazing elementary and middle schools teachers.”

About The NAMM Foundation:

The NAMM Foundation is a nonprofit supported in part by the National Association of Music Merchants and its nearly 9,200 members around the world. The Foundation advances active participation in music making across the lifespan by supporting scientific research, philanthropic giving and public service programs. For more information about The NAMM Foundation, please visit www.nammfoundation.org.

Wind Symphony 1 – ISSMA State Champion

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Carmel’s Top Band Earns 2015 ISSMA State Championship

On Saturday, May 9th, The Carmel High School Wind Symphony 1 earned the 2015 Indiana State School Music Association Concert Band State Championship title with an incredibly memorable performance!  The literature performed by the concert band included:  “The Screamer March” by Fred Jewell/ed. Kopetz,   “Archangel, Raphael who leaves a House of Tobias” by Masanori Taruya and “Southern Harmony” by Donald Grantham. Recordings of each composition, made during the competition, may be found on the Carmel Bands YouTube channel.

Following the competition, Carmel Director of Bands, Michael Pote, composed the following letter to the students, families and colleagues:

Dear Students, Families and colleagues,

The Carmel Band Family is extremely proud of Wind Symphony 1’s State Championship performance on Saturday, May 9. The student’s efforts during the past few months to prepare for this event have been inspiring. The challenge of the literature chosen for this group was formidable and the students rose to the challenge! Their final performance on the stage at Lawrence Central was an emotional and exciting effort. The ultimate goal is not a bigger trophy but a performance that they will remember and take with them for a long time after they have moved on from Carmel high school.

It is also important to recognize the parents that have been supportive of their young musicians effort since the very first day they started playing an instrument. Their support of the arts, along with our incredible team of middle school band directors, have allowed the entire high school band program to create memorable performances for many years.

These kinds of accolades truly are the result of a “village” of people working together to create opportunities for young musicians.

Sincerely,

Michael Pote

Director of Bands

Three highly respected conductors adjudicated the 16 finalist bands. Those 16 bands qualified for the competition during the previous weekend where 53 bands started the competition.  The judges included:  Mr. Gary Markham, Retired Supervisor of Instrumental Music, Cobb County Schools, Marietta, GA, Dr. Cody Birdwell, Director of Bands, University of Kentucky, Mr. Eric Rombach-Kendall, Director of Bands, University of New Mexico.

Carmel Associate Director of Bands, Kyle Young said, ““We couldn’t be more proud of musicians in Wind Symphony 1. These students have worked together the entire year to push the ensemble to new heights.  No matter the demand of literature, the extra hours of rehearsing, the students continuously rose to the occasion and that was represented Saturday in their performance.  The one constant goal we had was to give a performance that was not only technically thrilling, but also creating an emotional connection, together and with the audience.  They achieved this goal and went beyond our expectations!  This will be a performance that will not be forgotten by the students, directors and parents in attendance.“

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the 31-year history of ISSMA concert band championships, this is the first year there was a tie for First place.  Carmel shares the championship with Penn High School from Mishawaka, Indiana.

The Carmel Wind Symphony 1 has performed in 22 of the total 31 ISSMA State Finals competitions. Of the 22 years, Carmel placed in the top five, 15 of those years with championships coming in 1999, 2013 and now 2015.  For more information on Carmel Bands, go to: www.carmelbands.org

ISSMA STATE CONCERT BAND FINALS PLACINGS

State Champion – Carmel
State Champion – Penn, Mishawaka
3rd Place – Avon
4th Place – North Central, Indianapolis
5th Place – Goshen
6th Place – Columbus North
7th Place – Lawrence Central, Indianapolis
8th Place – Castle, Newburgh
Finalist – Bloomington North
Finalist – Concord, Elkhart
Finalist – Floyd Central, Floyds Knobs
Finalist – Hamilton Southeastern, Fishers
Finalist – Jasper
Finalist – Lafayette Jefferson
Finalist – Munster
Finalist – Warren Central, Indianapolis

About ISSMA (Indiana State School Music Association)

The mission of the Indiana State School Music Association, Inc. is to provide educationally evaluated music performance activities for the students and teachers of the State of Indiana; to assist in the development of performance oriented assessment of state and national musical academic standards, and to offer educational support to fulfill this mission. For more information on ISSMA, go to:  http://www.issma.net

 

Creekside Band Director to Present Clinic

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CREEKSIDE MS BAND DIRECTOR SELECTED TO PRESENT SESSION

AT MIDWEST INTERNATIONAL BAND & ORCHESTRA CLINIC

Carmel, Indiana – Mr. Christopher J. Grifa, Co-Director of Bands at Creekside Middle School in Carmel, Indiana has been selected to present a clinic at the prestigious Midwest International Band & Orchestra Conference in Chicago, Illinois to be held on December 16-19, 2015.  Selected from hundreds of applicants, Mr. Grifa will present his clinic “Achieving Your Ensemble Sound; it’s Fundamental!” to conference attendees.   When asked about the emphasis of his clinic, Mr. Grifa said, “I am deeply honored and excited to be invited to present my session at the 69th annual Midwest Clinic in December. The incredible music educators who present at The Midwest Clinic each year inspire me, and it means the world to me that I will have the opportunity to pay forward what the clinic has given me throughout my career.”

In his 11th year of teaching, Mr. Grifa co-directs all of the bands at Creekside Middle School along with Ms. Wendy Higdon. He is a sought after clinician for young bands, high school bands, marching bands and Drum Corp International Drum and Bugle Corps all across the nation.  As an author, Mr. Grifa has been published in INform Magazine (published by the Indiana Music Education Association) with an article on using technology in the music classroom.  He is currently scheduled to publish an article in “The Instrumentalist”, a world-renowned music education publication in the summer of 2015.  Mr. Grifa resides in Westfield, Indiana with his wife, Suzy, and puppy, Mickey!

About Creekside MS Bands

Creekside Middle School consistently produces some of the best young bands in the nation year after year. The Creekside Wind Symphony was a “Rehearsal Lab” Band at the 2014 Indiana Music Educators Association Conference and a featured performance band at the 2013 IMEA conference. 

The Creekside Wind Symphony performed at the 2013 Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic as a featured band.  While at Midwest in 2013, the Creekside Wind Symphony also was a “Rehearsal Lab” band for Ms. Linda Gammon, a renowned band educator from Virginia.  Mr. Grifa’s ensembles have consistently received Gold Awards, including several “Gold with Distinction” Awards at the Indiana State School Music Association Organizational Contests.

About Midwest International Band & Orchestra Conference

What began as 120 music directors meeting for six hours in a Chicago YWCA gym has now become the annual four-day band and orchestra conference known as The Midwest Clinic: An International Band and Orchestra Conference. For the past 67 years, musicians, educators and people passionate about music education of all skill levels have gathered in Chicago for the largest music conference of its kind.

With more than 17,000 attendees from all 50 states and more than 30 countries, The Midwest Clinic offers guests interested in music education an array of clinics and exhibits, as well as access to music and teaching icons. The conference will also focus on industry trends and future topics in business and music education.  For more information, please visit: www.midwestclinic.org

Carmel World Guard Wins 6th Straight IHSCGA State Championship!

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The Carmel World Guard continued their fantastic season by winning their 6th straight IHSCGA State Championship on Saturday, March 21st.  The incredible members of the World Guard wowed a packed house of spectators at Center Grove High School with their show “Omega”.

The World Guard will culminate their season at the WGI World Championships in Dayton, Ohio from April 16t through the 18th.  To order tickets for this event please visit wgi.org.

Car Raffle Winner selects the BMW X1 from Dreyer & Reinbold!

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Mr. James Keating, the winner of the 2014 Carmel Bands Car Raffle, picked the BMW X1 from Dreyer  & Reinbold’s inventory of BMW and Mini automobiles.

James and his wife, Nancy, have always helped their neighbor kids by purchasing fundraising items such as candles, wrapping paper, car wash tickets and of course, Carmel Bands car raffle tickets.  Saxophone player Cameron Rhea sold the winning ticket to the Keatings, just one of the150 tickets that Cameron sold in the raffle.     Cameron is pictured below with Mr. Keating and the new 2015 BMW X1.

Mr. Keating was overjoyed at the news that his ticket had been selected as the winner and knew immediately which model he would select.  Keating and his wife were on vacation when they received the notice and the rental car they were driving was a BMW X1 model.  “I am just so thrilled to win this car.  I have never won anything in my life!” said, Keating.

Thank you to all the patrons who purchased tickets in support of the Marching Greyhounds!  The Carmel Band program and Boosters would also like to show their appreciation to Dreyer and Reinbold, Mr. Steve Baker, Sales Manager for his generous support of Carmel Bands.  A very special thank you goes to Sandy Hodges, Vice President of Ways and Means for the Carmel Band Boosters, who was the chair-person for the raffle.  Thank you Sandy!

 

CHS Marching Band Car Wash June 28th

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The 4th Annual Carmel High School Marching Band Car Wash will be held on Saturday, June from 9am – 3pm in the school’s West Parking Lot at Main Street and 4th 28th Tickets are $10 and can be purchased on the day of the event or in advance from any Marching Band member.

The popular car wash raises funds to support the marching band! Last year, the Marching Greyhounds washed more than 680 cars. Multiple lanes of wash/dry stations allow the students to clean so many cars! Members of the band’s field crew will have hot dogs and drinks on hand for purchase.

Please support your two time National Champion Carmel Marching Greyhounds at this year’s Carwash!

For more information, contact Sandy Hodges at waysandmeands@carmelbands.org Media contact: Ellen Smith, wikksmith@yahoo.com, 501-7856.

 

 

Color Guard Auditions 2014

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2014 Color Guard Auditions May 6th & 8th from 6:00-9:00 pm

  • Do you want to meet new friends?
  • Do you want to travel the country and perform in front of thousands of people?
  • Do you love to dance or do gymnastics?
  • Do you want to learn how to spin a flag, wooden rifle, or sabre?
  • Do you love to work hard and play hard?

Auditions to join the Carmel H.S. Color Guard in the upcoming Marching Band season are open to incoming CHS freshmen, sophomores and juniors. Auditions will take place on May 6th & 8th from 6:00-9:00 pm in the Band Room.

Interested students should wear comfortable work-out clothing and plan to attend BOTH evenings.  You don’t need to have experience; we will teach you what you need to know.

This is the year to try something new and be a part of this 5 time State Champion Group and 3 time World Champion!   If you have any questions, please contact Rosie Queen (rosiequeen@mac.com).

Help Dreams Come True!

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The kids of this year’s Carmel Marching Greyhounds are Dreaming Big! 

A message from Carmel Marching Greyhound

Director – Chris Kreke:

 

The kids of this year’s Carmel High School Marching Band are dreaming big. In addition to defending their 2012 ISSMA State and Bands of America Grand Nationals Championships, the Marching Greyhounds have accepted an invitation to perform in the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena on January 1, 2014. This is a prestigious honor and a once in a lifetime opportunity.

This year the theme of the Rose Parade is “Dreams Come True.” Most high school marching bands can only dream of one day participating in the granddaddy of them all. The Carmel Marching Band has worked extremely hard to earn its invitation to the Rose Parade. But it won’t be easy to raise the funds necessary to transport 300 students, chaperones and staff to California. It is the goal of the Carmel High School Band Boosters to help make the dream of marching in the Rose Parade a reality for each and every band member. And, we need the support of the family and friends of the band members, the Carmel Marching Greyhound Alumni and their friends and family, and the entire Carmel Community to achieve our goal.

Can you imagine the thrill when these kids — our kids — step off the line in front of a million people lining the parade route and 100 times as many watching on TV? It’s enough to get them believing that anything is possible if you work towards your dreams.

And isn’t that the kind of thinking we want to encourage in these extraordinary kids of Carmel?

Please give generously. Please share the dream.

Thank you,

Chris Kreke

Director, Carmel Marching Greyhounds

 

To donate online now follow the link below:

Dontate to Carmel Bands

Checks made payable to “CHS Band Booster” can be mailed to:

Carmel HS Band Boosters

PO Box 65

Carmel, IN 46082

For information about Corporate and Communty Sponsorships and related benefits please go to: CORPORATE/COMMUNITY SPONSORSHIPS

Mrs. Nancy Funk Won a NEW CAR from Dreyer and Reinbold!

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Congratulations to Mrs. Nancy Funk! Winner of the 2013 Carmel Marching Band “Win a Car” raffle, sponsored by Dreyer & Reinbold.

 

Thanks to the entire community for helping us make this a successful component of our fundraising campaign as we work together towards our common goal of the 2014 Rose Parade in Pasadena. Find out how you can help with your donations today..