Week of November 28
2024 Band Trip — New York City
The votes are in, and we are traveling to New York City over spring break in 2024! It was a close race, but the votes, along with comments on pricing, determined that NYC was the right choice.
We will be hosting an informational meeting on December 15th at 7pm in the Oshkosh West O-Room. Please enter through door #26 which will lead you right into the O-Room. This meeting is purely informational; no one will be obligated to travel by attending.
The trip is open to all students who will be enrolled in a band class at West next school year and their families. This is a totally optional trip; everyone is encouraged to travel with us, but no one is required.
At the meeting, we will share a tentative itinerary, tentative costs, and fundraising options. Following the meeting, we will begin a fundraiser that will run for the next several weeks. More information will be available on our fundraising page.
Don’t let money be an issue! We have had many students pay for their entire trip with fundraising! If you are interested in traveling with us but may have financial barriers, please attend the meeting and learn how we can make it work for your family.
If you are unable to attend the meeting, we will be able to share meeting materials the following day. More information will also be available on our trip page.
See you on December 15th at 7pm in the Oshkosh West O-Room!
Oshkosh Holiday Parade — December 1
Each year, all students in our four bands combine to perform in the Oshkosh and Appleton Holiday Parades. This is a required performance for all students.
The uniform for the parades is as follows:
All students will wear their marching uniform jacket, pants, and hat provided by the school. Students are responsible for providing long black socks and all-black shoes. Shoes that are not all-black will be made all-black. Expensive and/or fancy shoes are unnecessary! Find a pair of cheap all-black shoes that will last all four years at Walmart, Target, Goodwill, or your favorite local store. Students with financial difficulties should contact Mr. Singer or Mr. Wilson for assistance. (Students will not board the bus or be able to perform without the proper attire.)
It will be cold! The band program provides clean black ear warmers to be worn underneath the marching hats. The uniforms were fit with a little room so students can wear thermals, sweatshirts, Underarmour, or the like. Please do not wear anything with a hood as that will make the jacket bunchy. It may be a good idea to bring hand and/or foot warmers as well.
Holiday Parade Volunteers
We still need some help for the Oshkosh Holiday Parade on December 1st. Please take a moment to visit our Volunteer Sign-Up page to contribute to your student’s success!
For the fall holiday parades, we need help with the following:
Uniform Distribution: 4:30-5:30pm
These positions will assist students in finding uniforms and hats.
Uniform Collection: 8:00-8:45pm
These positions will verify that students have hung their uniforms up properly and put the hats back on the shelves.
Holiday Stocking Stuffer Ideas
The holiday season is here and your student would love to get a few upgrades this year! Below is a list of items that might help your student become a better musician. If you have any questions about specific brands, please let us know!
All Music Students
step-up instrument
private lessons (scholarships available)
app store gift card for music apps
folding music stand for home practice
professional instrument cleaning or maintenance
instrument stand
solo/ensemble sheet music
music store gift cards
local symphony tickets
music-related clothing
Woodwind Players
cleaning swab
step-up mouthpiece
step-up barrel (clarinet)
step-up ligature
reed case
reeds
neck strap
cork grease
Brass Players
step-up mouthpiece
brass mutes
valve oil
slide grease
mouthpiece case
polishing cloth
Percussionists
sticks and mallets
practice pad
practice snare drum or mallet instrument
drumset
Basketball Pep Bands
Basketball season begins soon and that means we begin our second pep band season! Call time in the West band room is 6:45, and we’ll begin playing before the Varsity games around 7:00, depending on the timing of the JV game that precedes the Varsity game. For most games, we expect to play for pregame and halftime. We expect the halftime performance to be over between 8:00 and 8:15. A list of basketball pep band assignments can be found here.
When we play halftime, students may sit in the student section or pep band section during the first half but should be back in the pep band section with two minutes left on the clock before halftime to prepare for the second performance. The uniform for these games is West or blue and white gear or the student section theme.
Band-o-Rama — December 17, 2022
We are excited to continue our new tradition of having all 700+ district band students perform at Band-o-Rama!
This year’s performance will be on December 17th at 6pm in the Oshkosh North Fieldhouse. Due to fire code, each student we are asking each student to bring only 2-3 audience members. Please let us know if you’d like to bring more, as we may be able to accommodate that as well. (There will be not tickets this year.) The event will also be recorded and a video will be shared following the performance.
Due to the magnitude of the performance, we will have a required rehearsal in the fieldhouse prior to the performance. Below is the high school schedule for the day:
12:40 pm Arrive at North and report to homerooms
1:00 pm 6-12 rehearsal
1:30 pm 7-12 rehearsal
2:00 pm Combined Wildcat, Spartan, and Concert Bands rehearsal
2:30 pm Combined High School rehearsal
3:00 pm Combined Wind Ensemble and Varsity Band rehearsal (Wildcat, Spartan, and Concert Bands students dismissed)
3:30 pm Wind Ensemble and Varsity Band students dismissed
5:30 pm call time to homerooms
6:00 pm Performance
For concert dress, all high school students will wear concert black. Concert black can include black dress pants, black slacks, an all-black skirt that extends below the knee, an all-black dress, an all-black dress shirt, or an all-black blouse. All students should wear all-black shoes. If wearing pants, students should also wear LONG black socks. As this is a more formal occasion, please do not wear t-shirts, hoodies, leggings, or shorts.
If you need assistance in acquiring any of these items, please contact me as soon as possible. Looking like a unified ensemble is an important component of our presentation!
Band-o-Rama Volunteers
We will need lots of volunteers to help make Band-o-Rama a huge success! The following volunteer positions are needed. Position descriptions are available here. Please sign up on our Volunteer page. Thank you for your assistance!
Saturday, December 17th (Morning)
Water Donations (24-36 pack) (Please bring with your student in the morning.)
Chair, Stand, and Percussion Placement (8:00am to 10:00am)
Homeroom Monitors (MS: 10:30am to 1:45pm, HS: 12:30 to 3:45pm)
Saturday, December 17th (Before Concert)
Homeroom Monitors (5:15pm to 6:50pm)
Ushers (5:15pm to 7:00pm)
Saturday, December 17th (After Concert)
Tear-Down (7:00pm to 8:00pm)
Grading and Make-Up Procedures
Are you curious about how grades are determined? Click here for more information!
Do you have to miss a pep band performance? Students who have a school-related activity are excused from the pep band performance. Students missing for any other reason must make up the performance to gain the points. Students wishing to be excused for a school-related activity should fill out this form prior to the date of the performance.
Do you have to miss a concert or parade performance? All students missing a concert or parade performance for any reason must make up the performance to earn the points.
View make-up procedures here. Please contact Mr. Singer or Mr. Wilson with questions.
Important Upcoming Dates
November 29 at 7:00pm (call time is 6:45pm) — BLUE Basketball Pep Band
December 1 at 6:15pm (call time is 3:33pm) — Oshkosh Holiday Parade (All Band Students)
December 6 from 8:00am to 3:33pm — Eighth Grade Band Day (Wind Ensemble)
December 13 at 7:00pm (call time is 6:45pm) — WHITE Basketball Pep Band
December 17 from 12:40 to 3:30 (tentative) — Band-o-Rama Rehearsals (All High School Band Students)
December 17 at 6:00pm (call time is 5:30pm) — Band-o-Rama Concert (All District Band Students)
January 3 at 7:00pm (call time is 6:45pm) — BLUE Basketball Pep Band (Eighth Grade Night)
January 6 at 7:00pm (call time is 6:45pm) — WHITE Basketball Pep Band