Future Students

Is prior experience required to participate in Band?

• No! Band 6 students are completely new to playing a band instrument - no experience required! 

When do I sign-up for the Music Program?

• • Signing up for the Music Program happens once the school year has started in September. 

  • In the first week of school in September, grade 6 students will be given an overview of the music program. Students will come home with a physical handout letting you know that sign-up opens the second week of September via Google Forms (links on the front page of our website) and closes the Friday of the second week of school. 

What classes are offered for Grade 6 students?

• In Grade 6, students can choose to participate in: Band, Choir, and/or Strings. 

Is there a limit to how many music classes students can participate in? 

• No! Grade 6 students can participate in Band, Choir and/or Strings. Many of our music students participate in all three! 

Can you join Band in Grade 7 instead of Grade 6? 

• No. Grade 6 is the only year we teach your child how to play an instrument from the very beginning (no experience required). Band 7 students have one full year of experience playing an instrument and having beginners in the same class would be educationally unsound and a terrible experience for your child. 

• Even if your child is on the fence about Band, please have them join in grade 6! 

What levels of strings do you offer?

• In grade 6, students that played a string instrument (violin, viola, cello, or double bass) in grade 5 can join Strings 6. Strings 6 is the next step for students who have played for a year - the music gets more challenging, more interesting, and more exciting!

• If a student has taken private lessons outside of school, they can participate in Strings 6 or potentially, Strings 7/8 at North. 

• Unfortunately, we are unable to offer a Beginner Strings due to budget cuts. 

Does my child get to choose their Band instrument? 

• Band 6 students will indicate their top three choice of instruments when they sign-up for music in the second week of September. 

• 95% of the time, students get their first or second choice. We use this system to allow us to create balanced, educationally sound bands (i.e. a band with 50 saxophones and 1 flute is going to create a very poor learning environment). 

What instruments are available to Grade 6 Band students? 

• Flute

• Clarinet

• Alto Saxophone

• Trumpet

• Trombone

• Euphonium

• Percussion

• There are most instruments later on (ex: bass clarinet, tenor saxophone, tuba), but we believe in starting students on the above instruments. 

What is Percussion? Is it the same as Drum Kit? 

• Percussion are instruments that produce sound by being struck, shaken, or scraped. 

• In Band, Percussion is not drum kit. Percussion includes instruments such as snare drum, marimba, xylophone, bass drum, timpani and many more. Drum kit is very rarely seen in school band. 

What does the music schedule look like? What events are grade 6's involved in? 

• Please click here to view our timetable and here to view our calendar. 

• Our Handbook is our music families best resource - please click here to view it. 

Does participating in the music program cost money? 

• Yes. The biggest cost is the instrument rental. Fortunately, renting through Long and McQuade or Tapestry Music is affordable ($25-50/month) and gives your child the opportunity to try band with a quality instrument. 

• The other expenses are a method book ($18), a music program t-shirt ($15), a binder ($10), and depending on your child's instrument, there may be other, routine expenses (ex: reeds for clarinet and saxophone). 

• No child will be denied the opportunity to partcipate in music due to financial constraints. If your family is in financial need, please reach out to the music teachers at the start of the school year.