2008-2009 Marching Band Fees

Hot off the press!  The HHS Band Board has finalized the fees for the 2008-2009 Pride of Herndon Marching unit.  The total fee for each student is $475:

• Monday, June 2, 2008: The first payment of $200 is due
• Thursday, July 31, 2008: The second and final payment of $275 is due

For each payment, write a check for the respective amount to the HHS BPA.  Please write "Marching Band Fee" and the student's name on the memo line of the check.  Each payment can either be left in the Red Box (in an envelope first) or mailed to HHS BPA, P.O. Box 1293, Herndon, VA 20172-1293.  A registration form for Marching Band will be posted soon.

Band Banquet and Awards Ceremony

Mark your calendars now so you don't miss out on the great food and fun time as we honor those who have served the Pride of Herndon so well.

Join us for a gourmet Italian dinner from Santini's featuring two types of lasagna, two different salad choices, and rolls.  Dinner will be served at 6:00pm with background music provided by the Jazz Band.  Afterwards, we will move to the auditorium for the Awards Ceremony.  To add to this delicious spread, we are asking band families to donate drinks and desserts.  Families with last names beginning with:

• A-K: Please bring a six pack of water or your favorite soda
• L-Z: Please bring desserts (and a serving utensil if required!)  ** No nuts please **

In keeping with the Pride tradition, we would like to honor our seniors and their families for their years of service by having underclassmen and their families volunteer for some of the duties for the evening.  We are asking for the following help:

• Sophomore families: Set it up!
• Junior families: Serve it up!
• Freshman families: Clean it up!

Please send in your money ($12.50 per person - checks made out to HHSBPA) no later than May 29^th to reserve your spot.  Please put your check (or cash) into an envelope marked clearly with your name, number of guests, and "Awards Banquet", into the Red Box at your earliest convenience.  Please contact Mary Johnson at hospitality@herndonband.org or (703) 787-6877 to sign up for a volunteer position.

Mr. Bergman Recognized for 30 Years of Service

From Steve DeBenedittis, Mayor of Herndon Virginia:

Dear Herndon Band Parents, Present and Former:

The Herndon Town Council will formally recognize Mr. Richard Bergman for his 30 years of service as Band Director of Herndon High School and we cordially invite you and your family to attend the presentation.  The meeting is on Tuesday, May 27, at 7:00pm, in the Council Chambers, located at 765 Lynn Street, and the presentation will be one of the first items listed on the agenda.  Please contact the Town Clerk’s office at 703-435-6804 or town.clerk@herndon-va.gov to confirm if you will be able to join us.

We look forward to seeing you on May 27^th.

Saitama Sakae Wind Orchestra

The prestigious Saitama Sakae Wind Orchestra is visiting the United States in June.  The Herndon music program is graciously hosting them while they are in the Washington, DC area between June 18-20, 2008.  Help is needed to house the Japanese students for two nights (June 18^th and 19^th) during their stay in Nation's Capital.  Please click here to get additional details about their visit and hosting the students in your home.  If nothing else, make plans to see their concert at the High School at 7:30pm on June 19, 2008.

Color Guard Tryouts

There will be auditions for the HHS Color Guard on Monday May 19, 2008 and Tuesday May 20, 2008.  Auditions will be between 6:00p and 8:00p each day at the High School.  Please contact Marcus Lewis at directorguard@herndonband.org if you have any questions.

Results from the Disney Performances

Several HHS Music Department groups performed and competed at Festival Disney during the week of April 10th, 2008 --- and they all made the Herndon High School community proud!  The results ...

• Symphonic Band received SUPERIOR Rating.
• Wind Ensemble received SUPERIOR Rating, and the Silver Award over all for Concert Bands.  Jessica Yu received special recognition for her solo in Wind Ensemble.
• Percussion Ensembles received SUPERIOR Rating.
• Jazz Band received a SUPERIOR Rating and BEST IN CLASS for jazz bands.
• Concert Choir received SUPERIOR Rating.
• Herndon Chorale received SUPERIOR Rating, BEST IN CLASS and the BRONZE AWARD for overall concert choirs and women's choirs.
• Show Choir received SUPERIOR Rating.
• Men's Choir received SUPERIOR Rating.
• Madrigals received SUPERIOR Rating, BEST IN CLASS and the GOLD AWARD for overall specialty choirs.
• Vocal Jazz received SUPERIOR Rating and BEST IN CLASS for the jazz choirs.
• Symphonic Orchestra received EXCELLENT Rating.
• Concert Orchestra received GOOD Rating.

A huge contratulations to all students who endured the long trip and performed so magnificently!  And don't forget to check out all the Disney photos on the Photo Album page.

Indoor DrumLine Takes First Place!!

On Sunday, April 6, 2008, the Herndon Indoor Drum Line took first place in the Scholastic Class A at the AIA Circuit Championships.  They earned their spot in the finals on Sunday evening with another first place finish in the semi-finals on Saturday evening.  This is a phenominal achievement for the Drum Line, since this is their first year of competition since the 1996-1997 school year, and considering they started the season in the Novice class.  Many thanks to PJ, Amanda and Mike for their efforts this season!

From Mr. Bergman:
Congratulations are in order for our Pride of Herndon Band indoor drumline.  They competed this past weekend at the Finals of the AIA Association Regional Championships and after scoring first in preliminaries (out of 22 groups), went on to beat everyone in their class by over two points.

This is the first time since 1997 that our drumline has competed in indoor competition.  They were so successful that they were bumped up a class after their first competition, and this is the first time in the AIA history that a group which was in its first year and was bumped up a class won the CHAMPIONSHIPS!!!!

CONGRATS TO OUR PERCUSSIONISTS, STATE AND REGIONAL CHAMPIONS!!!!!

Mr. Bergman Honored as Educator of the Year!

On Saturday March 8, 2008 Mr. Bergman was honored by the Dulles Regional Chamber of Commerce as the 2007 - 2008 Educator of the Year, recognizing his 34 years devoted to teaching music. Mr. Bergman was presented the award at a black tie dinner, which included such luminaries as former Governor Jim Gilmore, Mayor Steve DeBenedittis, former Redskin Ken Harvey and Herndon High's own Jim Hannon! The evening also featured the sounds of our Saxophone Ensemble, who entertained the guests before and during dinner! The students participating were Emily Walter, Elizabeth Botha, Matt Breuer, Marc Stallard and Ben Renne.

Mr. Bergman was further honored when it was announced that several of the local companies in the Dulles Regional Chamber of Commerce had donated funds totalling $2,100 as seed money for the Richard L. Bergman Scholarship Fund. This is hoped to be only the beginning of a scholarship fund that will be awarded to outstanding students going on to college who are going to continue with their music studies. What a fitting tribute to Mr. Bergman, ensuring that his legacy and impact on the Herndon High School band program will continue to be felt even after he retires.

Pictures from the evening, including the awards ceremony and our Saxaphone Ensemble, can be found here.

- Sign Up NOW!

The HHS Bands use Yahoo! groups as one of the ways to communicate with the band members and their families throughout the year.  For those of you who are new to the band, we call these communications Band Blasts.  Our BandBlast master is Katy Betti.  If you have any questions about the groups, please contact Katy at blastmaster@herndonband.org.

NOTE: Please sign up for (1) the General Band, (2) your band and (3) your class.

The following Yahoo! groups have been created for the Herndon High School Band families and students:

Click on any of the Yahoo! groups listed above to sign up for that particular group or click here to go to the HHS Band Yahoo! page and sign up for any of the Yahoo! groups.  Step-by-step instructions are available for your convenience.

HHS Marching Band Schedule for 2008-2009

Mr. Bergman has released the 2008 band camp and marching rehearsal schedules.  Band camp is mandatory.  Please avoid scheduling vacations or appointments during camp weeks and times.  It is during these weeks that the band learns the entire marching show. (Printable version here.)

2008 Summer Rehearsal

Congratulations, Symphonic and Wind Ensemble!

From Mr. Bergman:
I want to congratulate the Pride of Herndon Bands who participated in the District XI Festival at West Potomac (February 2-3, 2008).  Band Festivals are our SOL/AP evaluations for our programs (in Florida they call it “musical assessments”).

The Symphonic Band scored Excellent ratings and performed very well.

The Wind Ensemble received straight Superior ratings (Is), and received bravos from all in attendance.  Even the adjudicators stood to applaud the Wind Ensemble!  Comments ranging from “this is one of the finest bands in the country, by far!” to “I'm honored to share this moment with you!” were numerous and generous.

So, as this is my last Festival, I want to share with all of you my immense pride in the accomplishments of our world class band program!

Band Parent Volunteers Wanted

Thank you to the many band parents who have volunteered to help our band this year, and who have already volunteered to help our band next year in many different capacities. If you would like to be involved in band activities next year and have not yet volunteered, we would love to have you on our many band committees. These include the uniform committee, field logistics committee, hospitality committee, concessions committee, and band aid committee. The more hands we have available, the easier and more fun these volunteer opportunities are! For more information on individual committees, please contact Davida Luehrs at volunteer@herndonband.org. For information on board positions, please contact Rich Yuras at President@herndonband.org.

Harris Teeter VIC Card Now Benefits Herndon Band

Harris Teeter now has an account on the VIC card that will send funds directly to the band program. If you do not have a card yet, you can sign up online at www.harristeeter.com (code 6075). If you already have a card, you can either ask the cashier to link your card to the program, or you can stop by the service desk to sign up. The card brings benefits of savings and entry into their frequent prize programs. The band receives 5% of all purchases of Harris Teeter private label products. Please note that the high school also has a code, so be sure to ask specifically for the band program - 6075 - to have the benefits sent directly to the band program.