District IV Solo and Ensemble Registration

Walled Lake Central | February 9-10, 2024

Deadline to register is Tuesday, November 9, 2024

Student Name

First Name

Last Name

Student BHS Email

Legal Parent/Guardian Contact #1 Name

First Name

Last Name

Legal Parent/Guardian Contact # 1 Email

Legal Parent/Guardian Contact #2 Name

First Name

Last Name

Legal Parent/Guardian Contact # 2 Email

Performance Date

This is only a request and does not guarantee when your performance will be

Choose the instrument or Chamber Type

Event Type

Enter first and last name for each participant. Solo (1 person), Ensemble (2-8 persons), Chamber Ens. (9-20 persons)

Annotate who the participant is the leader is. Include students name, instrument, and graduation year.

Accompaniment

Piano Accompanist Name

If performing with a Piano Accompanist

First Name

Last Name

Piano

Do you need a piano in the section room?

Time Preference

This is only a request and does not guarantee when your performance will be

List any documented student accommodations or modifications (504/IEP) that you plan to provide or is applicable for this event

District IV Solo and Ensemble Schedule

Walled Lake Central High School

1600 Oakley Park Rd

Commerce Charter Twp, MI 48390

Piano Accompanist and Contact Information

Carla Lickich - merrittlanemusic@gmail.com

Sandra Main-Niemisto - sandramain21@gmail.com

CT Hollis - ct88keys@gmail.com

Cat Menzies - catdmenzies@gmail.com

District and State Solo and Ensemble

Fees for District 4 Solo and Ensemble Festival

Instrumental solo

$10 + accompanist

Piano Solo

$18

Ensembles:

duet - $20
trio - $27
quartet - $36
quintet - $45
sextet - $54
septet - $63
octet - $72

Chamber ensemble

$9 per person, 9 or more people
Once the deadline for registration passes, no fees are refundable.

Make checks payable to Berkley High School (Memo: S&E Festival)

An event is not registered unless the FULL cost has been paid before the deadline. If any member of an event fails to pay before the deadline, the entire event is considered late and the event will be subject to a late fee. Because MSBOA sets up this festival for students that are members of school bands, students that drop band must be dropped from the festival without refund.
***Piano accompanists must be arranged on your own. The accompanist fee will usually be due on performance day. Students that drop out at the last minute will still be expected to compensate the accompanist for preparation time. NOTE: This accompanist fee is paid in addition to the solo registration fee.
(High School) State fees for high school students who qualify are not consistent with district fees. Fees are slightly higher for high school state solo & ensemble festivals.
A student’s reserved time of performance is not known by the director until about 8 days prior to the festival. If a student ends up with a time that is in conflict with a family schedule, it is the responsibility of the student and family to approach the director immediately to resolve the conflict in order to ensure participation.

Ratings:

Division I Rating: Performance of the highest caliber – medal awarded & events qualify for state festival
Division II Rating: Performance of quality, with minor flaws – medal awarded
Division III Rating: Performance with promise, but many flaws – no medal
Division IV/V Ratings: Performance with many flaws and weaknesses – no medal

What is it?

Solo and ensemble is an event sponsored by the Michigan School Band and Orchestra Association that allows students as soloists or as small groups to prepare music to be played before an adjudicator. Students learn musical independence by performing in small-group settings and hear individualized feedback from an expert on the instrument family on which the student performs.

Who can participate?

Students in Grades 7-12 that are regular members of a school band or orchestra can participate in the solo and ensemble festival. If a High School student earns a “first division rating”, they qualify for the state festival in March.

How do I register?

Your event must be paid in full by check before the registration deadline.
What if I miss the registration date?
District 4 charges a $100 fee if our school registers events late.

From where do I acquire music?

The band director can assist in the process of selecting music. MSBOA has certain guidelines for music to be played at the festival, including:

All parts that are written for that piece MUST be played, including piano parts. Piano parts may not be omitted.
Music must be written to be played at this type of event. Students may not play a page from their band music. It must be written expressly as a solo or as an ensemble.
Students may play only one person per part. Students may not “double” (i.e., 4 people playing a piece written as a duet for 2 people)
Events MUST exceed the MSBOA time minimum of 90 seconds for middle school and 2 minutes for high school. Repeat may not be added to artificially lengthen the piece of music. Repeats may be omitted, however, as long as the resulting performance still exceeds the minimum time limit.
Music must be drawn from classical, romantic, “traditional band” repertoire. Show music, pop, and jazz pieces are not acceptable for this type of festival.

Things that will result in an event not getting a rating:

Not having an original score for the judge (or an original part if a soloist)
Apart/line not being played (trio, but only 2 players show up)
Doubling (2 or more players on a part)
The event is too short (less than 2 minutes)
All parts being played are not notated in the score.
The piano part was written in score but not played.

Timeline:

3 months prior – student registers, receives music
3 and 2 months prior – event works with the director at least once and soloist contact an accompanist.
2 weeks prior – events have worked with the director at least 3 times. Soloists have worked with accompanists at least twice.
The week before – students work with the director at least one more time. Exact performance times and maps will become available from MSBOA. Soloists work with accompanists at least one more time. If you are going to perform at a time other than the one listed on your event sheet, make sure your accompanist knows when and where to meet you.
The day before – the student has original music for the judge and all accessories necessary to play, including reeds, valve oil, ligature screws, etc. Take your instrument and music home on Friday night – the band room will NOT be open Saturday morning. All players must have music for their event, including the piano player if necessary.
Day of Festival – Dress nicely; Bring an original and personal copy of music; Arrive 45 minutes before performance time; All copies of the music must have a number in every measure; Pay your accompanist, if you have one. Play, receive a rating.