September 2012 Volume 11 Issue 5

On a Roll Since CarrolL

Homecoming weekend is coming up fast! On Thursday, the multiple teams, clubs, and groups at the high school walk down Dayton-Xenia road for the Homecoming Parade. On Friday, there is the Homecoming Game at 7:00 pm against the Fairborn Skyhawks. As for Saturday, that’s the time to get groovy! BHS is hosting the Homecoming Dance held in the two gyms at the high school. Tickets sales have already started up and the Early Bird special for fifteen dollars a ticket is running out fast. Later on these passes will cost twenty dollars. The dance is held in the high school from 8-11pm which gives you plenty of time to take you and your “special friend” out to dinner or to spend some time with your other groupies beforehand. The Homecoming Dance is a great way to hang out with friends or meet someone new. As for those of you who are bringing a date, there is a photo shoot next to the gym so you and that special someone will always remember your time together.

Now for those of you who are trying to pick up that date, here are a couple lines to win them over!

“Hey I just met you, and this is crazy, but here’s my number, so Homecoming maybe?”

“I was so enchanted by your beauty that I ran into that wall over there. So I am going to need your name and number for insurance purposes and you’ll have to come with me to the high school on Homecoming to clear up some unfinished business.”

“I don’t know if you believe in fairytales, but I do now that I met a real princess like you. Would you mind if I escorted you to the ball?”

Or you could ask your date out in a special way like:

Buy some candy or flowers (for girls)

Create a clever puzzle for them to piece together that spells out your request to Homecoming

Place yourself inside a huge box and have your friend wheel yourself into the person’s classroom and then jump out, asking them to Homecoming. Make sure you have their teacher’s permission first!

been working hard this season, taking on several challenging teams in G.W.O.C. such as Fairfield, Carroll, and Hillard-Davidson. With an exciting victory over top rival Carroll High School on August 31st with a eye-opening final score of 63-0, the team continues to press on toward success. That night, the school backed up their competing athletes with a “Blackout”, a popular trend of the crowd to solely wear black to the game to support the team as the home stands applauded Beavercreek’s astounding amount of touchdowns from first to fourth quarter. On the road, it was a close call at Hillard-Davidson, a town not far from Columbus. While weather was a clear and threatening aspect of the night, rain and lightning held off in the nick of time as the team clawed down the Wildcats to the last thirty seconds of the game, with a possible tie on rise. Coach Clodfelter sent out the offensive line for a two point conversion on a 14-13 score, but came up one yard short of the win as dark clouds overhung the field. Still, the athletes are striving to rank high in G.W.O.C. this year with seven more games awaiting victory this season. Grab some tickets and head off to the next home game against Fairborn, the night before the Homecoming Dance and cheer on the Beavers to the win over the Skyhawks. Students can also support the team by buying various football t-shirts, available in the commons in all three lunches. Support all the athletics at Beavercreek and come on out to enjoy the game!

The Beavercreek High School football team has

A Quick Guide on How to Work Individually

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School has started for students at Beavercreek High School. That means homework, less sleep, and for band students, concerts! But, in order to perform successfully on a performance date, one must PRACTICE! Whatever the case may be, there are many ways one can do exactly that. Remember, when working on your musical instrument, be sure to warm-up first. That doesn’t mean do push-ups before you play the piano, but simply to play something easy, like a scale, to prepare you for what you’re about to practice. This month’s tip revolves around rhythms. Ever find yourself in front of a new piece of music and confused about the rhythm? Well first things first; break down the phrase! Start with the basics: write in the counts of the measure underneath those quarter, eighth, and pesky sixteenth notes! Next, try clapping out the rhythm, a technique that really helps your mind remember what you’re playing while working with a metronome. After you’ve broken down the pattern, try humming the pitches as you put your hands together. This will help you to understand what your piece of music sounds like. When you have it down solid, pick up your musical instrument and give it your best shot! Review:

1.) Break Down the Rhythm by Writing in Counts

2,) Clap the Rhythm with a Metronome

3.) Hum the Rhythm and Articulation as You Clap

4.) Attempt the Music with your Instrument

5). Never Give Up!

What’s That Musical Word? Rubato!

Have you ever been scolded about not keeping a steady tempo in band, but all you were trying to do is be expressive? Well if you knew it or not, you were using this very important musical term, though it is still not an excuse to mess up the tempo in an ensemble! Tempo rubato (usually simply as rubato) is when a musician fluctuates the tempo to show more expression in the song. Rubato literally means “stolen time”, and this technique is used in instrumental and vocal solos quite often. It is even used in jazz ensembles, but often shunned in larger groups like the concert bands here at Beavercreek High School because it can cause the band to fall apart if used too excessively. Rubato first became a popular melodic trend by composers of the romantic musical era when music was written not to be played exactly in tempo. It can be a very useful tool in enhancing the beauty of a musical phrase or a solo. Keep a look out for tempo rubato next time you pick out a musical piece!

In Beavercreek Bands, there’s tons of ways for students to get more involved and participate in many new and exciting things! From Pep Band, Jazz Band, to Winter Guard, there’s lots of fun for everyone. If your forte happens to be in writing, The Broken Drumhead is the right thing for you. Send in your own musical stories anywhere from personal experience about Beavercreek Bands to letting us know how awesome your new trumpet is! In case you need some help in guest writing for The Broken Drumhead, here are a few good places to start. All content is due October 10th, 2012.

Write us a review of any musical performance you saw! There’s tons of music around Beavercreek, let us know what you hear!

For those who were in Jazz Band, Winter Guard, or Pep Band last year, what was it like to perform and play in that ensemble? Pencil in what you think!

Who’s your favorite band or artist? Tell us why and give us a brief biography on the ensemble.

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C O R N E r

Featured Instrument: French Horn The French horn, usually seen in concert bands and orchestras, has been part of the brass family for over a century. Although in Beavercreek’s ensembles it is often simply called “horn,” the instrument has its own mixed origins. This variation of the brass family was originally

constructed in Germany creating a slight controversy in musicians today over whether it should be called “French horn” or simply “horn.” In the past, it was used in hunts and battles, playing specific rhythms as military codes for participants. The French horn has had many variations over the years: the mellophone, (often used in marching bands) the wagner tuba, the single horn, double horn, and even a triple horn. Each variation of the instrument has the capacity to play at different octaves and pitches. As the third highest brass instrument, the French horn is also one of the hardest winds to play. Unlike most instruments, the horn’s mouthpiece is funnel-shaped, which helps it to play up to five different octaves. It also is the only instrument that is played with the left hand while the right hand is inside the bell to help the musician with pitch. Come listen to the French horn in concert season!

In concert band, the French horns usually get a counter-melody or harmony part. They also play off-beats for the majority of march style tunes. Horn parts have so many off-beat parts to the extent that professional French horn players even make jokes about off-beats! Here’s a good one: How do you get your violin section to sound like the horn section? Have them miss every other note! Other than these types of parts, French horns get the melody fairly often in a concert band, and sometimes even solos. French horn is also a fairly difficult brass instrument to play because it has significantly more “shelves”, or partials, than any other brass instrument. That means it is very easy to play a wrong note. To be able to play a horn well, you have to be able to hear the music in your head before you actually play the notes. That is why French horns take an extra amount of skill to play well. If you play this instrument in the BHS concert bands and are interested in improving your skills, taking private lessons is a smart idea. The private lessons teacher at BHS is Mr. Bobby Bresemann. He teaches at multiple school districts in the area and has a large number of students. If you’re interested in taking lessons with Mr. Bresemann, his contact information is on the band website. Private lessons are a great way to significantly better your skills on French horn, or any instrument.

What’s It Like To Play French Horn?

As school starts back up, all concert bands have been practicing the Jethro Tull music during the school day. However, half of this year’s instrumentalists do not participate in the marching band. So what is the benefit of practicing marching band music if half

the band won't even perform it? Here are some of the biggest reasons why!

1. Practice on harder tunes! The Jethro Tull show, in some

points, harder to play than regular concert music. Working with challenging music pushes students and improves the instrumentalists’ playing ability.

2. Pinpoints good music factors! Music factors like crescendos and decrescendos, tempo, posture, and articulations are stressed time and time again in rehearsal, and it can help both marching members and non-members alike to learn and practice these important musical characteristics.

3. It’s Jethro Tull! Who doesn't want to play rock music in band class? It’s awesome!

Concert Apparel

All Concerts

Begin at 7pm in

the BHS

Auditorium.

Holiday Concert

December 17th

Winter Concert

February 21st

Spring Concert

May 9th

Don’t forget to check

the band website for

all band events this school year!

Although Beavercreek is one of the few remaining schools to not wear designated uniforms to concerts, there is still a dress code! Straight from the handbook, students must wear black

and white, black bottoms with a white top. You don’t have to look like James Bond, but while there’s still plenty of time to watch sales of nearby stores, simply look for a nice dress shirt and black bottoms. Girls are permitted to wear black skirts and dresses as long as they follow Beavercreek’s dress code! Colors and jeans are not allowed, and dress shoes are also highly recommended! Whether you’re looking for a necktie or bowtie, check out your local stores and get your concert attire together for the school year so you can look snazzy at show time!

Points A Plenty

Between rests and class time, don’t forget about band’s quarterly assignment, the point sheet! Forms are available in the band room for early birds with several possible categories for students to fill out. Although it’s due in October, it’s a great idea to get it done early and not do it at the last minute when your homework really starts piling up. Keep it in your folder and get it done when you have some free-time. This piece of paper needs to be signed by a parent and yourself before turning into Mr. McCullough in mid October and is worth over a third of your grade! Besides an exam, this is the biggest thing any student could do to get themselves the best score in band. Don’t forget and don’t procrastinate and you’re on your way to a straight A!

Underneath the Stripes

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2012-2013 Marching Band

Paying it Forward Helping Out at Ferguson

How to Master

8/5 Marching This year, Pre-Game will be one of the hardest challenges all season, even tougher than marching at Vanderbilt Stadium later on. In the past, members of the band would only be denied a performance because of behavior or a missing uniform part, but it has been the executive decision by the band staff that in the 2012-2013 season, only members that can accurately march 8/5 forwards marching will participate in Pre-Game. On Thursdays prior to home games, the band will be closely watched by staff members and those who do not hit yard lines on counts four or eight consistently will not march the following football game. Rest assured, all 203 members of the band will march in the Jethro Tull show, but not always in Pre-Game. Because of this new challenge, one of the biggest questions in the band is how does one get better at 8/5 marching? There are a couple of ways! Try one of these methods! A). Make a Track! In previous years, making a track of perfectly measured 22.5 inch steps and taping them to the floor with dowel rods underneath helps a bunch! Here’s a visual and how to do it! Materials: Dowel Rods, either duct or masking tape, five yards of space, yardstick or ruler, and a writing utensil! 1). Tape a five yard straight line. This is to keep your step sizes (22.5 increments) in a straight line rather than crooked. Try to be as accurate as possible and mark where it begins and ends. Make sure where you decide to tape down is okay with your parents! 2). Start at the beginning and measure out 22.5 inches eight times. With each 22.5 inches, mark it with your writing utensil on the tape already there by drawing a straight line with your ruler. There should also be lines at the very beginning and end of the tape line already there. 3). Go back and tape dowel rods and place them exactly on the lines you just drew. Tape them down tightly so they do not roll or move underneath and repeat for each mark. 4). March it! Take your shoes off and march in socks 8/5! You should feel exactly where your feet should be hitting. Remember to center your foot center of the line and practice every time you walk through that area. You’ll have it mastered in no time.

B). Practice Marching It! Nothing’s better that practicing it over and over again! Repetition is well known for being one of the most helpful ways for people to learn, like studying for a vocabulary quiz. The stadium and the practice field are great places to visit! You can practice step size and marching 8/5 there at any time and as often as you want. Even marching up and down the yard lines before practice will give you a boost on the tapping game! Remember that your individual marching skills are just as important in Pre-Game as they are in the Jethro Tull contest show. Students should use Pre-Game as a way to perfect the basics so when the ensemble moves onto something more difficult such as 6/5 marching or double time, high toes and being in step are already set standards like standing at attention. If you truly want to master the visual aspect of marching band, march 8/5 every day but in all the forms of movement like forwards and backwards flanking as well as reverse marching. Strive to pull back your shoulders and lift as high as you can while working with a metronome. Even after a week you’ll see a significant difference! Give it a try and work on perfecting your marching this month!

To the Left, what an 8/5 marching track

should look like!

To the Right, the equivalent to 8/5, five

yards.

The Beavercreek Marching Band and Color Guard have long believed in the powerful concept of Pay it Forward. To the band, this means to help out people not necessarily for a price for labor, but because it’s the right thing to do even though the receiver could never pay you back. In a way, the students ask those they help to pass on the help that was given, thus the concept Pay it Forward. Just before school opened in August, the instrumentalists and color guard headed on up to Ferguson Middle School, one of Beavercreek’s many educational facilities to help them move in after months of renovating the building. Seniors put up posters, cleaned marker boards, and organized the books in the library while freshman broke down boxes, rearranged desks, and many other tasks. The process took a total of four days and the 203 piece marching band’s efforts, but eventually Ferguson began to look like classrooms and a school again after each progressive day. Between running up and down stairs to grabbing some scissors, students made several empty rooms become the center of learning for sixth, seventh, and eighth grade. A lot of work was required to change open rooms into a classroom, but the band got it done in less than ninety six hours. Although Paying it Forward on a grand scale is a tough thing to do, think about this. What can you do to help someone out today? Are you Paid Up? Even the smaller things help the big things get even better. See how you can impact someone today and help them. A little certainly goes a long way!

Underneath the Stripes II

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The Aqualung Tour

Dodging

Thunderbolts

As the band enters its competitive season, they fight not only against rival ensembles like Lakota West and Grove City, but also themselves. Throughout the season the band has focused in the powerful concept “Play to the Whistle Blows,” even though it means taking it back time and time again until it’s impossible to perform it incorrectly. With contest season kicking up as quickly as the tempo in the show, The Broken Drumhead follows Beavercreek’s largest performing ensemble from their small beginnings to an infinitely rewarding conclusion at O.M.E.A. State Finals.

Triumphant at Troy

A Close Call In Football

“Pretty ironic, isn’t it?” murmured many marching band members on Saturday, the first of September. The show at the home of the Northmont Thunderbolts was rained out for the second year in a row. Everyone knew there was a possibility of storms for that weekend because of the approaching Hurricane Isaac. The day started out dry and was still fair weather after the marching band had finished their afternoon rehearsal. The band had been having a fantastic day, and everyone was completely ready to have the best performance yet this season. Much fun was had during the dinner break with the first band buddy gifts being distributed. Then about half way to Northmont, the downpour hit the six yellow buses. The rain had mostly stopped by the time of arrival, but the show was already on a delay. Most members were in a skeptical mood as they filed off the buses and saw a flash of lightning here and there. Sure enough, as soon as the truck was unloaded, the band found out that the show was officially cancelled. All were disappointed, but nobody was surprised as they made their way back to the buses and the truck was reloaded. It was a gloomy way to end the weekend, but after having fun unloading the truck back at the high school in the pouring rain, almost everyone went home cheerful.

And that’s when the band popped in!

Beavercreek Popcorn Festival 2012 On the third day of the Popcorn Festival, at 10 in the morning, a selected group from the BHS Marching Band played in front of the 9/11 memorial on North Fairfield. There were multiple speeches given for the families and friends of those who lost members in the tragic event. The band performed their own rendition of America the Beautiful that was made for their performance in New York in 2001. There was also the National Anthem and a group of trumpet players performed Taps. At 1:00 pm, the marching band performed a standstill by the performance stage in front of the Kroger gas station. The band performed a multitude of songs that day including their entire show, the National Anthem, America the Beautiful, the Alma Mater, On Wisconsin!, and a few other football tunes. The crowd clapped along and cheered during the fight song and listened in anticipation as the band ran through their songs. At the end, as the band walked back towards their truck, you could hear the crowd buzzing with enjoyment!

Football At Hillard-Davidson

This past weekend was a huge opportunity for the marching band as the Battling

Beavers took on the Wildcats on September 7th. The band director for Hilliard’s

marching band would soon be judging the Pride of Beavercreek at the Troy

Invitational in Troy, Ohio the following day. With the Hilliard band director

standing at the 50 yard-line, the Beavercreek marching band performed on a grass

field for the first time this season. Despite the struggles and challenges, the band

prevailed and gave the Hilliard crowd their money’s worth, performing the first

two segments of this year’s Jethro Tull show. However, due to the weather, the

night was called off early, and the band didn't have chance to show off the whole

show, and they headed home as the game came to a close.

With a late night last night at Hillard-Davidson high school, the band hopped to rehearsal at two in the afternoon, orange and yellow apparel abundant across the practice field. Prior to upcoming attractions later in the evening, the band worked with Mrs. McCullough to perfect an extensive dance move in the beginning of third segment, featuring the new improved brass ensemble along with trumpet soloist Valarie. While truck crew loaded following full band practice, students grabbed a sack lunch and ate before hopping on busses to Troy Ohio for their first true competition. A favorite within the band, many sophomores were ready to take on Lakota West in the 2012 season as they stretched with drum major Jacob before getting dressed for competition. The ensemble took the field about an hour later and lifted their horns as their conductor counted off Aqualung visually and began the show. Jumping from trumpet, trombone, to mellophone feature, the band took the tempo and performed astoundingly for the first show, pausing only to allow a standing ovation in the crowd at the end of third segment. As the snares led the band off the field, the ensemble would later enter to nearly steal first place, but instead taking second home as Emily, clarinet section leader, called the band to attention during awards. The band headed home that night as the leader in both marching and general effect, qualifying for state, and the closest score between themselves and Lakota West in years.

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Want to know the How,

When or Why?

thebrokendrumhead@gmail.com

This edition of The Broken Drumhead was written by Caitlyn, Alex, Matt, and Jonah. Photographs are accredited to the BHS Band Alumni page, Google, and the individual writers of the official student newsletter.

The Broken Drumhead represents the student perspective of Beavercreek ensembles and is not necessarily representative

other performing groups or Beavercreek Band Staff. Our team writes for the betterment of the music program and its

participants and any issues regarding written content in the newsletter can be addressed at the above e-mail address.

Thanks for Reading!

Look out for the next edition on October 15th

, 2012!

Send us an email at the below address if you have any questions, comments, or concerns for this month’s content! We’d love to hear from you!

Autumn

Play That Funky Music! With a very cool dance coming up, it’s important to get feet in tempo and show off for a very special date at 2012’s Homecoming! What would you dance to? Here’s a few songs to get you started and grooving.

Cha-Cha Slide – DJ Casper Party Rock Anthem – LMAFO Cupid Shuffle – Cupid Hey Jude – The Beatles Bad Romance – Lady Gaga Some Nights – Fun. I Like It – Enrique Iglesias

Think About This!

“You have to expect

things out of

yourself before you

can do them.” Michael Jordan, world famous NBA athlete, Olympian, and featured professional for September’s Quote of the Month.

I Kissed A Girl – Katie Perry Shake It – Metro Station Animal – Neon Trees Your Song – Moulin Rogue Wish You Were Here – Avril Lavigne Catchafire – Toby Mac Viva La Vida - Coldplay

Meet Autumn, a junior trombone player in the Beavercreek band

program! Autumn is a part of the low brass ensemble, marching

band, winter guard, and symphonic band! She has many hobbies,

including writing, drawing, reading, and hanging out with her best

friend Megan! Autumn is an amazing trombone player. She has

been playing the trombone for five years and has participated in

the Pink Floyd, MUSE, and Jethro Tull contest shows and actively

works on this year’s uniform committee. Autumn also has

impressive knowledge of color guard equipment as she proved her

dance and spinning skills in the winter guard show Ramalama Bang

Bang. Autumn has worked with many ensembles in her time at the

high school and is one of Beavercreek’s top performers as well as

one of the nicest upperclassman in the band today.

Now here’s a quick interview with Autumn! Q). Mermaids or Unicorns? A). Mermaids! Q). Which do you prefer, the moon or the sun?

A). I like the moon much better!

Q). Now that school has started, is there any way to make this school seem less big? For freshmen, high school can seem huge compared to middle school. It does have four different grades in it! The easiest way to find your way around school is to look up. Honestly! There are signs hanging in the hallways with classroom numbers and arrows pointing you in the correct direction. As long as you follow those signs, then there is no way you can get lost. Oh, and if any student tries to point you into the direction of our pool, do NOT listen to them. Really, there is no third floor or pool! Q). Any tips for making it through high school?

High school is a long four years of your life, but that doesn’t mean that those four years have to be boring. Here are some tips you can use throughout those years.

1. Be prepared! Link Crew knows what they’re talking about. Always have what you need for school and know where you’re going as far as your schedule. You never want to be the kid who is always asking the teacher for pens or directions.

2. Meet someone new! There are a ton of kids in this building and there’s got to be at least one who has something in common with you. Maybe they’re the person who sits alone at lunch. Say hi and who knows, maybe that girl in Spanish is really cool!

3. Be yourself! We know this last one seems clique but it is helpful. You can’t have fun at school if you try to be someone you’re not. You’ll always be pretending to have fun instead of actually enjoying school. High school is fun if you let it be!

Are you a student and have a question you’d like to ask? Send us an email! thebrokendrumhead@gmail.com