IMEA Auditions
Congratulations to all the McCracken Middle School students who auditioned for the IMEA District 7 Honor Band auditions today. Results should be sent out in the next couple of days.
Posted: September 29, 2007 | PermaLink
Cloyd Myers Memorial Award
Congratulations to our very own Director of Choirs, Beth Lehner, for being selected as this year’s recipient of the Illinois Grade School Music Association Cloyd Myers Memorial Award!
The Cloyd Myers Memorial Award is presented annually to a person who has demonstrated educational excellence in I.G.S.M.A. activities such as:
-
- A director who students consistently excel in I.G.S.M.A. events.
- An adjudicator who consistently produces excellent comments and suggestions for improvement.
- An Executive Board member who consistently fulfills his or her duties and strives for I.G.S.M.A. organizational improvement.
Congratulations!!!!
C. CLOYD MYERS
C. Cloyd Myers devoted many years of his active career to the Illinois Grade School Music Association. A graduate of Manchester College, North Manchester, IN, he received his Master’s Degree from the University of Michigan.
Having taught instrumental music in Osceola, Iowa, Mr. Myers began teaching in Sterling, IL, in 1939. It was during his first year of teaching there that the Illinois Grade School Band Association was formed. The entire state was divided into five districts. Cloyd Myers was appointed Chairman of the Northwest Division and elected Vice President in 1949. At the fall meeting of the Association held at the Kaskaskia Hotel in LaSalle in 1957 he was elected President. He was inducted as a charter member of the Band Masters Hall of Fame at Northwestern University in 1984.
In 1988 Mr. Myers was named President Emeritus of the Illinois Grade School Music Association and given a lifetime membership to the Executive Board. A plaque was presented honoring his 50 years service to the Association.
Mr. Myers was a World War II Navy veteran. He conducted the Sterling Municipal Band for 25 years. He was a member of the American School Band Directors Association, the Sterling Noon Rotary Club, the Sterling Elks Club, the Rock River Country Club, and a Paul Harris Fellow. Following his retirement in 1975 he directed the Singing Strings Ensemble. Mr. Myers passed away on June 30, 1991.
Posted: September 24, 2007 | PermaLink
National Wind Band Honors Project
Two Illinois high school bands were recognized with today’s announcement of the 2007 National Wind Band Honors:
-
- The Libertyville High School School Wind Ensemble (Don Shupe) was recognized in the AAAAA High School Division with special recognition to oboe soloist Anna Pollema
- The St. Charles East High School Wind Ensemble (Jim Kull) was recognized in the New Music Division. Three students were recognized as outstanding soloists: David Thomases (Trombone), Kevin Mueller (Soprano Saxophone), and Barrett Abraham (Clarinet)
Complete Results at the National Wind Band Honors project website. CONGRATULATIONS!
Posted: September 10, 2007 | PermaLink
Live Internet Broadcast Dec. 17
We are pleased to announce that the McCracken Middle School Symphonic Band, in partnership with BandDirector.com, will be presenting a live concert internet broadcast on Monday, December 17, 2007 at 7:00 PM. We’ll continue to post details as they become available.
Posted: September 7, 2007 | PermaLink
Sam Stryke Residency
The McCracken Middle School Bands has recently arranged a guest mini-residency program with noted pianist and commercial composer Sam Stryke. Mr. Stryke will work with band students, present a performance for McCracken MS (and possibly Middleton…I’m working on it!), and guest perform with the Symphonic Band and Swing Choirs at the Winter Concert on Dec. 6. It’s looking to be a fun and unique learning experience for our kids!
Mr. Stryke’s Bio:
“Composing music is like solving a puzzle,” says Sam Stryke. “It’s an intellectual challenge – obeying the rules and then breaking them in a creative and strategic way.” Relying on a combination of heart and intellect, the accomplished pianist taps into a reservoir of formal musical training and resurfaces with modern instrumentals infused with engaging melodies and rich orchestrations.
Atlantic Records released Stryke’s first solo album, the warm and melodic “In the Wind,” to critical acclaim in 1991. Five years later, he contributed compositions and performed on jazz trumpeter Rex Richardson’s “Pandora’s Pocket.” Stryke’s second solo album, 2002’s “Emerging,” cultivates his organic blend of acoustic and vintage electric instruments, as well as strings and horns.
“Christmas,” available in November 2006, is Stryke’s third major release. “The songs fit together to create a cozy and sentimental mood from beginning to end,” he says. “I’d like listeners to experience a nostalgic and peaceful antidote to the sometimes frenetic pace of the holiday season.” Chicago singer-songwriter Alice Peacock is featured in a special vocal performance of “The Holly and the Ivy,” with new lyrics by Stryke accompanied by the traditional melody.
A versatile artist, Stryke is also a talented commercial, film and television composer. “Composing for commercials is easier than creating my own music,” he says. “In ads, the picture dictates much of the writing and the direction is clear. When I’m composing for myself, there are many more options, which requires more soul searching.” Stryke finds that the two worlds provide a creative balance - the fast and furious pace of advertising complements the introspective and thoughtful process of making albums.
Working with longtime friend and guitarist Sandy Torano at Scandal Music in Chicago, Stryke has written music for Anheuser-Busch, McDonald’s, Capital One, and Nintendo, among others. He is a contributing composer for The Oprah Winfrey Show and, with Torano, created the theme music for Oprah and Friends, Winfrey’s XM Satellite Radio channel. His music has been featured in numerous Super Bowl commercials, including USA Today’s 2006 poll winner, “Magic Fridge,” and also in the popular “Bud Light Real Men of Genius” radio campaign. Stryke has collaborated with Academy Award-winning composer and singer Randy Newman and scored the movies “In Check” in 2001 and “Merlot” in 1998.
A native of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Stryke moved to Chicago, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in music from Northwestern University in 1993. He has studied with jazz pianist Michael Kocour, noted composer and arranger Cliff Colnot, and New York-based jazz pianist Jim McNeely through a National Endowment for the Arts grant in 1994.
Stryke resides on the north side of Chicago with his wife, Heather, and his two children, Xander and Sophie.(By Elizabeth Hinshaw Hall)
Posted: September 6, 2007 | PermaLink
Sad News
Very sad news today. Connie Johnson, who most in the Middleton Elementary School and Skokie School District 73.5 community would know as the “grandfriend” alway volunteering in the Middleton office and around school, recently passed away.
Connie A. Johnson, nee Gebbia, age 79, of Morton Grove, formerly of Skokie. Loving mother of Larry (Nancy), Robert (Carol) and Beth (Mark) Johnson and Judy (Izzy) Burnstein; dear grandmother of six; cherished great-grandmother of four; fond sister of Yolanda (the late Thomas) Oakson, the late Elvera Hopkins and Evelyn (Joe) Ripoli. Visitation Tuesday, 3 to 9 p.m. with Prayer Service at 7:30 p.m. at Haben Funeral Home & Crematory, 8057 Niles Center Rd., Skokie. Cremation private. Donations may be made to The American Cancer Society or to the charity of your choice. Funeral Info: 847-673-6111.
Online Memorial and Guest Book
Posted: September 3, 2007 | PermaLink
In Memorium: Sandy Feldstein
I imagine almost everyone who has picked up a band instrument has been exposed to the music of Sandy Feldstein. His partnership with John O’Reilly alone yielded dozens, if not hundreds of works. His strong presence in our profession will surely be missed.
-
- Honoring the life and work of Sandy Feldstein 1940 - 2007 [Music for All]
- Sandy Feldstein (1940-2007): Friend [SBO Magazine]
Posted: September 1, 2007 | PermaLink