The ILMEA District 5 holds auditions for 2021-2022 District 5 ensembles on Monday, November 11th, 2021 at Effingham High School.  Only select senior high school band members are participating. The departure time is 6:30 AM behind the band room, (circle drive). The return time for the bus is estimated to be around 4 PM. High school students may travel back on the RCMS bus. That bus will does not stop for lunch, and will return to the middle school before 1 pm.

Students are encouraged to bring a cell phone so that they may call a parent upon returning to the school. Students are also encouraged to bring money or a sack lunch, as the bus will stop for lunch before returning back to Olney. To best represent our school and our community, students are expected to wear appropriate dress clothes to the event. Should you have any questions regarding what is appropriate, please contact Mr. Jones or Mr. Weitkamp.

If you are permitting your student to attend the field trip, please sign the form and return as soon as possible.  

Please feel free to call or email me should you have any questions. My contact information is in the header.

Here is the overview of where we are:

1. A single video audition YouTube link will be supplied by the nominating director into the Nomination Platform.

2. It will be the responsibility of the director to make sure that video audition contains all the audition components.

3. The video can be EITHER a one-take audition recording, where the student just starts the video and plays the entire audition straight through, OR a composite video where they have sliced together different component videos. The committee feels strongly that each component of the video (scales, triads, etudes, songs, excerpts, etc.) be unedited and language will be added to the instructions to make sure that is understood.

4. Instructional videos will be shared or created to assist students and directors who do not know how to splice difference videos together into one audition video.

5. Sample audition videos will be made to give those with questions a model for how it should look.

6. The committee feels strongly that we NOT specify technologies that must be used in this process. For example, we will not be telling participants what software they need to use to create these videos.

7. Sight-Reading will be eliminated for the 2020 Fall Festival Auditions.

8. Chorus Auditions will ONLY include the two state pieces this year.
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9. Percussion auditions will be limited to the snare and mallet components. Those components can be recorded with what equipment the student has available - for example, snare drum practice pad and bell kit.

This will help you get started. Please let me know if you have any questions. This is a perfect opportunity for your students to audition if they never have before. Very little pressure and they get to record it as many times as they want!

The RCHS Honors Wind Ensemble is performing at the 2020 ILMEA Large Group Festival on Saturday, March 14th at the Doudna Fine Arts Center at Eastern Illinois University. The performance attire is concert black-and-white (tuxes or dresses) that were issued out to the students at the beginning of the term. Parents may sign out their sons & daughters following the last RCHS performance that morning in the assigned homeroom.

Food and drinks are available in the food court at the University Union. Students may purchase food and drinks before the performance.

The schedule for the day is as follows:

ILMEA Large Group Festival
(TIMES UPDATED 2/25/2020 DUE TO SCHEDULE CHANGE)
9:30 AM.......................Call-time at RCHS
9:30 AM..........................Buses arrive at exit 22 at RCHS
9:40-10:59 AM.............Travel to Charleston, IL
11:00-11:29 AM...........Unload
11:30-12:29 PM...........Lunch at the food our in the University Union
12:30-12:59 PM...........Change into concert attire
1:00-1:29 PM...............Honors Wind Ensemble warm-up
1:30-1:59 PM.................Honors Wind Ensemble performance (Dvorak Hall)
2:00-2:29 PM................Band clinic
2:30-4:00 PM................Pack bus, travel to RCHS, unpack, & dismiss! (est. time)

CONTEST ADDRESS: Doudna Fine Arts Center is located at 1860 7th St, Charleston, IL 61920

PACKING LIST:

• Concert Attire
  • Dress Shoes
  • Dress Socks
  • Bow Tie
  • Vest
  • Dress
• Instrument
• Extra reeds, valve oil, slide grease, etc.
• Mutes
• Pencils
• Sheet Music & Folder
• Cash or sack lunch

Please feel free to contact me should you have any questions at cjones@rccu1.net, or 393-2101 ext. 3137.

Jozalyn Houser, Kendra Jellison, Jase Rusk, Austin Vaughn, Garrett Wright, & Victoria Zwilling have the distinction of being selected to participate in the 2019 ILMEA District 5 Band & Orchestra. These students were selected out of a pool of hundreds of high school students across twenty counties in southeastern Illinois area based on their auditions on Columbus Day in Effingham High School. The Illinois Music Education Association (ILMEA) hosts the 2019 District 5 Band & Orchestra on Saturday, November 23rd  in Charleston, IL. The festival is held in the beautiful Doudna Fine Arts Center on the campus of Eastern Illinois University.

The call-time at RCHS for students participating in the festival is 6:45 AM exit #21 (rehearsal hall). RCHS music staff will transport students in a district vehicle. I anticipate the return time to Olney following the concerts to be around 9:30 PM.

Concerts are open to the public for the price of admission. Students may ride home with a parent or guardian immediately after the concert. However, for the safety of the students, we ask that a parent/guardian and the student sign-out with an RCHS Music Department staff member prior to departure. Please refer to the ILMEA information packet for a full list of times, and concert ticket prices at https://ilmea.org/5festivals.

Students are encouraged to bring money or a sack lunch/dinner for meals. Students should wear school appropriate clothes throughout the rehearsals that take place during the day. To best represent our school and our community, students are expected to wear appropriate dress clothes to the performances, which are the tuxedos or concert dresses that the RCHS Music Department provides. Please review the RCHS Bands handbook for more details regarding concert attire at https://www.rchsbands.net.  

If you permit your student to attend the field trip, please sign the form and return as soon as possible.

Three students from Richland County High School participated in the 2019 Illinois Music Education Association (ILMEA) All-State Music Conference. The All-State conference occurred from January 24th until January 26th, 2019 in Peoria, IL. These students were selected from a rigorous audition process as the top student-musicians representing over 12,000 schools throughout Illinois. Of approximately 2,500 students that auditioned, only a fraction of students were selected to participate in the event.

From left to right, the Richland County High School students that participated in All-State included Ethan Steber (Senior/ All-State Orchestra on clarinet), Sydney Berkshire (Senior/ All-State Orchestra on Horn in F), and Kendra Jellison (Sophomore/All-State Band on Clarinet).

Sydney Berkshire, Kendra Jellison, & Ethan Steber have the distinction of being selected out of thousands of Illinois high school student-musicians to participate in the ILMEA IL Music Education Conference (All-State Conference) from Wednesday, January 23rd through Saturday, January 26th.

Mr. Jones will transport students in a school van at 3:30 pm on Wednesday.  Rehearsals in Peoria will occur on Thursday, Friday, and part of Saturday. The week concludes with concerts on Saturday. Those participating in an All-State ensembles will audition on Thursday to determine which of the All-State ensembles he/she will be placed. The All-State Music Conference ensembles include the Honors Band (3:30 PM concert on Saturday), & the All-State Band (1:00 PM concert on Saturday). The concerts are held in the Carver Arena at the Peoria Civic Center. Your student will notify you as to which ensemble they were placed following auditions.

Hotel lodging is provided for the students by the school. Mr. Jones is chaperoning the students the entire conference. Lodging is at Baymont Inn & Suites at 4112 N. Brandywine Dr. in Peoria, IL.

The students are responsible for making arrangements with their classroom teachers for homework, quizzes, tests, projects, and notes prior to departure.

Each student shall to provide enough money to cover 3.5 days of meals.

Parents/guardians may sign-out their student following the concert.

All-State apparel, plaques and recordings of the concerts are available for purchase at the concerts.

Required materials for the festival include:
    •    ILMEA audition music
    •    Appropriate school clothing (to wear for travel & for rehearsals) for three-days
    •    Toiletries
    •    Jacket (Peoria is cold this time of year!)
    •    Cell phone with charger
    •    Tuxedo or concert dresses (see the student handbook for further details http://www.richlandcountyhsbands.org/student-handbook.html)
    •    Folding music stand
    •    Pencils
    •    Mutes
    •    Extra reeds
    •    Value oil or slide grease
    •    Cash for lunches and dinners

Included in the student packet:

• Family Information
• Peoria Downtown Parking Map
• All-State Student Instructions
• Future Music Educators Seminar (FMES) Participant Schedule
• ILMEA All-State Student Schedule
• Pre-clearance Slip (to ensure that the students have spoken to their classroom instructors regarding their absence)

Please thoroughly review details on the ILMEA website regarding the event:

https://www.ilmea.org/divisions/band/
https://www.ilmea.org/imec/2019imec/studentdirector-information/

Please don't hesitate to contact me should you have any questions. I may be reached at 393-2191 ext. 3137 or at cjones@rccu1.net.

Congratulations to Kendra Jellison, Ethan Steber, & Sydney Berkshire for their selection into the 2019 Illinois Music Education Association's All-State Music Conference. The music festival is a four-day event in Peoria, IL from Wednesday evening, 1/23 to Saturday morning, 1/26.