Student Decorum

• Before Rehearsals

      • Practice and perfect your individual part at home. Rehearsals are for practicing as a team or ensemble.

      • Arrive at rehearsal 20 minutes before the scheduled start time to (1) get your instrument out, (2) get the music ready, (3) warmup and (4) get seated.

• During Rehearsals

      • Do listen carefully to the director’s instructions. Talking or noodling on your instrument is very distracting to other players and wastes rehearsal time.

      • Do raise your hand if you have a question and ask the director, not your stand partner. Others may have the same question.

      • Do silently follow your part and see how it fits with the other parts while other sections are playing.

      • Do (always) have a pencil ready to mark ANYTHING to help you play your part well - bowings, breath marks for phrasing, fingerings, tick marks to show beats, eyeglasses as warning signs...

• While Playing in Concerts

      • Arrive a full half hour before the performance with your instrument, all music and accessories.

      • Sit quietly with good posture.

      • Tune quietly and very carefully.

      • Follow the Concertmaster’s (first chair first violin) lead to know when to stand or sit to acknowledge applause.

• While Listening at Concerts

      • Be totally silent while the performers are playing so that everyone can listen and enjoy the concert.

      • Applaud at the end of each piece. When a large piece has several sections or movements do not applaud until the entire piece is finished.

Family Decorum During Rehearsals

We welcome and are grateful for the tremendous family support given to HCYO. Your cooperation in maintaining the appropriate rehearsal atmosphere is greatly appreciated.

• Arrive early to rehearsals

      It is important that each student arrives 20 minutes prior to any rehearsal so they may be in their place and ready to tune at the rehearsal start time. Tardiness is disruptive and makes everyone uncomfortable. If your student arrives after the rehearsal has begun, please help your student to enter quietly and quickly take their place.

• Maintain total silence in rehearsal rooms

      If you or a family member remains in the room during rehearsal, please maintain total silence. Cell phones and pagers MUST be turned OFF.

      • Supervise young children

      • If you or a family member are outside the rehearsal room, please wait in the area outside of the Sanctuary. There are places to sit and visit and your conversations will not disturb our hard working musicians.

      • Please keep all young children under constant supervision. Do not wait or loiter outside the rehearsal rooms. There are only four chairs and noise and voices do carry into the rehearsal rooms.

      • Thank you so much for helping in this important matter.

 

Orchestra Uniforms

• Vivace and Con Moto Orchestras:

      • Young ladies will provide and wear floor length, black skirts, white blouses and black shoes.

      • Young men will provide and wear black pants, white shirts and black shoes and socks.

• Cavatina and Hill Country Youth Orchestra:

      • Young ladies wear long black dresses provided by HCYO and black shoes.

      • Young men wear tuxedos provided by HCYO and black shoes.

Uniforms are checked out to the musicians in the fall and are maintained by the musicians for the concert year. Within two weeks after the final concert, tuxedos and dresses must be returned to the rehearsal hall. All uniforms must either be dry cleaned and returned in the dry cleaners’ plastic bag or be accompanied with $10 per item for the orchestra to clean the uniform.

Ways to Support Your Young Musician

There are many ways to encourage and support your young musicians. Here are a few:

Listen to classical music every day.. Performances of the Suzuki music pieces are available on CD.

Listen to classical radio. In the Hill Country, the station is KTXI, 90.1 and in San Antonio it is KPAC, 88.3 on the FM dial.

Treat the parents and siblings. Have at home recitals. Ask your student to play a favorite piece for you.

      • Provide a quiet place and time to practice away from the hubbub of normal family life.

      • Short, energetic and fun periods of practice are better, especially for younger students, than longer practice periods where the student tires and loses focus.

      • Encourage the student to stretch and relax often during practice; tight muscles limit abilities.

      • Take the students to live performances such as the “Symphony of the Hills” and programs sponsored by the Kerrville Performing Artists Society.