Almost There

It's almost time to go, and I can feel the excitement building as the clock is ticking down. The concert last night was wonderful but there is also a set of nervousness when we are going so far away from home. All my bags are packed so I decided to "study" for the trip by watching Star Wars Episode VII. It's hard to imagine that at this time tomorrow I will be on a plane with all of my friends and we will be off on an adventure of our very own. We may not be running from the First Order or trying to save the Republic but, like Rey and Finn, we are going to visit places we have never seen before. We are going to learn about other ways of life and we might even learn a few things about ourselves along the way. I know I will miss home while I'm gone but I am grateful to have this chance to broaden my knowledge of the world. I feel as if we are about to enter the final lap of a race. We have worked so hard as a group to get to this point and the journey we are about to embark upon is almost upon us.

Die Zeit Ist Gekommen - The Time Has Come

The pieces that we performed in the concert last night were truly breathtaking and definitely audience pleasers; especially Star Wars. I personally count rests in most of the songs, but I find it to be a unique opportunity to fully listen to what each composition sounds like. Everyone should be immensely proud of themselves for all the hard work we put in to prepare for this trip. I cannot wait to hear every song when we perform them in Germany. This concert has made me realise that we are getting closer and closer to our departure. We leave tomorrow! If you are anything like me, you have been waiting for this exact day ever since the tour was announced. It seemed like a million days away, but here we are. It has been a long and exiting journey to get to this point, and it is only the beginning. 

-Emily Bollinger

One Day Left

After a long week of rehearsals and practice hours, we have come to the final day before our departure at last. Although we may not be prepared for this trip in regards to our packing lists (if you are anything like me), the District 99 Honors Band is most certainly prepared for great musical performances abroad! It is quite impressive to assemble an ensemble and learn many difficult arrangements in only one week, especially considering how well we were able to play them. Make sure to remember that while we tour France and Germany and be proud of what we were able to accomplish. This tour would not be possible without our dedication to the music and the hard work everyone put in, so take a moment amidst your anticipation today to reflect and be proud. One day left! - David Atwater

Section Introductions - We didn't TOTALLY forget ...

Mr. Hensel and Mr. Teague forgot to finish-up the section introductions when the band moved to the stage on Saturday morning. We apologize for the oversight.  But fear not!  We will continue our section introductions early in the tour.

Students who have not yet introduced themselves will be asked a new get-to-know you question:

If you could have any Superhero, what would it be?  

D99 Honors Band 2016 Tour Trailer #99Learns #WeAreDGN #DGSPride

Click here for the D99 Honors Band 2016 Tour Trailer.

Bon Voyage Concert #99Learns #WeAreDGN #DGSPride

Boy Voyage Concert Tonight! #99Learns

You are cordially invited to attend the District 99 Honors Band and Jazz Ensemble's Bon Voyage Concert, to be held this evening (Saturday, June 11) at 6:00 PM in the Clarence Johnson Auditorium of Downers Grove North High School.

The D99 Honors Band students are ready for their departure next week, and looking forward to sharing a preview of their European concert set with local audiences tonight.

Doors open at 5:30 PM for this free concert.  We hope to see you there!

Revised Friday / Saturday Schedule

The D99 Honors Band and D99 Honors Jazz Band are both doing terrific work, and we are excited with their level of musicianship and dedication this week.  

Our Friday / Saturday schedule has been adjusted slightly to give students a little more space to pack!  The Google Calendar now reflects the adjusted times, but here is a summary:

Friday June 10

9:00 AM - Full Concert Band Rehearsal

10:30 AM (approximate) - Final "logistics" meeting for Tour Participants 

11:00 AM (approximate) - students dismissed

Saturday, June 11

9:15 AM - Percussionists arrive at DGN and help move equipment to stage

10:00 AM - Final Full Concert Band Rehearsal in Auditorium

11:30 AM (approximate) - students dismissed

11:30 - 1:00 PM - Lunch Break

1:00 - 3:00 PM - Final Jazz Band Rehearsal in Auditorium

5:30 PM - Report Time for Concert / House Opens

6:00 PM - Bon Voyage Concert!

7:15 PM (approximate) - Final Parent Meeting / Check-In with Chaperones / Tour Poster Signing

Review of Concert Attire and Travel Attire

Concert Attire

Formal Performances

Men
All black.  All covered.  Closed toe flat shoes.  

Men will wear black dress shoes, black socks, black dress pants, and a black long-sleeved dress shirt.  We recommend a black undershirt. A tie is not required, but if desired, it should be solid black.  Men's black dress shirts should be tucked in, and worn with a black dress belt.  No sport coat, tux coat, or suit coat is needed; save yourself packing space, and leave it at home.  


Women
All black.  All covered.  Closed toe flat shoes.  

Ladies will wear black closed toe dress shoes without heals with either black dress pants or a floor length black skirt.  In addition they should wear a black dress shirt with either full or 3/4 length sleeves (must extend past elbow).  A tie is not required, but if desired, it should be solid black. A belt may be worn, or not worn, depending on the design of the pants. Dress shirts may be worn tucked or untucked, depending on how the specific shirt is designed to be worn.  

Less-Formal Performances

There will likely be at least one, if not two, performances in which students will wear their tour jersey instead of their black dress shirt.  This would only impact shirts; everything else, from the waist down, remains the same.  

Airline/Airport Travel Attire

Students and staff will wear the following when we depart, as we fly from Chicago to Dublin, and Dublin to Paris.  The same will also be worn on the return flight from Frankfurt to Dublin, and Dublin to Chicago.  

• Tour Futbol Jersey (please wear a black, white or gray under-shirt with the jersey) 
• Nice jeans or khaki pants (No holes of any kind, and not sagging.  No underwear visible from anywhere.) Shorts, athletic pants, yoga pants (any skin tight pants) are not appropriate for group travel.
• Students may wear a belt with their pants if the pants are designed to accommodate a belt, and the belt is needed. However jerseys may be worn untucked, and a belt is not required.  
• You most comfortable walking shoes (tennis shoes are okay).

Please Note:  Students should pack a fresh shirt in their carry-on bag.  Once we clear Customs we will use an airport restroom to change shirts prior to leaving the airport and beginning our initial touring.  

Introducing Team Blogger! #99Learns @Dist_99

As the District 99 Honors Band nears our tour departure you will begin to see this Blog gradually pivot from an 'announcements & logistics' communication tool to a more dynamic journal of the Band's travel experiences.  The goal of our faculty is to turn over primary responsibility of documenting this adventure to the wonderful and very capable students of the District 99 Honors Band.

We've assembled a terrific team of ten student Bloggers representing both DGN and DGS. They are all excited to serve as your eyes and ears while the D99 Honors Band travels through Europe. We thank them for their willingness to be on-the-ground reporters!

District 99 Honors Band 2016 Tour Blog

Introducing 'Team Blogger' ...

• David Atwater
• Emily Bollinger
• Emily Dwyer
• Sarah Fantinel
• Kevin Fera
• Cassidy Hanyzewski
• Audrey McDaniel
• Priya Patel
• Noah Tunney
• Emily Wilson

Saturday Schedule

As a reminder, tour participants will follow this schedule on Saturday:

9 AM - Final Honors Band Rehearsal (on stage)

11 AM - Final Participant Meeting

1 - 3 PM - Final Honors Jazz Band Rehearsal (in Auditorium)

5:30 PM - Call Time for Concert

6:00 PM - Bon Voyage Concert (DGN Auditorium)

7:00 PM - Final Parent/Participant Meeting / Tour Poster Signing

During final preparations, remember to prepare yourself!

As we all start final preparations to bring the THINGS we need to bring on our tour, remember what you need to do to prepare YOURSELF to fulfill your role as an ambassador during the tour.

An ambassador is a person who acts as a representative or a promoter of a specific activity.  Each of you is an ambassador for your family, our schools, our community, this exchange, and our country . Every action and interaction matters while we are on tour together.  Here are some specific ways in which you can fulfill your role as an ambassador during our upcoming tour:

• Remember, words matter.
• Talk slowly and choose the right words during conversations.
• Listen twice as much as you speak.
• Take only pictures, leave only footprints.
• When you depart a place, leave it better condition than it was before your arrival.
• Leave a great impression on the outside (physical environment.)
• Leave an even better impression on the inside (transform hearts and minds by who you are and by how you perform.)
• When in a group on tour, your actions not minimized, rather, they are magnified.  Travel with dignity and decorum while in public with our group while on tour.

Expressing gratitude to your host family

As you are continuing final preparations for our departure on Monday, remember to pack several "thank you" cards and a pen.  It is an expectation upon departure from your host family on our final day that each student will leave a note, personally expressing gratitude to the host family.  These notes are best written sometime on the final evening as the final morning tends to be hectic with departure activities.  You can hand the note directly to your host family, or, leave it on the pillow of your made bed when you leave the final morning.  Thanks in advance for taking care of this essential element of traveling with a District 99 Honor Band.

Fussball Practice

For the first time, ever …

… we actually practiced Fussball in advance of our departure for Europe.

Thanks to retired DGN History Teacher, and former DGN Soccer Coach Mr. Bob Graham for helping prepare our band for an epic battle vs. Deutschland.  

Germany holds a commanding series lead in our Fussball friendly; will this be the year the momentum swings back toward the United States?!

Tuesday Morning Reminders

If you plan to stay for our Futbol practice this afternoon, and you have a soccer ball, please bring it. Make sure the ball is marked with ID.

Students who are staying for the Futbol practice should bring a sack lunch with them today. Students may eat the lunch while we hear from Bob & Lois Graham. That meeting will be held in the DGN Choir Room at 12:30. Students who are not staying for Futbol practice may bring a lunch, or eat at 1:30 once dismissed. 

We will be filming some close up shots of students working on their Futbol skills to be used in a movie trailer. You can up your chances to be in the trailer if you wear your TOUR JERSEY to the practice this afternoon.

D99 Honors Band Group Photos

D-Day Anniversary / Our Visit to Omaha Beach

Although the term D-Day is used routinely as military lingo for the day an operation or event will take place, for many it is also synonymous with June 6, 1944, the day the Allied powers crossed the English Channel and landed on the beaches of Normandy, France, beginning the liberation of Western Europe from Nazi control during World War II. Within three months, the northern part of France would be freed and the invasion force would be preparing to enter Germany, where they would meet up with Soviet forces moving in from the east.

On the morning of June 5, 1944, U.S. General Dwight D. Eisenhower, the supreme commander of Allied forces in Europe gave the go-ahead for Operation Overlord, the largest amphibious military operation in history. On his orders, 6,000 landing craft, ships and other vessels carrying 176,000 troops began to leave England for the trip to France. That night, 822 aircraft filled with parachutists headed for drop zones in Normandy. An additional 13,000 aircraft were mobilized to provide air cover and support for the invasion.

By dawn on June 6, 18,000 parachutists were already on the ground; the land invasions began at 6:30 a.m. The British and Canadians overcame light opposition to capture Gold, Juno and Sword beaches; so did the Americans at Utah. The task was much tougher at Omaha beach, however, where 2,000 troops were lost and it was only through the tenacity and quick-wittedness of troops on the ground that the objective was achieved. By day’s end, 155,000 Allied troops–Americans, British and Canadians–had successfully stormed Normandy’s beaches.

On our upcoming tour, the District 99 Honors Band will visit Omaha Beach and the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial. Click here for a preview brochure.  The Band will also visit the Caen Memorial & Museum.  

The critically acclaimed movie, Saving Private Ryan, opens with an intense recreation of the D-Day Invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944.  Many of our District 99 students have seen this movie as sophomores in their U.S. History course.  If you are interested in seeing the opening scene, it may be found on YouTube here.  Please note: he movie is Rated R for intense violence.  The opening of the film can be difficult to watch and may be unsettling for some viewers. 

Historical film of the landing on the Beaches of Normandy may be found here.

First Rehearsal Reminders!

We are ready for a fabulous first-rehearsal of the 2016 District 99 Honors Band!

Important reminders for tomorrow morning ...

• We are taking our group photograph tomorrow. You should arrive wearing black dress pants, black dress shoes, and a black t-shirt. You will receive your tour jersey when you arrive, and that jersey will be worn over your black t-shirt for the photo.

• In addition to the tour jersey(s), students will find name cards, passport holders, and D99 Soccer Ball/Cowbells on their chairs. More explanation about each of these items will be shared as rehearsal begins.  

• Don't forget to bring your black music binder with all music.

• Make sure you bring a PENCIL with you to mark your music during rehearsals this week.

• The rehearsal is in the DGN Band Room (142).  Drop off or park in the Main Street lot.  Walk across the street and enter DGN through the arch.  Turn right as you enter the building and follow signs to Fine Arts.

• We ask all students arrive no later than 8:45 AM so they have plenty of time to find their seats, set up their instruments, and warm up appropriately.  Percussionists will find that much of their equipment has been pre-set, but select instruments will still need to be assembled for rehearsal. 

• All students should consider bringing a refillable water bottle with them to rehearsal.  Please have your name on your bottle.  Water is the only consumable allowed in the band room.  Please finish all other food/beverages before entering the rehearsal space.

We are eager to make music with you tomorrow!

Now that finals are finished, here's something else to study ... German!

Your German host family will be able to communicate with you in English.  However we do encourage each tour participant to try to use a little bit of German during the exchange.  When you make an attempt to use the language - even in limited amounts - it makes a positive impression!



CLICK HERE to be redirected to flashcards and pronunciations of some helpful German phrases.

Click on the video files below to learn ...

Part 1: Self Introductions

Part 2: German Manners (Thank You & You're Welcome!)

How much money should I bring on tour?

As we are now within two weeks of departure, we are getting specific questions about how much money students should bring on the tour.  We will make some strong suggestions for meal money, but, we still believe that spending money on the tour remains a family decision.  One of the great things about having a long-standing exchange relationship is that once we arrive in Beitigheim-Bissingen and students are with their host families, there could be NO cost added to the tour for families.  The generosity of the host families covers all essential tour expenses once we arrive in Beitigheim-Bissingen.

During the tour, students will be responsible to pay for 4 meals out of pocket.  Please eat a substantial lunch PRIOR to arriving for departure to sustain you through the initial travel check-in process.  We suggest that students bring 100 Euros CASH to cover the cost of the out of pocket meals during the tour.  The rest of the meals are included in the cost of the tour or provided by the host families.  This is a suggested, not a mandated amount.  This amount of cash will allow your student to support the meals that are not covered in the cost of the tour while we are on the tour.

As for tour spending money for shopping and/or souvenirs, we suggest that students bring funds on a pre-loaded card, NOT IN CASH.  While we are in and around Paris, we will tour museums and visitor centers that will have shops.  As you are planning as a family for shopping and souvenirs, please be reminded that Paris is one of the most expensive cities in the world.  We will also tour to shops and museums while in Beitigheim-Bissingen.  All entry fees are covered in the cost of the tour, however, any additional shopping or souvenir purchasing is up to each individual family.  Whatever you decide to spend as a family for shopping and souvenirs while on tour, please put on a pre-loaded card.

So, to recap:  You’ll be responsible for 4 out of pocket meals while on tour.  A suggested amount of cash to support these meals is 100 Euro.  Any money your family decides to spend for shopping and souvenirs outside of the suggested cash amount should be put onto a pre-loaded card.  If you have any questions or concerns, contact Mr. Williams.