BROWNSBURG ORCHESTRAS SCHEDULE 2023-24 (updated 11/16/23)
(*indicates BSO rehearsal from 5-7:30pm)
Mon. 11/20 3:00-5:00pm (updated time for this rehearsal only)
*Mon. 11/27
*Mon. 12/4
*Mon. 12/11
*Thur. 12/14 (3-5pm)
Tue. 12/19 CONCERT ALL ORCHESTRAS 6:30pm
*Thur. 1/11
*Tue 1/16
*Mon 1/22
Wed 1/24 Chamber Concert (required for BSO strings)
*Mon 1/29
Wed 1/31 Honors Recital
Sat 2/3 ISSMA Solo and Ensemble
*Mon 2/5
*Mon 2/12
*Tue 2/20
Sat 2/24 ISSMA State Solo and Ensemble
*Mon 2/26
*Mon 3/4
*Mon 3/11
Tue 3/12 CONCERT ALL ORCHESTRAS 6:30pm
*Mon 3/18
*Thur 3/21
*Tue 4/9
*Mon 4/15
*Thur 4/18 (3-5pm)
Fri 4/19 or Sat 4/20 ISSMA Organizational Contest (Philharmonic and Freshmen only)
*Mon 4/22
*Tue 4/23 tentative time
Wed 4/24 Concert BSO only (along with Advanced Band and Advanced Choir)
*Thur 4/25 tentative time
*Fri 4/26 tentative time
Sat 4/27 ISSMA Qualifications performance. BSO only.
State finals rehearsals. Times TBA
*Mon 4/29 Tue 4/30 Thur 5/2 Fri 5/3
Sat. 5/4 ISSMA State Finals Performance BSO
Mon 5/13 ORCHESTRA AWARDS NIGHT 6pm. ALL BHS ORCHESTRAS
Wed 5/15 String Fever rehearsal after school/evening All BHS Orchestras
Sun 5/19 String Fever performance All BHS Orchestras 4pm. location TBA
(String Fever date and location is tentative at this point due to construction)
Welcome to the Brownsburg High School Orchestras! We currently have three orchestras: Freshman, Philharmonic, and Symphony.
Freshman Orchestra: All freshmen string players are in this orchestra. There are opportunities for advanced students to perform with older students at their after-school rehearsals and concerts.
Philharmonic Orchestra: Intermediate to Advanced grade 10-12. There are opportunities for advanced students to perform with the Symphony Orchestra at their after-school rehearsals and concerts.
Symphony Orchestra: This is the highest performing orchestra. Placement is determined following students’ freshman year and every year thereafter. The symphony orchestra combines with band members for some performances to create a full orchestra. The full symphony orchestra has after-school and evening rehearsals throughout the year.
Performances
Additional Performance Opportunities
Brownsburg Chamber Concert
This event is a great opportunity for students to explore solo and small ensemble experiences. Students will perform for a trained professional who will provide written comments on the students’ performance.
Brownsburg Honors Recital
Select individuals who performed at the Brownsburg Chamber Concert are invited to perform for an audience at the Brownsburg Honors Recital. A main difference is that the top three performances will be ranked and named.
ISSMA Solo and Ensemble –
This is another great way for students to explore solo and small ensemble experiences. It is similar to the Brownsburg Chamber Concert in that students prepare a piece of music for a judge. However, this event is held at at Avon High School and students from all over central Indiana participate. Students are also categorized from groups 1-5 based on the difficulty of their musical selection (group 1 being the most difficult) and are given a bronze, silver, or gold rating. More advanced students should consider participating in this event.
ISSMA State Solo and Ensemble
Students who performed a group 1 solo or ensemble and earned a gold rating quality for the State Solo and Ensemble event. This is a huge honor and another chance to receive commentary from trained professionals at an even higher level.
All-State Orchestra
This event, sponsored by the Indiana American String Teachers Association (IN-ASTA) is for exceptional high school students in central Indiana who demonstrate a high level of performance in orchestra. Orchestra members are selected by the IN-ASTA committee based on a recorded audition. Selected students come together from various schools for a spectacular weekend of rehearsals and sectionals, culminating in a performance in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Private Lessons
Private lessons are STRONGLY encouraged. Lessons are extremely valuable in that they provide individualized attention that is not found in a classroom setting. Brownsburg’s disctrict-wide private lesson program provides high-quality enhancement to classroom instruction. Most of our teachers are professional musicians in the Indianapolis area and have advanced degrees in the performance of their instruments. The teachers listed below teach both during school and outside of school. Their availability is on a first come, first-served basis. Please contact the private lesson teacher individually to set up a lesson time.
Kathleen Swayze – Violin/Viola – violakeeper@gmail.com
Candida Wiley – Violin/Viola – didajane54@gmail.com
Eric Lakanen – Cello – lakanen.eric@gmail.com