Alexandria High School - Alexian Yearbook (Alexandria, MN)

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1936 THE ALEXIAN 1936 Music ORCHESTRA With an increase in member- . ship of 15 students, the high school or- chestra, like the band, has had one of its most successful seasons. Directed by Har- old Arentsen, it has been very prominent in musical activities during the year. This year the orchestra accom- panied the operetta Naughty Marieffa and the annual production of Handel's Messiah and furnished incidental music for both junior and senior class plays. In addition to these regular performances, the orchestra gave two special concerts during the year. The first of these was a public affair given in December and the other a closed performance for the Eu- terpean Club in March. Because of the heightened in- terest of the students in music this year, the membership in this organization rose to 6 S. Seniors who are members of the orchestra are Rodney Backlin, Donald Brown, Robert Elness, Eileen Hubbell, Alma Keipe, Burl Kraf- thefer, Elaine McArdell, Wilma Meyers, and LaVerne Schmidt. Harold W. Arentsen MUSIC POINT SYSTEM This year the music department of the Alexandria High School adopted a new system of comparative rating whereby any student mem- ber of a musical organization is credited with a certain number of honor points for each musical activity in which he participated. According to this system, each student's points are totaled up at the end of the school year, and the individual is given an A, B, C, or D rating in ratio to the number of points he has earned. Those persons maintaining an A average in this system during their high school years will be given a special award when they graduate. Honor points are credited for attendance, co-operation, con- dition of instrument, and membership in chamber groups. Likewise, points are deducted from each student's total for poor attitude, slow progress, untidy uniform and unexcused absence. The new point system is proving to be very satisfactory in that it has created greater interest in music by setting up a definite goal for each student. Twenty-two

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1936 TH1zA1.Ex1AN 1936 Phi Alpha Front Row--James Daily, Robert Elness. Oscar Gustafson, Robert Drummond, Melvin S-tumm. Sidney Carlson, Rodney Backlin, Eldo Falk, Eaton Olson, Christian Back- aus, Orris Gran. Back Row--Robert Weed, Lester Nelson. Paul Anderson, Clarence Dobberpuhl, Keith Godfrey, William Schaefer, Orville Eiden, Thorvald Lillevik. Phi Alpha, the honorary society for boys, has had a member- ship of 21 senior and junior boys during the past year. Officers of the organization were president, Robert Weedg vice president, Paul Ander- song secretary-treasurer, Orris Gran, and sergeant-at-arms, Clarence Dobberpuhl. K. Otto Logan acted as adviser for the organization. Twelve new members were taken into the club this year, only those boys who had earned seven honor points in at least two major ex- tra-curricular activities being eligible to join. An initiation was con- duced late in the fall at which the neophytes were formally and force- fully inducted into the society. No members were taken into Phi Alpha at mid-year. The aim of this organization is to raise the intellectual and cul- tural standards of its members as well as to promote good fellowship among the boys. Because of the numerous other activities during the past school year, the Alphas were somewhat inactive. Early in the sec- ond semester, the Phi Alplias were the guests of the Sigma Beta Phi at a leap year party. Twenty-one

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J mf AW' We .Mm ff 97324 1936 Lv!-I EXIQN 1936 AW This year has been a most progressive and inspiring one for the band section of the Alexandria High School Music Department. Un- der the capable direction of H. W. Arentsen, the concert and military bands have participated in numerous school and outside events during 193 5 - I 93 6. Several special trips were made by the band Wholly and in part in the course of the year's activities. Included in these trips were the participation in the West Central Band Tournament at Sauk Centre in july, 193 S, and a special concert at Central Junior High in St. Cloud on March 8. Senior members of the bands include Rodney Backlin, Robert Elness, Lucille Flesch, Frances Griffith, Eileen Hubbell, Burl Krafthefer, Elaine McArdell, Helen Moose, and Lucille Nichols. CHAMBER MUSIC Six small ensembles, three vocal and three instrumental, com- prise the chamber group of the music department. The vocal section is made up of the girls' sextet, boys' sextet, and mixed octet with the string quartet, brass sextet, and woodwind sextet included in the instrumental division. Doris Christopherson, Juliette Hareid, Carol Knutson, Doris Larson, Frances Renner, and Betty Sather composed the girls' sextet. The boys' quartet was made up of Robert Elness, Leighton Knutson, XVilbur Schackel and Ralph Thornton. In the mixed octet were Dona Du Beau, Robert Elness, Marian Knauf, Leighton Knutson, Doris Lar- son, Frances Renner, Wilbur Schackel, and Ralph Thornton. Present members of the string quartet are June Fleming, Ar- lene johnson, Bernadine McArdell, and Dennis Nelson. Rodney Back- lin, Donald Brown, Sidney Carlson, Russell Krafthefer, Elaine McArdell, and Robert Patton constitute the brass sextet. Robert Elness, Burl Krafthefer, Doris Larson, Rachael Nelson, Dawn Ripley, and Delores Wilkes comprise the woodwind sextet. Twenty-three