Farrell High School - Reflector Yearbook (Farrell, PA)

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To the Class of 1944 This is an occasion in your life which will stand as a momentous one. You have reached a turning point. If you have made the most of your opportunities, you will be well prepared for the new adventure. We do know that a new adventure is before you. Many have gone before you. They have faced the new adventures and have succeeded. Your adventure may be somewhat difficult. It will present greater opportunities, more risks, and a realiza- tion that you can serve your country. - The fact that you have come so far in this adventure indicates that you have persevered. You have that something which urges you forward, which makes you apply your talents, and which helps you to master difficult hurdles. If you continue to persevere, to master and to solve difficult problems, success will be yours, regardless of the road which you may travel. May yours be a successful and happy adventure. W. R. ANDERSON.

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W. R. ANDERSON PRINCIPAL FARRELL SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL A. B., Grove City College, M. Ed., University of Pittsburgh J

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The Music Department The music program in the Farrell Schools has been organized as a twelve-year progressive sequence, wherein every pupil is provided an opportunity to develop and to express his individual talents, technical skills, and interests, to the fullest measure of personal enrichment and growth. All pupils are taught to recognize and to appreciate the artistry of our musical heritage and all share in the creation and rendition of com- munal music activities. But those who care to participate further, in a more specialized way, are afforded the pos- sibility of doing so by qualifying for placement, from last chair position or obscure vocalist in the most elementary of the large aggregations of band, orchestra, or chorus, to that of instrumental or vocal soloist in the most advanced groups, or as a featured artist in a concert presentation. The choral program in the first three grades centers JAMES W. DUNLOP about the elimination of the non-singing child and unison Director of Music class room singing. Two-part work is begun in the fourth grade and three-part in the sixth. Throughout the elemen- tary grades the teachers strive for tone quality and artistic interpretation as well as technical perfection in performance. Each of the seventh and eighth grades have mixed choruses, while the ninth year offers a girls' chorus. Both boys and girls of' the ninth grade, however, are eligible to qualify for membership in the senior mixed chorus, which is made up of ninth, tenth, eleventh and twelfth year pupils. A girls' trio, girls' ensemble, mixed quartette and mixed ensemble provide advanced selection. The instrumental program begins with rhythm bands in all of the first and second grades. Tonettes are introduced in the third grade. Individual and class instrumental instruction begins in the fourth grade and continues through the twelfth. A junior orchestra and a senior orchestra enable all pupils who are qualified to par- ticipate instrumentally in an orchestral unit. A junior band, a senior marching band and a senior concert band are organizations toward which every pupil looks with pride and every instrumentalist strives for membership. The senior bands and the smaller choral units are much in demand for com- munity and social service activities and they accept a limited number of these out of school invitations. The band plays regularly for athletic contests and makes a few out of the city appearances. Both the band and the orchestra play throughout the' year for school rallies, seasonal programs, plays, class night, commencement and assembly. All of the music groups take part in the school radio programs. The elementary grades present a music festival each spring and the senior organizations offer an annual spring concert, which occasionally is augmented by a junior choir or an instru- mental group. In addition, it has been the practice to invite a county, a district or a state organization to hold their festival in Farrell and thus enable the entire student body to broaden their cultural experiences by practicing in a concrete way the princi- ples instilled in them throughout their years of music education. Last year, the All- State Band Festival was held in Farrell and this spring the District Chorus Festival was presented here. A