Perry Meridian High School - Passages Yearbook (Indianapolis, IN)

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Additions Aid Easiness and Performanee The philosophy of the vocal department was that for every student who had a desire to be involved in a vocal organization there was a place to go. Talent and acquisition of skill determined to what level he rose. Progression from the middle school to the high school was accepted as automatic. No one needed to audition to advance into freshman level courses because it was thought that the middle school furnished the basic knowledge of skills in singing. The vocal department encouraged stu- dents who wanted to have a singing profession to stay in the program for four years. Perry Meridian was active in both state and local functions. Perry was a member of the Indiana State School Music Association, an organization which made it possible for students to participate in contests and festivals each year. It was expected that all members to be present at all rehearsals and performances. Absences affected the student ' s Donna Billiard ' 84, Michelle Moye ' 84, and Matt Hash ' 85 rehearse for Then and Now. grade . New additions added a little in more easiness and better performance. The vocal department hired a new teacher, Miss Maud Hickey, to come in half days to assist teachers of the music department by team-teaching two classes. Mrs. Ann Sanders, Then and Now, freshman, intermediate, a capella, and advanced (swing) choir teacher, said, The Silvertones were put into the curriculum so they could rehearse two periods a week during the students ' a capella choir period. The other three days were spent in a capella choir in class. The department had acquired a new typewriter to type up tests and programs for concerts. Mrs. Sanders continued, We attained some chairs for rehearsals and stage performances. Good chairs were mandatory for good breathing techniques to produce good sounds. 158 VOCAL xMUSIC

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Randy Head ' 87 is attentive in orchestra. ed class to their image and gave recognition to the group. An oboe and a bassoon were added to the Ust of over 12 instruments played by students in Symphonic Band. Another expansion to the Sym- phonic Band was the number of students enrolled in the class. Enroll- ment had gone up in the past two or three years quite a bit. Out of 65 students in the class, there were 20 seniors, 15 juniors, and 10 sophomores. Freshmen had to take Freshman Band before going into another instnunental class. For the first time, the state re- quirements for all instrumental classes included students taking semester written exams. A midterm and written final were used to help determine the students ' grades. Several awards were given out in various categories of instrumental music. Many students from Perry Meridian earned recognition and honors for their musical talents. Brad Rees ' 83 played the sax- ophone in the jazz band during his en- tire high school career. He went on to Concentration on tuning her bass, Joanny Mueller ' 84 gets ready to show her skills in class. form h is own band, Mainstream, who played at the school-sponsored party for the honor students in February. He was a drtim major and had accompanied the jazz band on the bass for three years. Brad won the Department Award in 1983 for his excellent participation in the music program. David Smith ' 84 and Lisa Yen ' 83 achieved a great honor for their in- strumental accomplishments. They both were chosen for the All-State Orchestra. To get this honor, they auditioned by playing a particular piece of music selected by the Indiana Band Masters Association. There were 12 audition centers in Indiana at which the judges selected the top people. The best in the state were picked out for the All- State Band. Violinists Christine Lee ' 84 and Tom Chow ' 84 were selected for All- State Orchestra. Mrs. Eads said, One auditioned by recording their performance on tape. If one was picked to go on, they performed at the IMEA (Indiana Music Educators Association) convention. There were several thousand music teachers from all over the state. Christine was named concert mistress of Perry ' s orchestra which meant she was the top person in the orchestra. INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC 157

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They were good for posture. The previous chairs were just broken down and worn outll Some new microphones, called pzm ' s (pressure zone microphones) were bought to aid the department in musicals because they were more powerful and picked up more of the voices. They made it louder so that everyone, even people in the back, could get nice, loud, and clear sound. Department chairman Miss Lissa Fleming quoted, A Capella choir got new concert attire. The girls got lavender gowns, and the guys got grey tuxes. The Symphonic Band and Orchestra band got new attire. One might have wondered how the department gave semester tests in vocal courses. Miss Fleming stated, We gave semester tests for the first time. They were written tests on counting measures and music theory. Three-year Then and Now member, Michelle Moye ' 84, talked about her experiences and likings in vocal music, In Then and Now, we performed in the community and visited some nice places. My favorite performance was with a senior citizens ' group downtown because they totally loved us and applauded very appreciatively. We got them to join in and sing ' Rudolph, the Red Nosed Reindeer ' , ' Joy to the World ' , and ' Silent Night. ' I thought they really liked us because they felt they were involved in the performance and were temporarily reliving childhood with us. In the Homecoming Concert and Extravaganza, I sang the theme of Flashdance . . . Oh What A FeelingI while other couples did a choreographed dance to the music. I enjoyed singing because it got feelings deep inside to come out. Sometimes a song said what I wanted to say, so I sang it to say what I couldn ' t put in words. I liked to be in front of an audience and share myself with them in the form of song. For me, it was always easier to sing in front of people than to talk or give a speech. She concluded by stating that music was a beautiful way to express oneself. Tim Amdt ' 84 commented, I like singing jazz music because it was more fun. I thought jazz had more difficult rhythms which made it more of a challenge than some of the other Pam Bolton ' 85 and Karen Wllbvirn ' 85 sing Christmas Is in ensemble in choir. kinds of music. He added that he liked practices, rehearsals, and especially musicals. I also enjoyed going down to the music department and helping out the freshmen. It made it easier for them to understand various facts and subjects about music if someone nearer their own age explained it. I did a quartet with MarshaU Moon ' 84, Jeff Koenig ' 84, and Alan Lapp ' 85, and we did ' Lida Rose ' from the musical Music Man. Most people did ' Coney Island Babe ' , we wanted to be different. Tim said finally that one could express oneself more creatively with his voice. One could do more with the voice than he could with an instnmient. I really liked entertaining people with my voice. Jenny Schmalfeldt ' 84 stated, It was my first year ip Then and Now. We went to many places and sang various kinds of music. We were always doing something. Once, we sang Christmas carols in a portable wood building which had a window so people could see in, and microphones were on the inside with speakers on the outside so they could hear. We went to an Old Folk ' s home and sang for some senior citizens. We also went to the Hyatt and put on some shows for the passers-by and to Riley Children ' s Hospital to sing at a Christmes party put on by the employees there. To get into Then and Now, Jenny said that she auditioned by doing a duet with Tim Amdt. The music department gave a Marshall Moon ' 84 breathes deeply. music letter award to students who accxunulated the required nimiber of points. The department had set a minimum number of points to get a letter in areas of band, orchestra, choir, Falconettes, and Rifle Corps. To maintain points toward a letter, students were expected to attend all rehearsals, concerts, and other performances required by that activity. Miss Fleming stated that a vocal class was different from most other classes in that students were more active in it. She concluded, Music was a sharing experience. We, as teachers, helped to share our knowledge of music. VOCAL MUSIC 159