Dear Tom, 

     This summer I attended the Birch Bay Band workshop, a sight reading clinic. We read over 100 concert and stage band pieces. It was attended by approximately 80 directors from the state of Washington with a few from Oregon, Alaska and one from Taipei. After each session we voted on each piece concerning playability, musicality, teachability, etc. We were directed not to allow price to influence our decision. The results were tabulated by percentages and sent to attendees. I will be happy to send this information to those who provide addresses. This information might be helpful in ordering music when the time comes in December. The music is all from JWPepper, with their catalog numbers, prices and grade level. 
    Next year, the Birch Bay Band Clinic will be held August 2-6, near Bellingham, Washington. Some music teachers may be interested in visiting Washington to enjoy a week of playing their horn. There is a concurrent string clinic as well. For more info contact: 

Marie Meyers 
PO Box 4209-AAFB 
Yigo, Guam 96929
Fax/Tel 671-637-0387 

PS: Any scuttlebutt on possible secondary openings for next fall? Retirements??

Dear Tom, 

     As for our school year, we are still operating under the “duress” of a strike by Turkish nationals working for the base. The strike has been on since July 23rd; no commissary, no BX, hardly any food left at the base restaurant and supplies for sale at the shopette or for maintenance of our facilities are practically depleted. The school is exempt, but we have no school busses and no hot lunches. Parents are managing to get their kids to school. Monitors are taking care of the elementary students in our stuffy, hot­no air conditioning­ basement, who arrive early with their MS/HS siblings and wait an hour before their school starts. Strikers reportedly try to prevent our people from picking up cleaning and other supplies, but I heard someone managed to “spirit” some toilet paper, etc., away to our school.
     I'm also the LUR, (Labor Union Rep), this year...albeit reluctantly...so it’s keeping me pretty busy; especially the first three teacher days, when the elementary teachers were fit to be tied because their “prep” time has been cut drastically with one of my elementary slots taken by the LUR position, and the art teacher being excessed end of last SY. Of course, the elementary teachers felt, among other things, my chorus class should have been sacrificed for the LUR position, instead of the elementary slot. But I had nothing to do with it. Of course, it doesn’t help that the other two specialists (Host Nation and PE) have been given only one elementary slot, too. We have eight elementary teachers, and only five slots per week. Of course, even the elementary classes that were scheduled for specialists this week (all at the end of the day, 7th period), had to skip our classes anyway, because parents have to pick up their kids beginning at 2:15 p.m. and later. The times are staggered to avoid a traffic jam in front of the school. I guess there are times we just can't win for losing, as they say.
     I’ve also enrolled in a distance education graduate course, which involves video cassettes. The videos make me feel I’ll be able to complete this...but, I may be dreaming, too. So far, of course, I haven’t received anything in the mail. The course was supposed to start 1 Sep. Oh well!
     Incidentally, I met Carolynn Lindeman, past president, MENC, at the International Association of 
Jazz Educators “Teacher Training Institute” in 
Orlando, Florida. (See Geri’s report on page 16.) I chatted with her...mentioned that we overseas schools haven’t been listed in their list of new and renewed Tri-M chapters. She was concerned about that and, apparently, must have done something about it because I’ve just recently received a listing of international and APO/FPO chapters...and we are listed! Rah!  Carolyn, of course, is very pleasant and personable. She knows many EMEA members.
    While we’re talking about music courses, I ended my summer with the Showchoir Camps of America performance workshop again in Orlando, 25 Jul-1 Aug. About 130 kids from mostly Illinois, Ohio, Michigan were the featured attraction on the Cinderella stage in the Magic Kingdom, Saturday, 1 Aug. It truly was a spectacular show. I was amazed at how the staff could get these 130 kids to perform so professionally in one week. The Disney crew added finishing touches like flares and other pyrotechnics, smoke (for cloud effect for the Aladdin on a flying carpet solo), and even a flock of pure white pigeons that fly out from and around the castle, and away...probably to MGM Entertainment (where they fly out of the Pocahontas Show and back to the Magic Kingdom)...at the end of “The Circle of Life” segment of the Disney Medley they did. One woman, with one other seamstress, created all of the soloists costumes...Mulan, Aladdin, Hunchback and three Gargoyles, Lion King guy, gal, animals, Beauty and the Beast, etc., etc. It was incredible. Then Mickey Mouse himself appeared at the very end to dance the last few steps with the kids and finally wave goodbye to the crowd. It was quite impressive indeed. This one was much more expensive than the Jazz Institute, however, but we were “wined and dined” at Disney World every day! (I think the staff wanted us seven teachers out of the way, because Disney has such a high standard of performance and they had to get those kids in shape fast!)  I actually wanted to learn more about show choirs­how to do them since Marsha Dawson’s presentation, at the last EMEA conference was my first and only exposure to show choirs­but got the “thrill” of it all instead. Not a bad exchange, I guess.
     In other words, I had a good summer (Hawaii, California, Minnesota, Maryland in between those two musical workshops). Sorry to be so long-winded. I’d better send this off, before the power gives out again! 

     Yours, Geri