Mrs. Brooksby - Band/Music

Welcome Bobcats! 

I am so excited to be the band director here at Sonoran Foothills School! I am also lucky to get to teach 3rd grade and 4th grade general music. 

A little about me: I am a Phoenix native, born and raised. I actually grew up in the Deer Valley Unified School District, attending Paseo Hills School and Barry Goldwater High School (go Rattlers and Bulldogs!). I began playing flute in band in the 5th grade. Since then, I have never looked back! I received my Associate in Arts degree from Glendale Community College and my Bachelor of Arts in Music Education degree from Ottawa University. While studying flute at GCC, I was a four-time first-place winner of the Maricopa County Community College District Artists of Promise competition, winning once as a soloist and three times as a member of an instrumental ensemble, performing in showcases at the downtown Phoenix Herberger and Orpheum Theatres. I have also taught private music lessons for over 4 years for flute, piano, and violin. I currently offer lessons as well. I am currently studying the bass guitar, which has been a long time personal interest of mine. 

My passion for learning, performing, and teaching music has driven me to share that joy with others. I can't wait to share in the joy of making music with the students, parents, and community of Sonoran Foothills. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me any time this year with questions, concerns, or celebrations.

The Sonoran Foothills Band Program operates in accordance with the school-wide TRACKS behavior plan. The student will be expected to give their best effort to be a good citizen in our classroom and school wide community by meeting the school Bobcat TRACKS behavior expectations, which are:

Trustworthy, Respectful, Accountable, Creative, Kind, and Safe. 

In order to demonstrate TRACKS, students will follow these classroom expectations: 

• Attend class on time
• Come to class prepared with all materials including instrument, music, and all necessary maintenance and accessory supplies
• Complete all assignments and meet all deadlines
• Obey school rules
• Cooperate with and respect staff and peers
• Actively participate in and contribute to the learning and rehearsal process
• Give their best effort to grow as a musician

Band Handbook

Students are highly encouraged to have their own supplies. These supplies are necessary to be a successful musician, as well as to clean and maintain their instruments.

Dirty and neglected instrument = illness and costly repairs. Protect your health and your pocket. Make sure you have the right supplies!

Supplies can be found at a number of music retailers or online sites.
Links are included for items, available from Music & Arts or Amazon.

MUST HAVE General Supplies: 

Every day, each band student needs:

Flutes:

Reed instruments - soprano/bass clarinet, alto/tenor/baritone saxophone:

REEDS: Minimum of 3 reeds in their cases. CLICK HERE to read about what "reed strength" is, and how to select the strength of reed you need (includes charts). 

Generally speaking:

Year 1: 2.0-2.5 hardness

Year 2: 2.5-3.0 hardness 

Year 3 and 4: 2.5-3.5 hardness

High quality and affordable brands: Vandoren (classic blue box, or V12 silver box), Juno, D’Addario by Rico, Rico Royal, Mitchell Lurie. BE SURE TO GET THE RIGHT REED FOR YOUR INSTRUMENT. Reeds are not interchangeable between instruments. 

Brass (trumpet, trombone, French horn, euphonium, tuba):

Percussion/drums:

Electric guitar/bass guitar:

• Their musical instrument, in working condition 🎵
• Water bottle (hydration is very important when playing instruments!) 💧
• An erasable pencil (no pens) 📝
• Highlighter
• 3 ring binder to contain all music and exercises 
• 8 or more binder dividers with tabs
• HIGHLY ENCOURAGED: Etymotic Research ER20 High-Fidelity Earplugs for Musicians (from Amazon). Protect your hearing!
• Recommended: Personal Instrument Tuner. Can also be found as free apps on App Store(iOS) or Play Store (Android)
• Plastic or wooden Cleaning Rod
• Silk swab (for daily inside cleaning)
• Cotton cleaning cloth (for daily outside cleaning)
• • Weighted cleaning swab
  • Cork grease
  • Bristled Mouthpiece cleaning brush
  • Cotton cleaning cloth (for daily outside cleaning)
• Valve oil
• French horn only: Key oil
• Slide grease
• Mouthpiece cleaning brush and interior cleaning snake
• Cotton cleaning cloth (for daily outside cleaning)
• Trombone only: Trombone Slide Cream 
• For 7th and 8th grade: Stick bag to store sticks, mallets, and practice pad. Percussion kit will no longer be kept at school. 
• 5th and 6th grade: Percussion kit (contains all items you need as listed below)
  • Pair of wood snare drum sticks (type 2B/3B)
  • Pair of rubber practice mallets
  • Practice pad for at home practice
  • Optional but highly recommended: bell kit or piano/keyboard, for at home practice (can find used for good price)
• Electric guitar only: Picks
• Adjustable guitar shoulder strap
• Guitar/Bass guitar amp (with 1/4" cable) for at home practice (can find new or used at music stores or online)

HELPFUL LINKS

PowerSchool

Online Metronome 

Musical Glossary for Kids

Rhythm Randomizer - practice sightreading rhythms!

All about Balance and Blend

JWPepper - music publisher website. Here, you can look up all the pieces we are working on in band! Be sure to include the title, the the composer and/or arranger. 

SF's Be Part of the Music webpage.

FILE LIBRARY

Basic Musical Terms

Bass clef notes on the Staff

Drum Set Mini Method Book For Beginners

Drum Set Music Notation

Drumset Grooves Packet (every groove you need to know!)

Electric Guitar Fretboard Charts

Fingering Charts with Instrument Diagram/Picture

Instrument Pitch Tendencies, and Mapping your Intonation

Mallet Percussion Note Chart and Music Staff

HOW TO ENROLL IN BAND:

Click here to visit the Be Part Of The Band website for Sonoran Foothills School!

On this site, you and your child can:

• Learn about the positive impact Band has on the lives of students
• Watch video demonstrations of every musical instrument available in 5th grade Band here at Sonoran Foothills School
• Watch interviews of students and parents discussing their experience with Beginning Band
• Play the Instrument Matching Tool game to assess your child’s musical skills and discover what instrument they may like to play

And lastly,

• Submit an Interest Form, which will let me know that your child is interested in band! IMPORTANT: When completing the Interest Form, please include your child’s first, second, and third choices for instruments they wish to play. I will do my best to ensure your child can play the instrument they want, while still maintaining a balanced instrumentation in the band!

After you complete the Interest Form, I will contact you about how to get an instrument for your child. There are many affordable options. If for financial reasons, you are hesitant to enroll your child in band, do not worry. There are limited instruments available to borrow from Sonoran Foothills free of charge!

Renting or Purchasing an Instrument

RENTING

The Band program at Sonoran Foothills School is partnered with national music retailer Music & Arts to bring you high quality instruments at an affordable price. Why rent from Music & Arts? Instruments from Music & Arts are new, high quality, insured against damage/theft/maintenance needs at a low cost of $6/month, and every dollar you pay towards the rental contributes to purchasing your own instrument down the line!

You are not required to rent from Music & Arts, and may rent from other vendors at your discretion. Allegro Music and Rhapsody Music are other vendors in the valley.

After completing your Interest Form (see page called "How To Enroll in Band"), I will contact you with info on how to set up your rental with Music & Arts.  

PURCHASING 

You may choose to purchase an instrument for your child, but this comes with some risks. 

If you wish to purchase an instrument:

DO NOT PURCHASE A COLORFUL INSTRUMENT! (red, pink, blue, green, etc.) These might look cool but they are built from cheap materials and WILL not last without frequent, costly repairs

DO NOT PURCHASE A PLASTIC INSTRUMENT! There are various brands of plastic trumpets, trombones, and other instruments that are plastic. These are fun and can be useful to practice on, but will absolutely not be allowed in band due to their poor quality, intonation/tuning/tone production problems, and easily damaged structure. 

DO NOT PURCHASE THE FOLLOWING BRANDS ON AMAZON OR ELSEWHERE! These are found on Amazon with temptingly low prices but please do not buy them! Anything under $200 is going to give you trouble down the road. You will end up paying for costly and frequent repairs due to the low quality of the instrument. 

• Eastar 🚫 Nuvo 🚫 Asiweier 🚫 EASTROCK 🚫 Glory 🚫 Cecilio 🚫 First Act 🚫

Overall, there’s nothing more frustrating for a beginning musician than a faulty or low quality instrument! As the old adage goes, “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.” Cheap, low quality instruments will lead to inconvenience and frustration down the line… I cannot stress this enough!

SUGGESTIONS FOR BUYING USED INSTRUMENTS:

If you purchased a used instrument, you may run the risk of needing a few repairs. That said, sometimes it is worth it to buy a really good instrument at the slightly lower used price and make minor repairs, than invest in a brand new instrument. Use discretion and if you are unsure about a certain instrument, email me with info about the instrument and I will be happy to help you!

Here are some high quality brands you may consider purchasing:

• Yamaha ✅ Jupiter ✅ Jupiter Capital Edition ✅ Gemeinhardt ✅ Pearl ✅ Bundy ✅ Eastman ✅ Blessing ✅ Bach Stradivarius (trumpets and trombones only) ✅ Vic Firth (percussion only) ✅ 

You can find used instruments:

• in music stores in the Phoenix Metro area (Music & Arts, Guitar Center, Allegro Music, Sam Ash, Boogie Music)
• App: Reverb! This is a GREAT app specifically for buying and selling musical instruments and gear. I have both bought and sold flutes on this app. I highly suggest this app! Sellers include music vendors and individual musicians nationwide!
• OfferUp/LetGo, Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist

CONTACT ME WITH ANY QUESTIONS! 🎵