Meridian Community Band - Joining the Band

Joining the Meridian Community Band

When to Join

The Meridian Community Band divides its season into five sessions (Autumn, Holiday, Festival, Spring and Summer). Each session has its own focus concert(s). Since rehearsals are a critical part of preparation for these concerts we ask prospective members to join the band near the beginning of a session so that they can derive the benefits of these rehearsals.
The first rehearsal for the 2007-08 concert season will be held Tuesday, August 28th - 7:00 p.m. at the Lake Lansing Park Band Shell
The concert season schedule can be found by clicking on the following link: 2007-08 Concert Season Schedule

Where do we meet?

Rehearsals are held at Okemos High School (2800 E. Jolly Rd - Okemos) on Tuesday evenings throughout the school year. During the autumn marching band season we meet in the Orchestra room. After the completion of the marching band season we meet for the remainder of the year in the band room. Both rooms are directly accessible from the student parking lot on the east side of the building.
On such occasions that the regular school day was cancelled (bad weather, electrical, heating or water problems, etc.) evening rehearsals will be cancelled.
Okemos Public Schools are alchohol and tobacco-free zones and the use of these substances are prohibited on school property.
Rehearsals begin promptly ar 7:15 p.m. and are normally concluded at 9:00 p.m. For special circumstances rehearsals may last until 9:15 p.m. Most members arrive 10-15 minutes early to allow time for set up and warm up.

What is a Concert Band?

The Meridian Community Band is a 85-90 piece concert band. Its instrumentation may include parts for piccolo, flute, oboe, English horn, bassoon, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, French horn, trombone, euphonium (baritone horn), tuba, string bass and percussion. We are not an orchestra. We do not have stringed instruments (violins, violas, cellos, guitars, banjos, mandolins, etc.). Literature for the modern concert band evolved from military bands and orchestral transcriptions of the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries. The modern concert band has become a very popular form of instrumental music.

Dues & Fees

The Meridian Community Band does not require dues for membership at this time. We do, however, ask our members to make a donation of $10 (annually) to help us meet our administrative expenses (ASCAP/BMI performance licensing, liability insurance, etc.). The donation is voluntary and refusal to contribute does not constitute a basis for expulsion from the band. The band is a registered Michigan non-profit corporation and has been granted tax-exempt status from the Internal Revenue Service [section 501(c)(3)].

Part Assignments

The Meridian Community Band welcomes new members throughout the concert season (late August through June) who have had high school-level playing experience. We are a non-auditioned group but have established certain policies which we ask our members to follow. These policies, regarding part assignments can be found by clicking on the following link: Parts Policy

The band performs twelve to fifteen concerts each season in a variety of settings. We have three uniform codes (formal, holiday, and summer) regarding attire to which we ask our members to adhere. The Concert Attire requirements can be reviewed by clicking on the following link: Concert Attire