Summer Band/Preseason Training Summer Band 2012 Dates Sunday, August 19th 12:00pm - 5:00m Check-in - All Members 6:00pm - 9:00pm Meeting with new Members Monday, August 20th - Tuesday, August 28th 2012 SOSA Summer Band/Band Camp You will receive a detailed daily schedule when you check-in Brass, Woodwind, and Percussion students who are officially enrolled at UTSA and plan to audition for membership report to Preseason Training in August. Auxiliary students who have successfully completed the Evaluation process over the summer also report to Preseason Training to begin rehearsals for the season. What do I do when I arrive for Summer Band/Preseason Training? Report to the check-in location as indicated in the UTSA SOSA Assessment Packet. Please note that the report date may vary depending on your instrument and/or membership status (new, returning, or leadership). How do I get a UTSA Athletic Band Assessment Packet? The Summer Band Packet is sent to all brass, woodwind, and percussion students who plan to audition in August and to all Auxiliary performers who have successfully completed the Summer Evaluations. Audition Packets/Materials are posted in early May each Spring. UTSA Athletic Band Assessment Packets are available for download - HERE Assessment Packets will be made available as soon as the inaugural pregame show is finalized. Keep checking the website for their posting. If you are registered for the class, you will receive an email when they are posted. Thanks to all for being on top of this and communicating with the office and our student staff. Why do you have a Summer Band/Preseason Training session? College Bands are noted for excellence in performance. Texas College Bands are noted as being models for College Bands all across the country. To achieve this excellence, we must be able to execute the fundamentals of marching and playing at a very high level. Because we learn and perform different halftime shows throughout the season, everyone must be able to learn and polish a new show quickly and efficiently. Preseason Training provides all Marching Band members, new and returning, the opportunity to get into shape physically, mentally, and musically so that we can work together to produce exciting performances. The emphasis is on fundamentals, but we will also be learning music and drill maneuvers for the season ahead. The quality of our Summer Session has a lot to do with the success of our season. I heard that the Summer Band/Preseason Training session is pretty tough. We will approach this important training period very seriously. It is intense and we work under strict time limits. Summer Band is designed to train our members for the tough season ahead. We work hard during rehearsals, but you will enjoy the camaraderie and satisfaction that comes from working hard to accomplish something worthwhile. Thousands of college band performers go through this same training period all across the nation each August. We believe that you will find the training session to be carefully planned and extremely efficient. We promise to do everything possible to make your experience informative and rewarding. What will the schedule for the training session be like? The normal daily schedule for Preseason Training is as follows: 10:00 am - 12:00 pm Drill (Reh Field) 12:00 pm - 01:30 pm Lunch 01:30 pm - 04:30 pm Music Rehearsals 04:30 pm - 06:30 pm Dinner 06:30 pm - 10:00 pm Drill (Reh Field) Keep in mind that this is only a sample schedule. You will be given a detailed daily schedule when you register for training. We make every effort to use this time in a productive and efficient manner. What if I have to attend Orientation and Registration during the Training Session? We will excuse you from rehearsal when you have something important to do regarding orientation and/or registration. All you need to do is advise the staff that you must leave and when you will be back. We do not want to keep you from conducting important business. Please remember that it is your responsibility to catch-up and practice anything that you miss while away from rehearsal. What about medical appointments? You will be excused from rehearsal for important medical appointments, but please make every effort to schedule these so as not to interfere with Preseason Training. What about meals during Preseason Training? You must provide your own meals during Preseason Training. There are many fast food and family-style restaurants to be found in the area around campus. Many students also bring breakfast items to be eaten in their residence hall or apartments. Due to the extremely rigorous physical activity involved in our training sessions, all students are CAUTIONED against missing regular nutritious meals. It is IMPERATIVE that you eat well balanced meals three times a day. What about going through sorority/fraternity rush? If you wish to go through sorority/fraternity rush, you may certainly do so. However, if you are a first-semester freshman, it is not recommended that you try to do too much your first term in college. Being in The UTSA SOSA and a sorority or fraternity will place a lot of demands on your time; some of that time should be devoted to studying! Some students are able to do both, but you should weigh the pros and cons carefully. If you decide to go through rush during our Preseason Training Session, you will be responsible for keeping up with everything that is taught in rehearsals that you miss, and you will be evaluated on the same standards as those who attended all rehearsals. Where will I stay during the Summer Band/Preseason Training session? If you live in campus housing, you will be able to move into your residence hall on the first official day of Summer Band. Important information concerning residence hall move-in is contained in the UTSA SOSA Assessment Packet. Please remember that you will move into a residence hall ONLY if you have secured a room for the fall semester. The UTSA Band Office does not provide housing. You must secure your own contract for housing through the UTSA Housing Office. Membership in The Roadrunner Bands DOES NOT guarantee you a residence hall room. It is a common misconception that UTSA has special rooms available for marching band members. THIS IS NOT TRUE! If you have not yet applied for housing through the UTSA Housing Office, do so immediately. Do not call the Band Office for this information, we cannot help. We can only provide early check in to students who have made their own arrangements for University housing. *****For those that are registered with UTSA Housing, a special section of the dorms has been reserved for Roadrunner Band Members that is conveniently located adjacent to the practice field (SOSA Field). We encourage members to contact the housing office for more information on this outstanding benefit for our members. If you live in off campus housing, those arrangements are left to you. Be sure to communicate with your landlord and/or roommates. Students living in private residence halls or apartments must make their own arrangements with those places in order to get in early. (The UTSA Band Office will not make these arrangements for you.) 

Summer Band/Preseason Training

Summer Band 2012 Dates

Sunday, August 19th

12:00pm - 5:00m Check-in - All Members

6:00pm - 9:00pm Meeting with new Members

Monday, August 20th - Tuesday, August 28th

2012 SOSA Summer Band/Band Camp

You will receive a detailed daily schedule when you check-in

Brass, Woodwind, and Percussion students who are officially enrolled at UTSA and plan to audition for membership report to Preseason Training in August. Auxiliary students who have successfully completed the Evaluation process over the summer also report to Preseason Training to begin rehearsals for the season.

What do I do when I arrive for Summer Band/Preseason Training?

Report to the check-in location as indicated in the UTSA SOSA Assessment Packet. Please note that the report date may vary depending on your instrument and/or membership status (new, returning, or leadership).

How do I get a UTSA Athletic Band Assessment Packet?

The Summer Band Packet is sent to all brass, woodwind, and percussion students who plan to audition in August and to all Auxiliary performers who have successfully completed the Summer Evaluations. Audition Packets/Materials are posted in early May each Spring.

UTSA Athletic Band Assessment Packets are available for download - HERE

Assessment Packets will be made available as soon as the inaugural pregame show is finalized. Keep checking the website for their posting. If you are registered for the class, you will receive an email when they are posted. Thanks to all for being on top of this and communicating with the office and our student staff.

Why do you have a Summer Band/Preseason Training session?

College Bands are noted for excellence in performance. Texas College Bands are noted as being models for College Bands all across the country. To achieve this excellence, we must be able to execute the fundamentals of marching and playing at a very high level. Because we learn and perform different halftime shows throughout the season, everyone must be able to learn and polish a new show quickly and efficiently.

Preseason Training provides all Marching Band members, new and returning, the opportunity to get into shape physically, mentally, and musically so that we can work together to produce exciting performances.

The emphasis is on fundamentals, but we will also be learning music and drill maneuvers for the season ahead. The quality of our Summer Session has a lot to do with the success of our season.

I heard that the Summer Band/Preseason Training session is pretty tough.

We will approach this important training period very seriously. It is intense and we work under strict time limits. Summer Band is designed to train our members for the tough season ahead. We work hard during rehearsals, but you will enjoy the camaraderie and satisfaction that comes from working hard to accomplish something worthwhile.

Thousands of college band performers go through this same training period all across the nation each August. We believe that you will find the training session to be carefully planned and extremely efficient. We promise to do everything possible to make your experience informative and rewarding.

What will the schedule for the training session be like?

The normal daily schedule for Preseason Training is as follows:

110:00 am - 12:00 pm Drill (Reh Field)
212:00 pm - 01:30 pm Lunch
301:30 pm - 04:30 pm Music Rehearsals
404:30 pm - 06:30 pm Dinner
506:30 pm - 10:00 pm Drill (Reh Field)

Keep in mind that this is only a sample schedule. You will be given a detailed daily schedule when you register for training. We make every effort to use this time in a productive and efficient manner.

What if I have to attend Orientation and Registration during the Training Session?

We will excuse you from rehearsal when you have something important to do regarding orientation and/or registration. All you need to do is advise the staff that you must leave and when you will be back. We do not want to keep you from conducting important business.

Please remember that it is your responsibility to catch-up and practice anything that you miss while away from rehearsal.

What about medical appointments?

You will be excused from rehearsal for important medical appointments, but please make every effort to schedule these so as not to interfere with Preseason Training.

What about meals during Preseason Training?

You must provide your own meals during Preseason Training. There are many fast food and family-style restaurants to be found in the area around campus. Many students also bring breakfast items to be eaten in their residence hall or apartments.

Due to the extremely rigorous physical activity involved in our training sessions, all students are CAUTIONED against missing regular nutritious meals. It is IMPERATIVE that you eat well balanced meals three times a day.

What about going through sorority/fraternity rush?

If you wish to go through sorority/fraternity rush, you may certainly do so. However, if you are a first-semester freshman, it is not recommended that you try to do too much your first term in college.

Being in The UTSA SOSA and a sorority or fraternity will place a lot of demands on your time; some of that time should be devoted to studying! Some students are able to do both, but you should weigh the pros and cons carefully.

If you decide to go through rush during our Preseason Training Session, you will be responsible for keeping up with everything that is taught in rehearsals that you miss, and you will be evaluated on the same standards as those who attended all rehearsals.

Where will I stay during the Summer Band/Preseason Training session?

If you live in campus housing, you will be able to move into your residence hall on the first official day of Summer Band. Important information concerning residence hall move-in is contained in the UTSA SOSA Assessment Packet.

Please remember that you will move into a residence hall ONLY if you have secured a room for the fall semester. The UTSA Band Office does not provide housing. You must secure your own contract for housing through the UTSA Housing Office.

Membership in The Roadrunner Bands DOES NOT guarantee you a residence hall room. It is a common misconception that UTSA has special rooms available for marching band members. THIS IS NOT TRUE! If you have not yet applied for housing through the UTSA Housing Office, do so immediately. Do not call the Band Office for this information, we cannot help. We can only provide early check in to students who have made their own arrangements for University housing.

*****For those that are registered with UTSA Housing, a special section of the dorms has been reserved for Roadrunner Band Members that is conveniently located adjacent to the practice field (SOSA Field). We encourage members to contact the housing office for more information on this outstanding benefit for our members.

If you live in off campus housing, those arrangements are left to you. Be sure to communicate with your landlord and/or roommates. Students living in private residence halls or apartments must make their own arrangements with those places in order to get in early. (The UTSA Band Office will not make these arrangements for you.)