The Band Program at Lakeside
Symphonic Band: Symphonic band is a year long band class held during school hours, centered around musical development, cultural musicianship, and performance of large ensemble music. Performances include a Winter concert in December, Music Festival in March, and a Spring concert in April. Additional concerts may include a Pops concert in the Spring. Members are strongly encouraged to take private lessons and audition for all-state.
Concert Band Concert band is a yearlong band class held during school hours, centered on individual and group improvement and technical development. Concerts include a winter concert in December, Music Festival in March, and spring concert in April. Members are asked to take private lessons and audition for district.
Marching Band: (July-November) Extracurricular group that performs in uniform on a football field and in the stands. Performances include 10 football games plus any pre-season games in addition to competitions and parades as required.
Jazz Band: (November-April) Extracurricular jazz ensemble. Rehearses outside of school. Performances include dinner music at the band banquet in the spring, Jazz festival, the Melvin Hodges Jazz Festival, the annual Black History Assembly at LHS, and other performances.
Solo & Ensemble: Students may choose to form ensembles to rehearse before or after school. Performances include recitals at LHS, graded solo and ensemble festival, or special events such as community performances.
Full Orchestra: Members of the Symphonic Band may be chosen by the Orchestra Director to participate. Concerts may include Festival, Winter Concert, Spring Concert, or special event.
Special Events: The band director may require groups to perform at events to better serve the community. This may include
aspects of any of the aforementioned groups, or a unique ensemble. One of the facets of this is Pep Band, which performs at selected basketball games.
Trips: From time to time, performing ensembles may participate in events outside of the metropolitan Atlanta area, requiring overnight accommodations. These trips will be planned in advance to allow for adequate preparation. These trips are also subject to approval by the school and county administration, and may be cancelled at any time.
Performance Opportunities Outside of the Lakeside Band ProgramDeKalb Youth Symphony: Youth honor orchestra that serves DeKalb County that rehearses at Lakeside High School. Appointment is by audition only. Students may apply in the fall. DYS performs many concerts during the school year. Atlanta Youth Wind Symphony: Premier youth wind symphony in the southeast, and regarded as one of the finest young bands in the country. Recently performed on National Public Radio on the show “From the Top”. Also performed for the Georgia Music Educators Convention. Lakeside currently has one member of this group, and we are looking to expand our membership. Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra: One of the finest youth symphonies in the nation, the ASYO is the best of the best in Atlanta. Auditions are in the fall. Applicants must be taking private lessons and be very serious about performing to audition. District IV Honor Bands: Honor bands made up of the finest middle and high school musicians in District IV, which includes DeKalb, Rockdale, and other counties. There are three District IV Honor bands: 6-8th grade, 9-10th grade, and 11-12th grade. Lakeside has 17 students in these honor bands at present. The honor band rehearses for a day and a half in March and performs at the end of the second day. Students must audition in January for the District Honor Band, which also doubles as the first round of auditions for the All-State Band. All State Bands: The Georgia All State Bands are made up of the top middle and high school students in the state. Students must pass two auditions to be accepted. Performs one concert per year in Savannah, GA. One of the highest honors a music student can achieve is to be in the All-State Band. |