Sincerely,

Mr. Seigel

HELLO- I've put some information on this site to help you prepare for our May 8th Concert.  I'm so excited to have this opportunity and look forward to working with you.  I have some information below about the songs that we will be performing together.  Please look at my notes about the songs - if you have questions, you can always email me at     seigela@hamiltonschools.org

PLEASE practice your music every day and work with your band directors if they have the time to prepare for our concert.

Mr. Seigel

Listening Example mp3 files:

Here are mp3 recordings of the songs we will be playing in our concert - you can download them and listen to them on your computer or load them onto your iPod or mp3 player.  You can click on each to listen to it or Right click to download it.

Defender of Time               Furioso              Chorale Elega'nt  

 Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious                Sousa Times Twosa

Note - one of our band members, Elena from Southampton, said she was having problems opening some of the audio files;  if for any reason, you can't listen to the pieces from my links above, you can also go to www.jwpepper.com and do a search based on the names of our songs; that should take you to the appropriate mp3 file - Thanks Elena!

About our songs:

Defender of Time (tempo - 152)  This exciting piece will be a great opener to our show.  The rhythms are not too difficult but performing the piece at this very fast tempo and counting notes and rests is our challenge.   Follow closely the breath marks that I have added - some of them are in unusual spots.

Furioso (tempo – 160) Another driving piece at a fast tempo.  This is a more challenging work than our opener.  You need to focus on playing the correct rhythms – count carefully – and emphasize the exciting soft and loud dynamic levels.  Furioso is about powerful emotion – ‘passion’ - which explains its title.

Chorale Ele’gant (tempo- 88) A simple yet beautiful piece in ¾ time.  Please work very hard on creating a full, rich sound with your instrument while paying careful attention to the dynamics.  Watch the breath marks to make sure you don’t chop up the musical phrases.  The longer phrases will challenge your breath control – support your tone!

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (tempo- 112) From the 1964 Disney film “Mary Poppins”, I’m sure you’ve all heard this song.  We want to keep this flowing forward, with light tonguing in the winds and brass – avoid ‘honking’ or ‘blatting’.  Again, we will try to breath every four bars (measures) so that we don't 'break' the phrase.

Sousa Times Twosa (tempo 108) This piece combines two marches from one of America’s greatest bandmasters, John Philip Sousa.  This will be a wonderful finale’ to our show, a toe-tapping favorite with spirit.

About our Concert & Rehearsal:

We will have a 1 1/2 hour rehearsal in the morning, take a break, rehearse for another hour and a half, then eat our lunch.  We will have some quiet time in the afternoon before the concert.  We are the Blue Band, so our friends in the Red Band will go on first, at 2 PM, and we will follow them about 30 minutes later.

About Mr. Seigel:

Here is a short bio about your conductor.  It’s always good to know something about the
person who is directing you.

Name:  Andrew Mark Seigel       Born:  April 11, 1965 in Easton, Pennsylvania

Musical Beginnings:          I started studying music when I was nine years old but I think I was trying to make music since the day I was born.  I sang in school choirs and played in school bands throughout Elementary, Junior, and Senior High School.  As a teenager, I founded  the Percussion Ensemble at my High School, convincing the board of education to approve it as a formal class.  My musical teaching inspirations were my 6th grade Band teacher, Mr. Gardinierre, and my High School Choral Director, Mr. Milisits.  My musical heroes cover the full spectrum of musical genre, from classical artists and composers to contemporary performers and musical innovators.

College:           u West Chester University - B.S. in Music Education - double major - percussion / voice

                                 Studied with Alan Wagner, Lois Williams, Joe Goebel, Terrance Guidetti, Jacque Voois

                                 Rowan University - Masters Degree in Supervision & Curriculum Development

Jobs &:           u Music Teacher of Concert Band, Show Choir, Wind Ensemble, Jazz Band, Percussion

Teacher                  Ensemble  Instrumental & Vocal Lessons, Treble Choir and General Music at the William

“Stuff”                   Davies Middle School in Mays Landing, NJ for 22 years

                                Percussion Director/Arranger for the Delsea High School Marching Band

                    Professional conductor, vocalist, percussionist, and writer/arranger

                                Past-President of the South Jersey Choral Directors’ Association from 1999 to 2003

                                Past member -NJMEA Executive Board of Directors from 1999 to 2003

                                Atlantic County Dept of Education Professional Development Committee 2001-2008

                                Gloucester County Cultural Heritage Commission Grants Committee – past member

                                Karate, kickboxing, and self-defense instructor – Modern Bujutsu Center of Vineland, NJ

Honors:          u Named to Who’s Who Among American Teachers and Who’s Who in America

                                Conductor of the South Jersey Junior High Festival Chorus - 2006

        Conductor of the South Jersey Junior High Concert Band - 2001

                                Conductor of the Olympic Conference Jr. High Band – 2000    

                                Conductor of the SJCDA Elementary Festival Chorus - 1998

                                Student Conductor of the West Chester University Symphony Orchestra -1987

                                Grants award winner – $20,000+ to teach technology, music composition, and Percussion

                                USA/International Black Belt Hall of Fame inductee – 2004

                                American Okinawan Karate Hall of Fame - 2006

        #1 Outstanding Kata Competitor of the Year Senior Black Belts 2005 - UMARA

        2005 Martial Arts Champions Award Winner– United Martial Arts Referee Association 

Hobbies:         u 28 years studying karate, tae kwon do, kung fu, Filipino Arnis, &  kickboxing           

                                 Black belts in Goju Ryu/ Modern Bujutsu, Modern Arnis, and Tae Kwon Do

                                I enjoy computer gaming, computer building, and web page design

                                I also like collecting dragons and snare drums

         “ I am a husband & the father of two great kids (a 16 year old daughter and an 13 year old son).  I conduct instrumental and vocal groups with the goal of empowering students to become better individuals and members of their community.  Music has been my lifelong love and I enjoy sharing that enthusiasm with students.  The arts are an outward reflection of our inner selves and life experiences.  Everyone can be musical.  Student musicians are very special people and I consider it a privilege to work with them.  Personal Motto – Believe to Achieve!“

Mr. Seigel's Website:          http://www.hamiltonschools.org/~seigela/