The Board of Directors has approved the following fee schedule for this season:
| Number of children in family | YSO and Concert | Wind Symphony | Primo and Repertory | Intro to Prep(9/29-5/3) | Prep Orchestra | Chamber Music Program |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Child | $415 | 390 | 360 | 300 | 165 | 100 |
| Second Child | $365 | 340 | 310 | 300 | 165 | 100 |
| Additional children | $315 | 290 | 260 | 300 | 165 | 100 |
Please see the July parent letter for payment deadlines and schedules.
We regularly receive questions from students and parents regarding the maintenance of their stringed instruments. In response, YOPW has prepared a brief guide to the care of your instrument. We have highlighted the basic requirements for keeping your instrument in good shape, along with some advice on what you can do yourself and when to seek help from a professional violin shop or luthier. In several places, we mention different types of supplies (rosin, mutes, strings) that you will need to purchase from time to time. At the end of the guide, we included a section on various sources where you may obtain these items. You may access the Guide to Stringed Instrument Care by clicking here.
YOPW Director of Chamber Music Patty Plombon has prepared a guide to insuring your instrument. The cost of doing this is small when you consider the risks from which you protect yourself. Anyone with an instrument beyond the most basic student quality should consider adding a rider to your home owner's policy or taking out a separate policy for your instrument. Click here to read this page.
Parents often have questions about concert dress:
What is my student supposed to wear?
Is there anything I should be looking for, in addition to the right colors?
Where can I find this clothing?
We will try to deal with these questions below:
The YOPW concert dress code is listed on the Policies page on our website. The problems we see most frequently on concert days are short or knee-length skirts, white socks, and athletic shoes. We usually have a few pairs of black socks available at concerts and will ask your student to change if he is not wearing black socks.
In addition to the right colors, you should pay attention to how the garment fits as your student plays. Do the sleeves allow your flautist or violinist to hold their arms up comfortably? Does the garment fit too tightly to allow your string player or percussionist to move freely? Is your daughter's skirt full enough so that she can position her legs comfortably as she plays? In addition to size and cut, you might also consider the type of fabric when purchasing musicians' garments. For instance, tuxedos made from synthetics are often more comfortable than wool, because there is more "give" to the fabric. Your students' performance dress should allow them to feel as comfortable as they do in their street clothes.
You should be able to find most garments at regular clothing stores, and we encourage you to shop locally, so that your musicians can try garments before you buy. However, some items may be more of a challenge, particularly for girls. There are a number of specialty firms that cater to musicians' clothing needs. We've reviewed the following companies, and, although we haven't ordered from them, their products appear to be quality garments.
Please read the parent letter and membership policies documents carefully. The membership policies and rehearsal and concert calendars are also available on this website. We have updated the calendar since we prepared the version sent to you in August, so please use the on-line version of this document. No YOPW ensemble performs at every concert, so please note the concerts at which your student's group is scheduled to perform.
It is a great help in avoiding many misunderstandings and problems, if parents and students are familiar with the YOPW membership policies. As a reminder, we have outlined some of the more frequent concerns that come up during the season:
Rehearsals start promtly at their scheduled times. Students need to be in their seats, ready to tune no later than ten minutes before the time the rehearsal is scheduled to start. Late arrivals disrupt rehearsals and make it difficult for conductors and other students to rehearse effectively. Students should also be in their seats, ready to resume rehearsals after their scheduled breaks.
In addition to their instruments and their folders, ALL students need to bring stands and pencils to rehearsal. Please attach a label with your student's name on the stand. String players should have rosin and an extra set of strings, and wind players should have reeds in good condition. Instruments should be in good working order, and bows should be rehaired before they become slick. If you have any questions regarding about the condition of your student's instrument, please see us at the front desk at rehearsals. We can often make minor emergency adjustments, but this is no substitute for regular maintenance of your student's instrument.
The designated area for discharge and pick-up of YOPW students is the bus tunnel on the side of the school facing Smoketown Road (next to the lower cafeteria). If you prefer to park and escort your child in and out of the building, you may enter the building using the doors adjacent to the auditorium.
Please do not park, wait, discharge, or pick up students in the lanes outside the auditorium entrance (next to our red traffic cones). This area is poorly lit, and vehicular traffic here creates a hazard for our students. Vehicles stopped here block the view of oncoming traffic for students and parents who are walking between the building and the parking lot. Vehicles that discharge or wait to pick up students in this area will be reminded to move to the bus tunnel.
Gar-Field High School prohibits parents or students from parking or standing in the area between the entrance road and the loading dock area. Please do not drive into the area inside our traffic cones unless:
If Prince William County public schools fail to open or if they close during the day on a Monday, then that evening's rehearsals will be canceled. However, weather conditions may change during a day when schools are open and make it necessary for us to cancel a rehearsal. In such cases, a bulletin will be placed on the office voice mail system, and an e-mail notification will be sent out about 3 p.m. You may assume that the scheduled rehearsal will take place, if we have not provided a notification of cancellation by that time. (Please make sure we have an email address for you that you will be able to check during the day!)
We recognize that our families come from a variety of locations and that many of you travel long distances to attend YOPW rehearsals. We try to learn as much as we can, but we cannot always be aware of road and weather conditions on all your routes. If you feel it is dangerous to attend a rehearsal, please stay home! You safety is our primary concern.
Conductors will provide adequate notice of both the required material and dates for seating auditions. Students who are unable to attend auditions will be seated at the back of their sections until the next scheduled seating audition. To be evaluated fairly, seating auditions must be conducted at the same time by the same adjudicator, so it is not possible to arrange make-up auditions. Please make every effort to be available on audition nights.
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