Winter Concert

On Thursday, December 6th, 2018, the Forestville Road Music Department put on the musical Elflandia at 7:00 p.m. in the school's cafeteria.  The chorus performed songs from the musical including "Elflandia", "Silly Humans", and "Elfie Selfie".  There were also performances by the Forestville Road Elementary ukulele club, percussion ensemble, and recorder ensemble.  The program was a huge success and we would like to thank the PTA, the fourth grade teachers, our art teacher Ms. Lyn Riggs, and all parents and teachers who supported the program.  We are looking forward to having a wonderful concert in the spring.

First Quarter Learning

Below you will find videos to help reinforce what students have been learning in each grade level. 

Kindergarten
Kindergarten students have been singing mi and so songs.  Practice with the video below to sing the pitches mi and so at home.

1st and 2nd Grades

1st and 2nd graders have been singing mi, so, and la songs.  Practice with the videos below to sing these songs at home.

3rd Grade
3rd graders have been learning about how to interpret rhythms in 4/4 time involving quarter notes, half notes, whole notes, and beamed eighth notes. Practice with the video below to play and count rhythms at home.

4th Grade

4th grade has been learning how to classify instruments into the correct instrument families.  Watch the video below to help memorize how the instruments of the orchestra are classified.

5th Grade

5th grade has been learning to sing various patriotic songs. Practice singing "America, the Beautiful" with the video below.

Student Teaching at Forestville

We are pleased to welcome Alex Ragland from Liberty University to Forestville! Alex is student teaching and is preparing to earn his bachelor's degree in Music Education.  He has been doing a phenomenal job of teaching the students at Forestville and helping out with our music clubs.  Alex is a talented strings player who plays the guitar, banjo, and ukulele. Alex has been a huge asset to our ukulele ensemble and has shared a plethora of knowledge with the students in this club.  Below you can see Alex teaching about rhythm in one of our third grade classes.  Alex is a distinguished musician and educator and we know he will leave an indelible mark on the students that he teaches in the future!

Auditions

Congratulations to all of the students who passed the chorus and percussion ensemble auditions! Rehearsals will begin on Tuesday, September 11th, 2018.  The ukulele club will meet on Tuesday the 11th and the chorus will meet on Wednesday the 12th. The percussion ensemble will meet on Friday the 14th.  All rehearsals begin at 8 a.m. I am looking forward to having a great year with our performing ensembles!

2018 Lou Sanders Music Award

At Forestville's 2018 5th grade graduation ceremony, the 2018 Lou Sanders Music Award was presented. This award was created to honor and remember the legacy of Mr. Sanders.   Lou Sanders was the head custodian at Forestville Road for many years.  He died suddenly of a heart attack during the summer of 2014.  Our music teacher, Ms. Sanders, had the pleasure of working with her father at Forestville for two years before he passed away.  He will always be remembered at Forestville for his commitment to excellence and his willingness to go above and beyond the call of duty to provide stellar janitorial services to Forestville Road elementary.  Every year a student is chosen to receive the Lou Sanders Music Award.  Students who receive this award display excellence in music and display character traits and qualities that Mr. Sanders possessed.  The 2018 recipient of the Lou Sanders Award was Angelinee Venegas-Mejia.  Angelinne showed commitment to excellence in the same manner that Mr. Sanders was committed to excellence by presenting vocal performances of high quality during her time at Forestville Road as a member of the chorus. She showed a willingness to go above and beyond the call of duty to assist the FRES music department in the same manner that Mr. Sanders went above and beyond the call of duty by singing with the FRES Ukulele Club, representing Forestville as a soloist at the annual Stars of the East show during the 2017 and 2018 spring seasons, and by participating in the 2018 All-County Elementary Honor Chorus to represent Forestville.  We know that Angelinee has a bright feature ahead of her. We congratulate her on all of her hard work and for receiving the 2018 Lou Sanders music award.  Above you can see a picture of Angelinee holding her trophy after the graduation ceremony.

Forestville's Alumni Soar in Music

Amariah Robinson is a student at Wakefield High School who started her musical journey as a member of the FRES chorus and percussion ensemble during her elementary school years.  When she was a member of these clubs she displayed great skill and musical acumen and helped the FRES percussion ensemble pass the audition for the annual Pieces of Gold concert during the spring of 2013.  Amariah is continuing her music education at Wakefield High School in Raleigh, NC and is still soaring in music as a high school band student.  We want to congratulate Amariah for continuing to refine and sharpen her musical skills throughout her education and for continuing to soar in music in high school.  Below you can see Amariah singing and playing the song "All of Me" by John Legend on the vibraphone in a riveting performance with an accompanist and vocalist.

Spring Concert 2018

On Thursday, May 3rd, 2018 the Forestville Road music department hosted its spring concert at 7 p.m. in the school's cafeteria.  At the concert, performances were given by our school's chorus, percussion ensemble, recorder ensemble, and ukulele club.  We would like to thank the 2nd grade team, the custodians, the FRES PTA, and all of our students, parents, and staff who made the event a success. We would also like to thank Ms. Lyn Riggs for making the background for the musical that was performed entitled It's a Hit by John Jacobson and John Higgins. Below you can see pictures of our 2nd grade students and chorus performing, the background for the stage created by Ms. Riggs, and a video of the percussion ensemble performing "Free Ride" by Dan Hartman arranged by Tom Anderson.

United Arts Program: Bacchanal Steel Band

On Thursday, April 19th, 2018, the Bacchanal Steel Band performed music from the Caribbean islands for the students of Forestville Road.  Students learned about the history of steel drums, how steel drums are made, and how they fit into Trinidadian culture.  Students also had the opportunity to play with the band using auxiliary percussion instruments that included cowbells, triangles, cabasas, and brake drums.  Below you can see pictures of the Bacchanal Steel Band performing, the students playing instruments, and Ms. Sanders accompanying the band on drum set. We would like to thank our PTA and the United Arts Council of Raleigh and Wake County for sponsoring this event!

Stars of the East

On Thursday, March 15th, 2018 our chorus performed at the Stars of the East talent show at East Wake High School in Wendell, NC.  They performed Taylor Swift's "Shake It Off" to encourage the audience to shake off the negativity and criticism that they may experience in life. The chorus was led by Angelinee Venegas-Mejia and they were accompanied by our school's percussion ensemble.  Below you can see students hanging out in the green room before the show.  We are looking forward to having another great show next year!

This picture features Ms. Sanders looking up and pointing at her high school band picture from 2002.

All-County Honors Chorus

On Saturday, February 17th, 2018 four students from our school participated in the annual All-County Honors Chorus.  At the concert, students performed works by Mozart, Rollo Dilworth, Craig Hella Johnson, Daisy Fragoso, Lionel Hampton, and Andrea Ramsey.  Students worked hard to prepare the music and we are proud of the excellent performance that they gave at the concert.  Below the students can be seen at the dress rehearsal and at the concert that took place during that weekend.

Ukulele Club

 In January of this year, we were pleased to announce the start of a new club at Forestville.  The ukulele club was started for students who were interested in learning how to play a stringed instrument.  The club has been practicing diligently on Monday mornings at 8 a.m.  Students in the ensemble are excited about performing in the upcoming spring concert in May.  We hope to see you there!