About Us

The Gateway Concert Band Director’s Report
Annual Meeting
October 16, 2017
Jack Prindle, Music Director

It has been another active and successful year for our group. Since our last Annual Meeting on October 16, 2016, we have rehearsed thirty-nine times, performed twelve times, and had one recording session. Our “formal concerts” have been arranged in four series, in which the same program has been performed twice, either on a Sunday afternoon and Monday evening, or on consecutive Mondays in Enumclaw and Sumner. The first series was presented on December 4thand 5th, both in the community auditorium at Enumclaw High School. The second series was presented on March 12thand 13th(also at the EHS auditorium). The third series was presented on June 19th(at Rotary Centennial Park in Enumclaw) and June 26th(at Christ the King Lutheran Church in Sumner). The fourth series was presented on August 14th(at Rotary Centennial Park in Enumclaw) and August 21st(at Christ the King Lutheran Church in Sumner). We participated in a parade in Enumclaw on December 3rd. We performed at ceremonies at Tahoma National Cemetery on Veterans’ Day (November 11th) and on Memorial Day (May 29th) and at the Enumclaw Veterans’ Memorial on May 28th(in honor of Memorial Day). The recording session was held at the Enumclaw High School Auditorium on September 11th.

Our concerts have continued to include soloists from within the band, and one occasion, had a guest soloist. In December, Rob Reynolds performed an alto saxophone solo with the band. In March, Ruth Orozco played a solo on clarinet with the band. We also had a wonderful feature of the flute section, in a piece with the band and a piece for just flutes. In June, I played a solo on soprano cornet with the band, and in August, a special guest soloist, Mike Simpson, played a solo on French horn with the band. In the August concerts, we also had vocal solos by Wendy Parker and Paula Evjen, and a couple of guests vocalists from the Issaquah Singers. Assistant conductors Stephanie Magnusson and Todd Frazier very ably conducted the band in several pieces over the past year.

Our fund-raising effort of having band members and concert patrons “sponsor” the music we’re performing has continued to be very successful. According to the records I have compiled, all 43 pieces eligible for sponsorship were sponsored, for a total of $3,363 (at least, by my reckoning).

We have continued to have our indoor concerts and our Summer Favoritesprofessionally recorded and CDs have been available for purchase by members of the band and for the audience. We also continue to have compilations of our Holiday Favorites and Summer Favorites for sale at our concerts and from our website.

During the past year, we enjoyed “snack and visit” gatherings at our rehearsals on November 21st(and used the occasion to celebrate Paul Jackson’s and Rob Reynold’s birthdays) and June 12th. We also celebrated the 21stanniversary of the beginning of our group with a “birthday party” on March 6th. We also celebrated Paula Evjen’s birthday on August 28th.

Since last October, we have added twelve new members. Sadly, since last October, we have had two players leave us and have dropped seven long-absent players from the roster. In terms of instrumentation, we added players of the following instruments: one flute, one bassoon, two clarinets, two alto saxophones, one tenor saxophone, one baritone saxophone, one trumpet, one trombone, one string bass, and one percussionist. The players we have lost played the following instruments: one flute, one bassoon, one bass clarinet, one alto saxophone, two trumpets, one French horn, one trombone and one tuba. Five players (one flute, one clarinet, one French horn and two percussion) joined us for part of the year and left before this fall. Five players have not been attending (for various reasons) lately, but hopefully will return: two clarinets, one baritone saxophone, and two percussionists.

In terms of instrument needs, in several ways, parts are being covered better than they ever have been. Ideally, we could use additional trumpet and trombone players, another tuba player, and, until two absent member return, more percussionists.

The band trailer continues to be quite useful for storing and transporting equipment, stands, and chairs for our rehearsals and performances. Last spring, the hitch jack was getting difficult to turn, but a Youtube tutorial and some gear grease solved that with ease. The Enumclaw Church of the Nazarene has been very generous in allowing us to park the trailer on their property. Our multi-function Epson inkjet printer/copier/scanner/fax (“Eddie”) has been quite useful in scanning and printing additional parts and color printing and our Brother laser printer (“Bob”) continues to work well for inexpensive printing of black-and-white computer-generated material (including these pages of the Annual Report).

We continue to store our music and equipment in a heated storage unit at Enumclaw Self-Storage. Though it’s a little pricey (about $90 per month), we get a 10% discount because we’re a non-profit and a free month’s rent by paying for a year at a time. And it sure is nice to have it secure and available just about any time (aspects which were not true of our previous storage area at J. J. Smith Elementary).

Pursuant to the directions given to me by the Governing Board last fall, I purchased the following: a bass drum cradle, crash cymbals and a holder, a trap table, temple blocks, a bell set and a stand. We are also using a borrowed suspended cymbal and stand. Dick Peacock constructed a conductor’s box for us, and refused reimbursement, saying the only materials he had to purchase was some black paint. We already had 24 music stands on a cart and a wonderful set of timpani, as well as a donated vibraphone and a small but serviceable bass drum. The biggest problems were chimes and xylophone. I found some used ones on Ebay and, knowing it would not be possible for the band to quickly gather the funds to purchase them, and concerned that they would not be available for long, I chose to purchase them myself (with my wife’s grudging acquiescence), in the hope that the band would purchase them from me sometime in the future. This fall, the band purchased the chimes from me and I hoping that, in the coming year, you will be able to purchase the xylophone as well. In the meantime, the band has unlimited use of the xylophone.

Last fall, I had to turn in the key to the band/orchestra room at EMS, and depend on the custodian to open the room for us. On school holidays when a custodian was not present, we moved our rehearsals to the VFW Hall on 244thAve. S.E. Hope Lutheran Church generously allowed us to rehearse in their fellowship hall on the Monday night of Parent/Teacher conferences (Nov. 21, 2016). Over the summer, a key to the room was issued to me, and so far, the school has not asked that I return it. We’ve decided to quietly wait for that request. A Facility Use Form for our use of the room has been approved through next August.

Our reduced access to the middle school band/orchestra room and loss of use of the school percussion instruments have led to some interesting changes for us. When we moved our rehearsal to Hope Lutheran, I was able to set-up at the church much earlier (because we didn’t have to wait for school groups to be done be using them for the day). It sure was nice to not have to return instruments and stands to the middle school between the concerts in December and March. When we moved our rehearsals to the Enumclaw VFW Hall, having our own percussion instruments and stands again allowed me to set things up much earlier.

Calvary Presbyterian Church is still generously allowing us to use their folding chairs for most of our outdoor performances. And we are very fortunate that Christ the King Lutheran Church in Sumner generously hosts our June and August concerts in Sumner on their lawn, and hosts an ice cream social after our June concert there and a barbeque dinner before our August concert at their church.

This fall, we provided a trumpet for a student in the Puyallup School District, and still have several instruments available to needy students, though some of them need some repair before they are ready for use.

After about a year and half, we finally got around to picking up the litter on “our” section of the Auburn-Enumclaw Highway as our part of the Adopt-A-Highway project. Hopefully, we’ll do it again, probably on a Saturday in January. It sure goes faster when many people are involved.

I have selected themes for the concerts for the upcoming year as follows:

December 3 & 4, 2017: “We Need a Lot of Christmas”
March 11 & 12, 2018: “Spring Is Coming”
June 18 & 25, 2018: “Name Those Tunes XX”
August 13 & 20, 2018: “Summer Fun”

I want to acknowledge and thank those who have served on our Governing Board, particularly Ross Willison and Alexis White, who complete their terms at the end of the month, and Rob Reynolds, who just recently resigned. Thanks also goes to our continuing Governing Board members: Brian Bailie and David Luke.

On a personal note, my wife, Janine, entered a hospital in Spokane on June 15th, complaining of severe shortness of breath. An angiogram revealed a blockage in a coronary artery and a stent was inserted. Complications from 57 years of Type 1 Diabetes and a heart defect caused the increased blood flow to damage a valve in her heart and the stent to close almost immediately, causing two heart attacks. After 2½ weeks of trying all we could, Janine succumbed to the strain on her lungs and heart and passed away on Monday, July 3rd. I continue to adjust to life without her, and appreciate the diversion and purpose my participation in the band gives me. And I greatly appreciate the tenderness and sympathy which my Band Buddies have shown me.

In closing, I want to thank you very much for allowing me to continue to direct this fantastic group. I thoroughly enjoy my involvement with the band and the chance to meet with my Band Buddies every Monday evening and for our performances. Thanks for another fabulous year of very satisfying and enjoyable music-making and for all your hard work, assistance, and friendship.