As of July 2021, the current edition of the NYSSMA Manual has been extended for
another year. Edition 32 is now in effect until the end of the Spring 2022 NYSSMA
Festival Season (June 2022).
NYSSMA Majors Festival
May 24-25, 2022
Jamie Stroffolino, Host
Lakeland School District
Registration is now open and closes 3/1
https://www.nyssma2.org/major1.cfm
Piano-Only Festival
Canceled due to lack of festival host
Greetings and Happy February to all!
Amidst the current and persistent Covid surge, I hope this message finds you safe and well. Though we are still in deep winter, I see signs of spring and hope emerging. It has been heartening to see school districts beginning to have in-person concerts again. However different these concerts may look, it is wonderful that you and your students are able to make and share music together again!
We are looking forward to the upcoming spring NYSSMA Festivals as they return to in-person events. Important information regarding the festivals, especially the registration deadlines, can be found here on the website. I hope many of you will volunteer to help at the festivals that your students are attending. They love seeing you there and your help makes the festivals run smoothly and efficiently.
At this time, we are still without a host district for the NYSSMA Piano Festival. If you are interested in hosting the festival in your district, please let us know or contact our NYSSMA Zone 11 Representative, Kimberly Dunkin, directly for more information. Sadly, unless a host district can be found there will be no piano festival this year.
Looking ahead to the fall of 2022 and spring 2023, we are planning for our first in-person Area All-State and All-County festivals since November 2019. Please know that due to the uncertain circumstances caused by Covid-19 and the effects of the last two years on our students and programs, adjustments to our festivals will most likely be necessary. We are starting the process of deciding how those festivals will take shape and where they might be held in the event that SUNY Purchase Performing Arts Center is still unavailable to us.
I am looking forward to seeing you at the spring NYSSMA Festivals as we continue to celebrate teaching and making music. Until then, be safe and well.
Sue Forman
2022 Winter Newsletter
Kimberly Dunkin, NYSSMA Zone 11 Representative
Dear WCSMA members,
My name is Kimberly Dunkin and I am your new NYSSMA Zone 11 Representative. I have been teaching in the Hendrick Hudson school district since 2006, initially as a K-5 General/Choral teacher, and for the past seven years I have been teaching Chorus and General Music at the middle school level.
As a WCSMA member, I have been active on the Board of Directors as the Hospitality Chairperson for the past three years. In the spring of 2019, my colleagues and I hosted the Up County NYSSMA Festival at Hendrick Hudson. I’m sure we have seen one another at the All-County and Area All-State festival rehearsals and performances, as I’m often at the piano bench accompanying!
Former Zone Rep Nancy Torrente and I have been working closely this past school year and it is a sincere honor to fill her shoes in this position as your representative. She has been an incredible mentor and friend and I am humbled to follow in her footsteps. Please feel free to reach out to me with any NYSSMA concerns if needed. I can be reached at: zone11@nyssma.org.
I so look forward to working with all of you!
Kimberly
WCSMA Member Registration
WCSMA uses the website dacapomusicfestivals.com to register new members and have existing members renew their membership.
This website also is also used by WCSMA teachers to register their students for NYSSMA festivals.
Please note that there are two different links to accomplish these tasks.
The DaCapo site for WCSMA membership can be reached at the following URL:
https://wcsma.dacapomusicfestivals.com
The DaCapo site for WCSMA teachers to register their students for NYSSMA Solo Registration can be reached at the following URL: