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Farewell from WCSMA President Janet Corvini

Greetings WCSMA Members,

As the year draws to a close, I would be remiss if I did not reach out to you. It is a privilege to call you my colleagues. Serving as your president has been an honor. Thank you for all that you have done and will continue to do for WCSMA and our students as we do our best to stay the course during this health crisis. Please welcome Sue Forman as the WCSMA President. I know that you will support her as she moves WCSMA forward. Hopefully, we will all be back making music together again very soon.

Nancy Torrente, our current NYSSMA Zone Representative is completing her term as Past President. Over the years Nancy has given unselfishly of her time to WCSMA. The offices that she has held over the years include chairperson, adjudicator, treasurer, and Area All-State Senior High Festival Coordinator. An advocate for music education, we can always count on Nancy to make the trip to Albany in March to lobby the state legislators on behalf of our students, teachers, and programs. Nancy has been a trusted confidante and source of counsel to me throughout my presidency. On behalf of WCSMA, I would like to thank Nancy for her dedication and service. We wish you every success as you continue in your role at NYSSMA.

Our heartfelt thanks go to Regina Talbot for her service as the Elementary and Intermediate Chorus Coordinator. Her patience, enthusiasm, and organizational skills, enabled us to have an amazing Choral Concert in 2019 and we were on the way to a wonderful performance in 2020.

We wish Regina well in all of her future endeavors.

Jamie Stroffolino is returning to the Executive Board as our President-Elect. He has served WCSMA as a chairperson, adjudicator, and most recently as the Area All-State Senior High Festival Coordinator. Jamie’s ability to stay calm, focused, and highly organized produced two Area All-State Festivals of the highest quality. It’s wonderful to have him back.

It gives me great pleasure to welcome Jennifer Giustino to the WCSMA Executive Board as our Elementary and Intermediate Choral Coordinator. Jen was ready to conduct the 2020 Elementary All-County Chorus. The rehearsals were charged with high energy and beautiful singing. The Board has asked her to return to conduct the Elementary Chorus at the next All-County Concert. We look forward to working with Jen.

Congratulations to our retirees for 2019-2020. As of this writing, we would like to wish many years of good health and happiness to Marc Schneider, Lynn Kraut, Rita Lee, David Brandom, Barbara Barry Schulz, Suzanne Greene, John Donnelly, Rich Dashnaw, Linda Ventura, Kathleen Donovan-Warren, and Anthony Sabia. Thank you for your dedication.  All of our best wishes on reaching this milestone. We plan to celebrate with you in the future. If there are any other retirees that we are not aware of please contact Sue Forman. We want to include you in the celebration!

On behalf of the teachers, students, and conductors of the All-County Bands and Orchestras, we give a very special thank you to Bradley Morrison, Ossining UFSD, and Marc Schneider, City School District of New Rochelle, for providing the March rehearsal space for the groups.  Marc and Bradley came to our rescue when the space at Chappaqua was no longer available. Thank you for giving our groups such beautiful rehearsal accommodations.

A Special Thank You to the 2020 All-County Festival Committees!

Jaclyn Elliott and Katelyn Odierna, Orchestra Festival Co-Coordinators

Jill Shulz, Elementary Orchestra Chairperson

Charles du Chateua, Junior Orchestra Chairperson

Shadam Mirza, Intermediate Orchestra Chairperson

Elliot Semmel and Marc Schneider, Rehearsal Facilities Co-Chairpersons

Regina Talbot, Chorus Festival Coordinator

Sheila DePaulo, Katherine Hughes, Jennifer Irlen, Rehearsal Coordinators

The New Rochelle HS Tri-M and Suzanne Morella, Organization Coordinators

Gail Persad, Rehearsal Facilities Chairperson

Micah Sprague Sleepy Hollow Middle School/ High School

Caitlin Clarke, Band Festival Coordinator

Sharon Slote and Laura Mazziotti, Elementary Band Co-Chairpersons

Jennifer Pyne, Intermediate Band Chairperson

Elliot Semmel and Bradley Morrison, Rehearsal Facilities Co-Chairpersons

Kim Dunkin, Refreshments and Hospitality

At this point, I do not have any definite information about auditions and the festivals for next year. You will receive information, updates, and changes about the festivals and auditions as it becomes available. The only information that I do have is that the dates are reserved at SUNY for Area All-State, November 5, 2020, and All-County March 6 and 7, 2021.

The By-Laws and a new Conflict of Interest Letter are being updated. I plan to see this project through to the end. WCSMA can now offer CTLE hours for Professional Development Workshops until 2025.

The WCSMA Board voted to discontinue the prescribed Solo Audition Lists for the Elementary All-County Band and Orchestras.  Band and Orchestra teachers can select the solos for their students to perform at these auditions from the current NYSSMA Manual. You will receive the list of required levels for the audition pieces under separate cover. No information about audition dates or locations for the Fall of 2020 is available at this time.

Solo Chair is officially retired. It is being replaced by a new program, Da Capo. You will receive information about Da Capo in the near future. The Executive Board is currently exploring Da Capo. In the Fall, you will receive information

I will work closely with Sue Forman and Jamie Stroffolino over the summer to ensure a smooth transition as they begin their terms of office. We will continue to monitor developments regarding All-County and Area All-State.

I am looking forward to being able to see all of you again. We will come through this ready to meet the challenges that face us stronger than ever.

Be well and stay safe,

Janet Corvini

WCSMA President