Probationary Dues This Week!

Just a reminder that the remainder of the probationary dues should be turned in by Thursday, November 1st. We missed an installment last week because of the fires, so the final lump sum is due now. For probationary members who cannot meet this deadline, please contact me via e-mail so we can work something out. But in order to have all of your materials in on time, this payment must be sent out on Thursday. The chapter does not have any extra funds to be covering dues at this time. Here's a current list of who has paid what:

Kevin: $120 paid
Drew: $120 paid
Nick: $120 paid
Aaron: $120 to be charged
Matt: $40 paid
Tristan: $40 paid
Preston: $40 paid

Don't be the one that delays your class' materials! Get payment in ASAP!

Agenda 10/28/07

Here's the proposed agenda for tomorrow evening's meeting:

I. Call to Order
II. Roll Call
III. Approval of Minutes
IV. Approval of Agenda
V. Officer Reports
VI. Old Business (Casino Night donations, Prob dues)
VII. New Business (Fire status, rescheduling)
VIII. Rehearsal "Sing, Sinfonians, SIng"
IX. Brother's Privilege
X. Adjournment

Thursday Thoughts (on Friday)

Why does music have such a profound influence on our lives? Is it because we can articulate our feelings so eloquently when words would fail us? Or because an aural stimulus can remind us of a forgotten memory and transport us back to that moment when your life changed all those years ago? Perhaps the most compelling aspect of music is its ability to change our mood on an almost-subconscious level; music is the wallpaper of our lives. It surrounds and affects us, it can focus our attention or distract us with its intracacies, and with practice, we can choose music best suited for any situation.

Think about the times in your day when there is no music. Even then, the percussion of the water in your shower, your car's tires measuring the evenly spaced seams in concrete on a freeway, or perhaps the rise and fall in the wind outside provide enough aural information that our brains can perceive order in an apparently chaotic world. We do our best to make sense of the sounds around us; this is a learned response acquired during the first few years of life, as we try to define the world around us based on sensory clues. Visual stimulus is perhaps the most easily recognized, but the most pervasive stimuli are aural; an infant has only the same square of ceiling to gaze at in its crib, while the sounds heard by the infant go beyond the crib's boundary, and inform the child that more goes on than it sees.

When you hear a piece of music for the first time, what determines your attitude towards it? Does it remind you of another song? Are its lyrics especially meaningful for you? Does its chord progression elude you? Is it musically interesting? Because humans best learn by analogy, we are more likely to enjoy music that sounds similar to previously heard music we already enjoy. However, wonderful surprises await listeners who venture outside their comfort zone; rhythm, harmony, and melody are universal across all forms of musical expression. Those musicians looking to "create" songs with fresh ideas should keep in mind that there's very little fresh material after 4000+ years of human existence; odds are, someone's shared a similar experience and written music about it. Whatever else music is, for Sinfonians, it is our language.

Joint White Night with Delta Pi?

Hey gang. I wanted to see what your thoughts were about having a joint White Night with Delta Pi. Probs are welcome to comment as well; Nov 18 is the day of the Province Workshop, so we could just make an entire day of it. Probs would be welcome at the Province Workshop, but could be segregated for certain activities. Please add your thoughts to the comments below.

Black Week Postponed

Due to school closure this week, we have postponed Black Night for one week; it will now occur on November 2. Probationary members will not be held accountable for signatures from Oct 22 - Oct 26; you may still obtain these signatures via phone or in person for extra credit. Unfortunately, this discludes several active members from Black Night who had planned to go out of town on our off weekend; make sure you obtain your Oct 29 - Nov 2 signatures from everyone before Friday. Stay alert for updates on SDSU operations; there is an outside possibility the closure may extend into next week.

Poker Night @ Ryan's!

In light of the recent school closure for the rest of the week, Ryan has offered to host the chapter for a poker night tonight, starting at 8 pm. Please call him for directions. Bring snacks & drinks if you can, and I'll stop by the Green Room to pick up the Morning Songbooks (if the Music building's open).

EO Roll Call

I would like everyone in San Diego County to comment to this post so we can get an idea of who's been affected by the fires so far. Please include land line phone numbers and addresses for safe houses if you are offering shelter.

Agenda 10/21/07

Here's the proposed agenda for tonight:

I. Call to Order
II. Roll Call
III. Approval of Minutes (10/7, 10/14)
IV. Approval of Agenda
V. Officer Reports
VI. Old Business (Probationary dues, Honorary status, Casino Night)
VII. New Business (Vista Tournament, Citations, Alumni invites)
VIII. Rehearsal (Sing, Brothers, Sing)
IX. Brother's Privilege
X. Adjournment

Black Discussion Tonight!

Here are the directions to Ian & Shea's house:

Take I-8 West.
Exit Waring Rd. Proceed north up the hill.
Right @ Adobe Falls (first light).
Left @ first stop sign (also Adobe Falls).
Park around cul-de-sac.

Address is:
5543 Adobe Falls Road #10
San Diego, CA 92120

Call time is 7:30! See you then! (Matt and Bryan, remember to come early to review Red Discussion material.)

Thursday Thoughts

It's that time again, and I'd like to direct your attention to the concept of excellence today. Most people equate excellence with over-achievers, control freaks, or naturally gifted individuals; their talents and/or dedication to achieve the best results are greater than the average person's. But this is not a complete picture of excellence; results cannot justify the means by which they were achieved. A person's motives in striving for excellence must also be examined.

Memorizing facts to get a better grade on a test only to forget them immediately after said test is in no way a measure of excellence; while the grade scored may pad your average in the class, do you really have anything to show for it? True excellence involves sacrifice of self, honest intentions, and attention to detail. While appearances can lead people to conclude that an effort was truly excellent, only its contributors can know the story behind its production.

Strive for excellence in your every effort, but begin by committing yourself to complete each project you undertake. Cheating or skimping on the project may not be obvious to outsiders, but you will know. Your sense of accomplishment in completing a true 'job well done' includes your methods and motives for completing that job.

Camera at Black Discussion

Brothers!

I regret to inform you that I will not be attending Black discussion on account of a performance with John Nettles. I would appreciate it if someone could bring a camera to the discussion and take a few pictures. I would love a good picture of everyone chatting around the circle for a collection that I will be putting together at the end of the year! Thanks again.

In Phi

-Jesse Rogers

Probing Questions

Probationary members, please comment to this posting with the following information:

•Full name you want printed on your shingle (membership certificate). Keep in mind usually full names (first, middle, last and no abbreviations) are printed on this type of document; it is meant to be displayed like a diploma in your eventual professional office.
•How much you've put towards the $120 probationary commitment as of the time you post.
•Number of completed interviews and the name of member in the next interview you have scheduled.

Black Week Questions

Probationary members will be quizzed on the following facts for the next two weeks (highlight to see answers):

When and how did the Sinfonia Club become a national fraternity? October 6th, 1900, with the admission of a group of men at Philadelphia’s Broad Street Conservatory as Sinfonia’s Beta Chapter.
Who was the second president of the Alpha Chapter and sixth supreme president of Sinfonia? Percy Jewett Burrell
Give the names and locations of the first four chapters.
Alpha Chapter New England Conservatory of Music; Boston, Massachusetts
Beta Chapter Broad Street Conservatory; Philadelphia Pennsylvania
Gamma Chapter American Institute of Applied Art; New York, New York
Delta Chapter Ithaca Conservatory; Ithaca, New York
What frequency are national conventions held? Triennially (every three years)
When and where will the next convention be? 2009 in Orlando, Florida

Give the names and locations of the national executive committee.
National President Richard A. Crosby; Richmond, KY
National Vice President John A. Mongiovi; Evansville, IN
Committeeman-at-Large Derek J. Danilson; Newark, DE
Committeeman-at-Large Walter C. Riley; Washington, DC
National Collegiate Representative Micah P. White; Ashburn, VA
Chairman, PGs’ Council Mark R. Lichtenberg, Evansville, IN
Chairman, CPR’s Council John A. Ferguson; Chicago, IL
What is your province number? 22

List the names and locations of the chapters in your province.
Epsilon Omicron (EO) San Diego State University
Omicron Pi (OΠ) Cal State Univesity @ Fullerton
Delta Pi (ΔΠ) University of Redlands
Kappa Omicron (KO) Cal State University @ Long Beach
Give the name and location of your province governor. Bincins Garcia, OΠ
Give the name and location of your collegiate province representative. Jesse Reyes, OΠ

And if you need some help memorizing the Greek alphabet, here are our brothers from Pi Lambda to assist you…

There's No Ice Cream In Mexico

So we brainstormed at Trujillo's to create a Phi Mu Alpha menu item. Some suggestions included:

•red sauce (not put on until after you order something)
•black beans (only for healthy people who fool themselves in thinking they don't taste bad)
•Spanish rice (which isn't really gold)
•taquitos (already suggested by another fraternity)
•a triangular crunchwrap (old idea)
•multi-colored chips (because they make black chips, but they'd have to order them in)
•a no-cheese option for Quinto
•SOPA! (re: this entry's title)

Agenda 10/14/07

Here's the proposed agenda for this evening's meeting:

I. Call to Order
II. Roll Call
III. Approval of Minutes
IV. Approval of Agenda
V. Officer Reports
VI. Old Business (Red Night recap, Casino Night fundraiser, probationary signatures)
VII. New Business (Red Discussion, Black Discussion, Westwind Brass concessions)
VIII. Rehearsal - "Brothers in Fraternity"
IX. Brother's Privilege
X. Adjournment

Red Night Report

Last night, we visited Atria Collwood, a local retirement community, for a Mills Music Mission. Every time we get together to sing for these folks, I come away from the experience with the feeling that we have deeply impacted the resident's lives. This time in particular, I wished we had stayed a while longer, since it felt like we had a little bit of gas left in the tank. But it was a very positive experience overall; the residents were supremely grateful, as most of the brothers discovered in talking to them after the performance.

Some things to improve on for next time:

•Making call times. I was really disappointed that only half the chapter was on time @ 5:30. I know some people were delayed because of traffic and other obstacles; to avoid these issues, plan to arrive at least a half-hour before call time. If you do arrive 30 minutes early, use it to practice your part on a difficult song, or to refresh your memory of National Exam questions.
•New songs. There are some of our songs that will always be part of our performance, but I would like to mix it up a little more next time. Big thanks to Nathan, Bryan, Jesse, Mike, and Ryan for prepping their solos/duets.
•Backstaging. I will take the blame for this one. When others are performing, the other brothers should remain silent and 'invisible'; i.e., you should not be moving around behind the soloists (unless they request you like for Nathan & Ryan's song).
•Expression. Watching most of you sing was mildly depressing; you had little to no expression on your face while singing! If you know your part for a song but are shaky on the words, look down only when you need the next line; the rest of the time you should be watching your audience and smiling. We are trying to uplift the audience through music's power, and our efforts most effective when we can make a closer connection by looking at them (serving them with music).

I was very happy to have our alumni join us for the evening, and hope to have them return for some of our later activities as well. I was a bit disappointed with the probationary class song; it seemed like you guys needed a couple more rehearsals to really lock in your parts. Thanks for your efforts this week; it was pretty evident that most of you were driven to get your work done. Remember to ask your Big Bros for guidance, but also ask them for suggestions on how they met the same challenges you are facing now when they went through their probationary process. Above all, respect each other as fellow musicians and men; you are all in this together, and for better or worse, your probationary brothers will be a part of your life for some time to come.

The Night Ran Red

True Sinfonians venture forth in song
To win the world to harmony, they seek
An audience of wearied souls, among
The night of shadows, myriad and bleak.
A light comes forth from strong and purest heart
To reawake a hidden memory
Within a shriveled form; the love of art
and beauty lives in perpetuity.
A single rose presented shows their care
For other people at their self-expense;
A hundred years' tradition, love so rare
Begets its mirror as its recompense.
And witnesses, in awe, together see
Ossian Mills' desire in legacy.

Thursday Thoughts

I'm currently holding a job as a marching tech at Mt. Carmel High School's band. Our night rehearsals are on Wednesdays from 6:00 to 9:30 pm. Last night, we finally finished learning the last of 68 sets for this year's field show, "The Legend of the Fifth Sun." Throughout the rehearsal, the kids were distracted and unfocused; after repeated attempts to get their attention, they finally, grudgingly made it all the way to the end of the show. While some students were giving their all, others were sliding by, or sometimes not even playing with the band. I was struck by this obstinance; why would musicians not want to finish something they'd been working on for almost two months?

After a couple run-throughs of the show, most of the students got the idea and started playing and marching as well as they had learned. The show improved dramatically; the overall sound was better, and each of the 68 sets were finally starting to make some sense to the audience. It occured to me as I was watching this improvement that an organization's maximum effectiveness is determined by its least contributing members. The efforts of committed individuals to improve the whole can be eclipsed by a single individual. The impact of unity can be compelling, but the selfish individual who does not make the same commitment to the group lessens that impact.

We all have the same goal in mind: to uplift man through the beauty and power of music. Even though our talents and our methods are diverse, our purpose is the same. Remember: Work for Sinfonia, and Sinfonia will work for you.

Red Night: Mills Music Mission Program

Our biannual tradition of performing for the residents of Atria Collwood continues this Friday night at 6:00 PM. Our literature will be chosen from the following program:

FULL ENSEMBLE

Hail Sinfonia!
A Sinfonian Anthem
The Red and Black
Music In the Air
Whiffenpoof Song
On and Ever Upward
Evening Song
Softly (As I Leave You)
The Longest Time
A Brother at the Door
America (My Country, 'Tis of Thee)
Vive L'Amour
A Serenade to a Girl
Brown Eyes

PROBATIONARY CLASS

Oh, How I Miss Her

SOLOS/DUETS

Love Theme from Romeo & Juliet - Mike & Ryan
Miracle of Miracles - Bryan
Early Morning Rain - Jesse
Shower the People - Nathan & Ryan

Afterwards we will come back to SDSU for dinner; all members please bring $2 for pizza and drinks. The rest of the evening's activities should be concluded by 11:00 PM at the very latest. Here's to a great performance!

A new beginning

This is the new homepage for the Epsilon Omicron chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia at San Diego State University! EO has been in continuous operation since its inception in 1950. We continue to uphold the traditions of Sinfonia in the School of Music & Dance here at SDSU by serving our fellow man with music. We sing publicly at least six times each week, provide free tutoring, and help out in the department as needed. As a member of Province 22, Epsilon Omicron stands with its Southern California neighbors Omicron Pi (CSU Fullerton), Kappa Omicron (CSU Long Beach), and Delta Pi (University of Redlands).