| Members and Potential Members |
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| How often does the band/orchestra meet? Bobcat Band meets on Tuesdays from 7:00-10:00 PM in ACS 108. Bobcat Orchestra meets on Thursdays from 7:00-10:00 PM in ACS 108. The Jazzcats meet on Fridays from 6:00-9:00 PM in ACS 108. We also have a practice room open every Saturday in Glacier 165 from 3-6 PM. To confirm the scheduled dates, check the Calendar page. To find one of these rooms, check out our Map page. How do I join one of the ensembles? All that is needed to join any of the ensembles is to start attending rehearsals and pay club dues. It is not required to attend all rehearsals or performances, but we’d like to see you there! Do I need to pay money to join? Just like most clubs on campus, to be a fully enrolled in the club, there are club dues [amount is subject to change]. For the entire year, Band is $25, and Jazz or Orchestra are $20. To join multiple ensembles, the cost is $35 regardless of the number of ensembles. People can still attend rehearsals without being an enrolled member, but they cannot participate in performances or rent instruments. If there are circumstances in which you are unable to pay club dues, please let one of our officers know! What if I want to join late or for Spring Semester only? Joining the club any time in the year is completely fine, and it is encouraged that potential members join when they have the time available. Do I need prior experience playing an instrument to join? No prior experience is needed for any of the ensembles and we accept musicians of all levels of experience. We are very used to people that are new to playing music and we make sure to spend extra time helping people who want/need it. Do I need to bring my own instrument or does the band have instruments I can borrow? The club owns several wind, percussion and string instruments that can be rented out to enrolled members for the year. Prices range from $30 to $100 for the entire year, depending on the instrument. They are rented on a first-come first-serve basis. Who runs the Club? The Bobcat Band, Bobcat Orchestra, and The Jazzcats are all run by a group of 12 officers that are elected in the spring of each year. The club receives some funding from the school and has a faculty advisor as per RCO requirements, but operations are entirely student run. |
| Outside Groups |
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| Can I request for one of the groups to perform? Please visit our Contact Us page. We would love to discuss any opportunities for our groups to perform. What types of music can the groups perform? The Bobcat Band has many pep tunes and pop songs in their repertoire, as well as some marches and concert pieces. The Bobcat Orchestra plays many classical orchestral pieces, as well as arrangements of more modern songs. The Jazzcats and Jazz Combo play a variety of music including Jazz, R&B, and Funk. Can I request for one of the groups to play one song in particular? It is possible to request a specific song, but it takes extra time and preparation. This is because the group will need to find and purchase sheet music for the song as well as rehearse it for at least 1-2 weeks. Please Contact Us so we can work with you on your request and event! How far are we willing to travel to perform? Right now, none of the ensembles are able to travel further than Merced due to a lack of official transportation for the group. How can I support the group? Please visit our Fundraisers page to see what upcoming fundraisers we have, or if you would like to make another type of contribution such as a donation of money or instruments please contact us Here. |
| General questions |
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| How do I find one of the rooms? Check out our Map page. Where do we perform? How often do we perform? How often we perform often depends on how much we are asked to perform by outside groups. We typically have a concert at the end of each semester featuring all of our groups and multiple other performances throughout the semester. |