Welcome

Updates

Important Dates and Times!

Mon, 9/15 (8 pm): Orchestra Parent Booster Board meeting (virtual and all parents are invited to attend)
Wed, 9/17 (7:30 am): Early morning practice – all orchestras
Wed, 9/17 (6:30 pm): Fall Concert at Austin High
Fri, 9/19 (7:30 am): Early morning practice (students going on Dallas trip)
Mon-Tue, 9/22-9/23: Student Holiday – Rosh Hashanah
Wed, 9/24 (7:30 am): Early morning practice (students going on Dallas trip)
Fri-Sun, 9/26-9/28: Dallas trip
Tue, 9/30: Deadline to pay instrument rental and yearly orchestra fees
Fri, 10/10: Student Holiday
Mon, 10/13: Holiday – Indigenous People Day
Mon, 10/20: Holiday – Diwali
Sat, 11/1: Monster Concert Festival at Austin High
Tue, 11/4 (4-10 pm): Orchestra Fundraiser Spirit Night at P. Terry’s on William Cannon
Wed, 11/12 (5:30-7:30 pm): Orchestra Fundraiser at Kendra Scott store on Congress Ave

Helpful Links and Info

• Private Lessons
• Scholarships
• Corporate Sponsors
• Fees, Instruments, and Uniform Requirements

Student Information Needed

Please have your student complete the following form as soon as possible: https://forms.gle/atzqV742WQGjuL2s6

Ms. Solis needs the information provided in the form to place orchestra t-shirt orders and to complete TMEA Region Auditions Registration.

Orchestra Parent Booster Board Meeting (Virtual)

We are having a virtual Orchestra Parent Booster Board Meeting on Monday, September 15th, at 8:00 pm. All parents are invited to attend! The link for the meeting is available through the Cuttime newsletter.

Early Morning Practice and First Concert of the Year

Early morning orchestra practice continues! An early practice for all orchestras is scheduled for Wednesday, September 17th at 7:30 am in the orchestra room.

The first concert of the year is also on September 17th at 6:30 pm at the Austin High PAC and is expected to last one hour.

All students need to wear black shoes for the concert. Students who wear a tuxedo need their white dress shirt (tuxedo shirt would be ideal). Students must contact Ms. Solis first thing on Monday if they do not have a uniform!

The student schedule for the performance evening is below:

4:45 pm: Pizza dinner will be provided. Students who have dietary restrictions should bring their dinner.
5:45 pm: Warm up in the PAC
6:30 pm: Concert begins

Cell phones will be collected before the concert and returned at the end of the performance once the stage is cleaned up.   

Yearly Orchestra Fees and Instrument Rental

Fees can be paid online at MySchoolCentral for your student’s $150 orchestra fee and $60 instrument rental (for those students who are renting). Payment items are listed alphabetically. Look for “Orchestra Fees” with a violin thumbnail.

Fees and instrument rentals can also be paid in person by cash or check made payable to “Austin High Orchestra.” 

Note: THIS IS NOT RELATED TO THE BOOSTERS. This money goes to the school directly.

The deadline to pay the fees is Tuesday, September 30, 2025.

If a student needs help with these expenses, use this link to apply for a scholarship.

If you have applied for a scholarship, you will be receiving a response THIS week!

Dallas Orchestra Trip in September

For all of you going on the Dallas Trip, we still need to raise $4,500 in the next TEN DAYS! This is essentially less than $70/person. Please do you part by sharing the Vimeo video and Simple Raise links below to friends, family, and neighbors! Please help us by sending out this video and link to your friends, family and neighbors! The overall cost of the trip per student is approximately $370, so our fundraising goal is $400/student. Thanks for all of your help!

 PLEASE SHARE THIS AWESOME PROMO VIDEO PRODUCED BY THE MCQUEENEY FAMILY!!

SimpleRaise Fundraiser Link

We will be able to participate in the same activities as before, which include the Dallas Symphony-Troupe Vertigo: Cirque Noir, Meow Wolf, and the Dallas State Fair along with a possible visit to a university clinic and an additional museum. More trip details will be included in upcoming newsletters.

In addition, as always, scholarships are available.

Any questions, please contact: crystalmcq@gmail.com

Dallas Trip Chaperones

We WILL be needing some chaperones to go, so if you are able to go, please put a deposit down for yourself on the trip as well – SimpleRaise link

Adult Orchestra Volunteers

The orchestra relies on adult volunteers for different events throughout the year. If you are interested in volunteering or know you will be volunteering in the orchestra room and helping students, please submit an application on the AISD Voly site. Also check out our volunteer webpage for additional info.

Get Messages Using Remind

Please make sure that you and your student(s) sign up to get important messages and reminders. To sign up for Remind, compose a text message to the number 81010.

Camerata Orchestra: @a2aa82
Philharmonic & Recital Orchestras: @g4kcfc2
Chamber Orchestra: @hh2949
Orchestra Parents: @hak8gd

Thank You to Our Sponsors!

Our Platinum Sponsors

Our Gold Sponsors

And thank you to the many orchestra families who have given so generously.