Be a Part of the Band!

Flute, clarinet, alto saxophone, trumpet, trombone or percussion (percussion includes drums and bells).  Specialty instruments such as French horn, baritone, bassoon, and tuba are introduced later. 

Please do not purchase an instrument until you have been matched to one by the band director at one of our Instrument Selection Nights and are certain band is on your schedule.

Band meets during the school day in elective block.  Mandatory afterschool rehearsals are held rarely, if ever.  However, optional afterschool help sessions are offered in the first nine weeks so beginners can be paired with mentors to help give them a confident start on their new instruments.  These sessions are very popular and well attended.  This mentor program is one of the many reasons for the quick success of our beginners!
​
Band and sports DO NOT conflict at CMS!   
​You CAN participate in dance, cheer, football, and any other activities that interest you and still be in Band!  Keep in mind, CMS dance, cheer, and sports do not start until 7th grade!

6th Grade Band performs at the Demonstration, Winter, and Spring Concerts.  They also participate in the LMEA Solo & Ensemble Festival and travel to an Invitational Band Festival in May.  Our band program has a reputation of excellence and has received highest ratings at District Festival for many years!  When students get into 7th and 8th grade, they also perform at pep rallies, 3-4 home football games, and the annual Gonzales Christmas Parade.

Students are required to supply their own instrument, which can be rented or purchased new or used though local music stores.  There is an annual $35.00 band fee (due at prep day), a $20.00 uniform shirt that is used all three years the student in band, and participation in an annual fundraiser to cover other expenses is required.

​#BandKidsBestKids  Band attracts (and develops) students that value hard work and determination as a member of a team.  Studies have shown that students involved in music score higher on standardized tests and stay more engaged in school.  College music scholarships are plentiful, even more so than athletic scholarships.  For example, LSU offers $1-3,000 a year and ULL will pay student’s housing just to play in the band at football games (just to play-not even to major in music)!  

Students will first take a Music Aptitude Survey at their primary school.  (Missed the test day?  There is a link below to take it!)  A guardian must then sign the Permission Form and it needs to be turned into the primary school’s secretary (there is also an online option below).  Finally, the student must attend one of the Instrument Selection Nights with a guardian where they will be able to try out the instruments and will be matched to an instrument that fits them best by the band director (dates TBA at www.cmsmustangband.com).

Music Aptitude Survey

Permission Form to Join

Katie Codina, Band Director
katie.codina@apsb.org

Katie Codina is in her fourteenth year of teaching and her seventh year as the Director of the Central Mustang Bands.  She comes to Gonzales from New Orleans, LA where she spent seven years as the Director of Middle School Bands and High School Marching Band at Holy Cross School.  She is a summa cum laude graduate of Loyola University-New Orleans with a Bachelor of Music Education. In 2011 Ms. Codina was named “Elementary Band Director of the Year” by the District VI Band Director’s Association.  She has conducted District and Parish Honor Bands and adjudicated for District and Parish Band Festivals throughout Louisiana.  Ms. Codina is a member of the Louisiana Music Educators Association for which she is District IV Director, the National Association for Music Education, and Phi Beta Mu International Bandmasters Fraternity.  Under her direction, the Central and Holy Cross Bands have consistently been awarded superior sweepstakes ratings at district concert and marching festivals.

---