Dear Directors,
I hope your school year is off to a great start! This page contains information about this year’s Pikes Peak Honor Orchestra (PPHO). Please familiarize yourself with all of the materials and requirements. If any questions arise, please use the contact button on the home page to get in touch immediately. In order to ensure timely answers and correct information, please ensure that any questions, comments or concerns from students and parents come through you to us, and vice versa.
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Please use the buttons above to navigate within this page for specific information you are looking for.
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Director Participation
I’d like to emphasize the importance of all directors' participation in PPHO meetings, rehearsals, sectionals, breaks, etc. It requires a lot of work to maintain these high standards for students, staff, parents, and administration all over the city. If everybody chips in, it is much easier to get the work done! In addition, all directors are responsible for their own students at PPHO rehearsals and the concert, or to make arrangements to have someone there to be responsible for them.
Clinicians
We will be announcing our 2025 clinicians soon!
Scheduling
Please take a moment to go through the schedule page carefully, and encourage your students to do the same! With limited rehearsals, we rely on students and parents COMMITTING to practice outside of rehearsal AND attend every rehearsal - barring emergencies.
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Our full day event will be Friday, January 24th - culminating in an evening concert.
Fees
PPHO fees will be $50.00 per student selected, and will be due immediately, following notification of selection. Please bring payments to the first rehearsal or send checks via mail. Use the "Contact Us" button to get more information on sending checks.
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Make checks payable to Colorado Springs School District 11. Your school is welcome to assist students with all or part of the cost to participate; however, the full amount must be received by the first rehearsal. If you need an invoice for your school to make payment, please use the contact us button on the homepage to request one.
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Audition Information
This year, students will register online through our registration form. The link can be found on our Audition Information page. This form is vital to make sure that we have a solid commitment from the student and parent up front to avoid conflicts once the honor orchestra seating has been established. Please emphasize the importance of this commitment to students and parents prior to submitting auditions. Also, please do not make exceptions for the attendance policy. Note - this form also contains information about the students' t-shirt size and dietary restrictions, which we must have.
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Recordings from students who have completed the registration form MUST be uploaded to the DropBox (located under Director Materials - Audition Submission) by 5pm on the date of the audition deadline. This site is password-protected to prevent students from submitting individually. You will receive an email from amanda.hessel2011@gmail.com with the password (check your spam!). Please use the contact us button on the home page if you have misplaced or did not receive the password.
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Communication
We’d like to use email as the primary form of communication for PPHO business, so please make sure that we have a current email address for you. Also, please forward this communication to colleagues in your district who are new, or at least new to that position. All reminders, changes, and weather notices will be sent via email, so please check your email often (especially if bad weather is threatening a rehearsal or performance).
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Amanda Hessel - Pikes Peak Honor Orchestra | High School Coordinator
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Elisabeth Canuel - Pikes Peak Honor Orchestra | Middle School Coordinator
Sabin Middle School