Six Days (Greenwich, Oxford and Windsor)

Six days to go!

Our tour will include visits to three areas outside London that are of historical significance, and we encourage students to spend a little time familiarizing themselves with Greenwich, Oxford, and Windsor prior to departure.

Greenwich
We will travel to Greenwich on a short Thames River cruise, and visit the Prime Meridian as well as see the Royal Observatory. 

Fun fact: We will visit the Old Royal Naval College, the centerpiece of a huge complex known as the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site. The college, designed by the famous Christopher Wren, is considered some of the finest architecture in Europe. And it contains some amazing art, including a great hall with a painted ceiling that’s sometimes called the U.K.’s Sistine Chapel. The campus was used for filming in the movie-version of Les Miserables. HERE is a photo of the campus. HERE is a photo of filming. Fans of the movie will recognize the Barricade scene. 

Oxford

The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the world's second-oldest university in continuous operation

Oxford has educated many notable alumni, including 27 prime ministers of the United Kingdom and many heads of state and government around the world. As of 2018, 69 Nobel Prize winners, 3 Fields Medalists, and 6 Turing Award winners have studied, worked, or held visiting fellowships at the University of Oxford, while its alumni have won 160 Olympic medals. Oxford is the home of the Rhodes Scholarship, one of the world's oldest international scholarships.

Windsor

Did you watch the most recent Royal Wedding of Prince Harry to Meghan Markle at Windsor Castle? That's where we're headed! You will enjoy a self-guided audio tour of the wonderful Royal Apartments, followed by a visit inside St. George's Chapel and a walk around the castle walls.

Seven Days (How To: London Tube)

With just one week until departure, it's time to learn more about "The Tube!"

Participating travelers should watch THIS VIDEO, and READ THIS ARTICLE.

If you are curious to see the Underground network of trains, click HERE for a Tube Map. (This might look intimidating. Don't worry ... we will always travel in groups, and we will tell you which line to take, and which stop to disembark.)

Eight Days (Pick Your Museum To Visit)

On Sunday, December 30, our afternoon itinerary will allow students to choose between one of two incredible museums: The British Museum, and The National Gallery.

Student participants are asked to review each of the two museum websites, read a little bit about each, and then indicate which of the two museums they would most like to visit. 

Please fill out THIS GOOGLE SURVEY by Thursday of this week (December 20) to express your preference.

Wikipedia: British Museum
Wikipedia: National Gallery

Nine Days (Packing Guidelines for Suitcase and Carry-On Bag)

Today we focus on what students should pack in their suitcase and carry-on, and the size of those bags.

Please remember that students and chaperones are restricted to ONE suitcase or duffel bag (50 lbs. & 62” limit) and ONE carry-on bag (45” limit).  Size is calculated by adding the length, width and height (in inches).


Students assigned to 'carry on' their instrument should - when possible - put the instrument inside the carry on bag.  This will be easiest for flutes and some oboe and clarinet cases.  When not possible, students may carry their instrument and one reasonably sized carry on bag (i.e. back-pack).  


It is critically important that you pre-weigh your checked bag to ensure that it does not exceed the 50 lb. limit. If a bag is found to be over the 50 lb. limit at the time of airport check-in, the tour participant will be responsible for paying all incurred overage fees.  

Students who will wear a SHAKO hat in the parade should make certain that it's packed in their suitcase. Leave the box at home. Wrap the shako hat in several plastic bags, and then stuff the inside of the shako with t-shirts, socks, etc. to save space in your suitcase. 

Don't forget to pack your DGN Band knit hat, long underwear, and layers to be worn under your uniform on parade day. 

You must pack your MARCHING BAND SHOES in your suitcase, along with the black socks that will be worn with them.

The hotel will have shampoo and conditioner for your use. If you need to bring any other liquids, lotions, etc. make sure you pack them in your suitcase, and not your carry-on bag. HERE IS THE RULE from the TSA about liquids. 

Your suitcase should have the official LNYDP travel-tag (red) attached. Make sure you have written your personal contact information on the tag. It is also important to make sure that your carry-on bag (and any carry-on instrument case) is clearly labeled with your name and contact information. 

Wind Ensemble musicians: 
Wind Ensemble students are reminded that they must also pack their formal 'concert black' attire for the concert at Cadogan Hall.

DAILY NECESSITIES

Casual Clothes for Sight Seeing                                                              

Pajamas

Laundry Bag                                                                              

Glasses/Contact Supplies

Prescription Medicine 

Spending Money (reasonable amount for lunches and/or snacks, souvenirs, etc.)

Camera/phone, music players, hand held games, etc. (only with headphones). 

Toiletries (deodorant, combs, brushes, shaving accessories, toothbrush/paste, etc.)

Travel rain poncho / small umbrella

CLOTHES

Participants are reminded that our appearance, both in and out of performance situations, reflects on our entire community.  Participants should dress in presentable clothes at all times.  In accordance with District policy, clothing containing advertising of alcohol, tobacco, or that which displays inappropriate innuendo is not acceptable.  Dress conservatively at all times.

It is suggested that valuables, especially expensive jewelry, be left at home to avoid loss! 

Pro Tip:
Do not over-pack your suitcase or carry-on. Leave some room in case you would like to bring home a souvenir. 

Count "Down - ing" / Arrival Info for "Land Only" Participants

10 days to go!  The final countdown has begun.  To honor the number ten, here's a picture of a famous door with the number '10' on it.  Do you know the street name and who lives behind this door?  We'll give you a hint: we've now begun a count - down ... ing. Soon, our students will be marching right past it, providing a New Year's Day soundtrack for the Prime Minister.

Over the next 10 days, as we count-down, we will be providing important reminders and final instructions for our student participants. Today's message is primarily for those students who are following the "Land Only" travel package. In other words, these students have made independent plans to travel to and from London with their families, and they will be meeting us at The Cumberland Hotel on December 27th. 

"Land Only" participants are asked to meet our group in the lobby of The Cumberland Hotel on December 27, between 10 AM and 12 noon. If all our flights run on-time, we expect Group A to be at the hotel by 10 AM, and Group C to be at the hotel by 12 noon. Upon arrival, students may look for a DGN staff member in the lobby, but if our staff happens to be attending to other matters, please wait patiently for a few minutes until someone from DGN comes through. Student participants may also send a Remind message to a staff member, alerting them that they have arrived. Please do not try to check-in to your room at the front desk of the hotel, as all room keys will already be in the position of our staff.

If the arrival window of 10 AM - 12 noon is not going to work for a specific family/participant, please contact B. Teague by email this coming week to coordinate an alternative plan.

DGN Trojan Marching Band Ready For London!

The members of the Trojan Marching Band held their final full-practice in preparation for the 2019 London New Year's Day Parade, culminating with a performance for family and friends. The band is poised to make a strong musical and visual contribution to the parade. Congratulations to the students and staff of the band for the hard work that has gone into preparing for the upcoming tour, and thank you to our family members for your support and encouragement!

Video of the TV Zone is available HERE. 

December 15 Practice Details

Our next London Parade practice (and final rehearsal with instruments!) is Saturday, December 15, from 11 AM - 3 PM. 

In addition to practicing the TV Zone performance drill, we will spend time outside, practicing our parade marching and conditioning for a 2-mile parade. Like last week, students should wear layers, and make sure they are dressed appropriately to work outside in the cold temperatures. 

NOTE: Students are asked to wear both their LONDON TOUR T-SHIRT and their MARCHING BAND SHOES to this practice.

All students will bring their instruments, in their cases, to the Field House as practice begins. Cases will be left in the same location they were stored at the Dec. 8 practice.

Beginning at 2:30 PM, family and friends are invited to observe our practice and see several repetitions of the band's TV Zone performance routine. Visitors are asked to arrive in the Field House no earlier than 2:15 PM. 

At approximately 2:50 PM students will be dismissed and asked to place their marching band gloves into their uniform garment bag. This will be the last time students will see their garment bag before it is shipped to London. 

At 3:00 PM, any student shipping their instrument in advance may check it in with Mr. Teague. If a student is planning on using that same instrument to perform with Pep Band on Saturday evening, they will keep the instrument and check it in at the conclusion of the Pep Band performance.

Live Video Broadcasts of London Tour Performances

We have been advised that both the London New Year's Day Parade (Marching Band), and the Cadogan Hall concert (Wind Ensemble), will be live-streamed HERE. Video will also be available on the LNYDP Facebook page. 

https://tinyurl.com/LNYDP18-19LiveStream

LNYDP Concert Series

29th December 2018
7:30 pm (LONDON)

1:30 PM (CST)

Performance Line Up: 

Stillwater High School Philharmonic String Orchestra
Downers Grove North High School Wind Ensemble + Gaudete Brass Quintet

Interval

Desert Mountain High School Symphonic Orchestra
Mountain View High School Wind Ensemble

LNYDP - NEW YEAR'S DAY PARADE

1st January 2019
12:00 pm (LONDON)

6:00 AM (CST)

December 8 Practice Details

Our next London Parade practice is Saturday, December 8, from 11 AM - 3 PM. 

In addition to practicing the TV Zone performance drill, we will spend time outside, practicing our parade marching and conditioning for a 2-mile parade. Students should wear layers, and make sure they are dressed appropriately to work outside in the cold temperatures. (This might be a good time to test-out some of the thermal underwear you may have purchased for the trip!) 

NOTE: Students are asked to wear their MARCHING BAND SHOES to this practice.

During a portion of the practice, we will be distributing case-stickers to all participants (with the London Tour logo), and doing final measurements of some cases. All students will be asked to bring their instruments, in their cases, to the Field House as practice begins. This includes Sousaphones, who will need to retrieve their cases from the upstairs storage area.

London Tour Practice Schedule UPDATE

We have made several slight adjustments to our practice schedule to make up for the cancelled practice originally slated for November 26.

Please note, as well, that we have added a short "walk through" practice on Saturday, December 22. Even though our marching instruments will have already been shipped to London, we feel it is important to give our students one final opportunity to practice the TV Zone choreography prior to departure. Considering that we will not have a space large enough to practice the TV Zone routine while on the ground in London, it will be over TWO WEEKS from our final rehearsal with instruments (Dec. 15) until the day we perform for millions of people (January 1). This is why we have added the December 22 walk-through; we want students to feel confident in their memorization of the TV zone drill sets. If your family has already made plans to be out of town on December 22, parents/guardians are asked to send an email to Mr. Smith or Mr. Teague to alert us to that fact. Students with previous plans to be out of town will be excused from the December 22 walk-through, but we hope to have the vast majority of all traveling students with us for that short practice. Thank you in advance for working to make this final practice opportunity a priority. 

• Saturday, December 1: 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM (NO CHANGE)
• Saturday, December 8: 11:00 AM - 3:00 PM (Extended 1 hour)
• Saturday, December 15: 11:00 AM - 3:00 PM (Extended 1 hour) *
• Saturday, December 22: 12:00 - 2:00 PM (ADDED 'Walk Through' Practice)

* Parents/guardians/family are invited to arrive in the Field House at 2:30 PM to view our final run-through of the TV Zone performance. Instrument packing will commence at 3:00 PM for those shipping instruments. Any student planning to perform with Pep Band that evening will not pack their instrument until AFTER the Pep Band performance.

Nov. 26 Practice Cancelled

District 99 has cancelled all classes and co-curricular activities for Monday, November 26. This includes the London New Year's Day Parade practice scheduled for 6:30 - 8:30 PM.

We will extend one or more of our scheduled Saturday practices (Dec. 1, Dec. 8 and/or Dec. 15) to make up for the lost instructional/practice minutes. We will message out an adjusted schedule as soon as we are able to confirm practice spaces.

In the meantime, stay safe, and work on memorizing your London music. That's a GREAT snow-day activity! 

Flight Group Airline Details

Thank you to all our families for their attendance at tonight's meeting, and your assistance in navigating a lot of paperwork/details!

THIS DOCUMENT was referenced tonight, but inadvertently omitted from your packet. The document contains the flight group airline details.

https://tinyurl.com/dgnLondonFlightDetails

Official Tour Itinerary via Google Calendar

You may now subscribe to the Tour Itinerary Google Calendar, and sync it with your smartphone, tablet, Chromebook, etc. Click HERE.

https://tinyurl.com/DGNLondonBandCalendar

Please note: With the exception of USA departure and arrival events, all times are pre-entered in GMT:00:00 (London Time). This will allow the events to appear in local time when a student musician's phone transitions to local time in London. 

London Practices Underway!

The DGN Trojan Marching Band held two special practices this week to begin learning their TV-Zone routine for the London New Year's Day Parade. The 2019 Parade will feature over 10,000 participants from the Unites States and countries throughout Europe. With a street audience of 500,000, and a TV audience that will exceed 300,000,000, band members are motivated to showcase their passion for music while representing Illinois in this prestigious international event. 

Box Lunch on New Year's Day

All London musicians are asked to register their January 1st Box Lunch preference using THIS form. Participants must be logged into their browser with their CSD99 credentials in order to complete the form.

https://tinyurl.com/paradeboxlunch

Please completed the form no later than Friday, November 9.

Final London Payments Due November 8

Final payment for the London New Year's Day Parade Tour is due Thursday, November 8.

Please CLICK HERE to log-in and make your payment.

When you log-in to your account, the payment portal will show your family the final balance due on your account.

Your family has the option of dividing up the remaining balance into smaller payments issued online between now and November 8, but it is very important that every participating student's account is paid in full by November 8. 

Passport / Medical Forms - Complete and Bring To Nov. 15 Meeting

We have two forms that should be printed at home and brought (already completed) to the mandatory participant/guardian tour meeting on Thursday, November 15 (7 PM). 

1) Passport Copy Form

2) Medical / Medical Insurance Card Copy Form

Families are asked to print these forms at home, and complete the forms prior to attending the meeting on November 15. Please note that you will need to make copies of your passport, and medical insurance cards, and attach them to our forms as instructed.

Parade Grandstand Seating On Sale via Ticketmaster

Are you making arrangements for your own independent trip to London in support of the DGN Band, and want to purchase Parade Grandstand Seats for the London New Year's Day Parade? Follow THIS link for ticket purchases. 

Note: If you are a member of the official DGN Band "TAG ALONG" tour, organized by Ms. Merilos, tickets for Grandstand Seats are already included in your package. You do NOT need to purchase tickets independently. 

The DGN Band "TAG ALONG" Tour Grandstand Seats are currently arranged for Grandstand #12, but this is subject to change.

Tickets are NOT required to view the parade. The majority of parade spectators will stand along the parade route. 

London Tour Practice Schedule

We have finalized the schedule for the Marching Band to practice in the Field House and on our Stadium Track in preparation for the London New Year's Day Parade performance. A series of required special rehearsals are needed to teach the TV Zone marching routine that will be broadcast world-wide to millions of viewers on January 1, 2019.

The following rehearsals will be held in preparation for the tour:

• Tuesday, November 6: 6:30 - 8:30 PM
• Thursday, November 8: 6:30 - 8:30 PM
• Tuesday, November 13: 6:30 - 8:30 PM
• Thursday, November 15: 7:00 PM - Required Parent/Guardian/Participant Meeting
• Monday, November 26: 6:30 - 8:30 PM
• Saturday, December 1: 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM
• Saturday, December 8: 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM
• Saturday, December 15: 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM

Cadogan Hall Concert Tickets Now On Sale

Are you making arrangements for your own independent trip to London in support of the DGN Band, and want to purchase tickets to hear the DGN Wind Ensemble at Cadogan Hall on Saturday, December 29 (7:30 PM)? Follow THIS link for independent ticket purchases. 

https://lnydp.com/festivals/concerts/

Note: If you are a member of the official DGN Band "TAG ALONG" tour, organized by Ms. Merilos, tickets to this concert are already included in your package. You do NOT need to purchase tickets independently. 

Also, DGN Band members do not need to purchase tickets.