Mike Hall, Associate Professor of Trombone/Euphonium,  Diehn Center for the Performing Arts, 2113
email: jhall@odu.edu
office phone: 757-683-4072

Rehearsals: Chandler Recital Hall in Diehn Center for the Performing Arts, 12:00-12:50pm MWF
3 rehearsals/week. Prerequisite: ability to read music and/or permission of the instructor. Contact Mike Hall by phone or email (or in person) prior to any rehearsal you must miss. The absence will not be excused without advance notice or for less than the best reason.

Course Objectives
Brass Choir will explore chamber music for both large and small ensembles from a broad spectrum of styles and eras.

Course Expectations
Concerts dates and dress rehearsals are posted in this syllabus and announced in class. Repertoire will be announced early in the term. Rehearsal schedules will be emailed each week. Each member is responsible to read email regularly, come prepared, on time, with a pencil.
Concert dress: coat and tie for men, business/professional for women.

Grading Criteria
You will be graded on preparation and performance, attendance and attitude. Failure to participate in any dress rehearsal or performance may result in a final grade of F.

Time Management
Rehearsal is quite different from practice. Private practice involves solving problems, learning notes/rhythms and refining style. Rehearsal is the opportunity for your colleagues to learn YOUR PART. Therefore, you must come prepared. This means you must be able to play your part accurately in real time at rehearsal.

Attendance
As per university policy, students are expected to attend Classes. Students missing more than 15% of class meetings may fail. Therefore, students who miss more than two class meetings are subject to automatic failure. All students must participate in dress rehearsals and concerts.

Classroom Conduct
Appropriate conduct by students is an absolute requirement in the college and distance education classroom and the university must operate with a policy of zero tolerance for any disruptive behavior. The term “disruptive behavior” means any behavior that substantially interferes with the conduct of a class. Disruptive behavior may interfere with an instructor’s teaching, with other students’ learning, or both. Disruptive behavior may include but is not limited to:

• Persistent late arrivals or leaving early in a manner that disrupts the regular flow of the class.
• Talking while the instructor is talking.
• Speaking in class without first obtaining recognition and permission to speak.
• Use of electronic equipment such as cell phones, computers, MP3 players, etc. in a manner that disrupts the class.
• A student who becomes belligerent or verbally abusive when confronted as a result of his/her inappropriate behavior.

Students do not have the right to engage in behavior that is disruptive in the classroom. The instructor of record has the authority to maintain appropriate classroom behavior in all courses offered by Old Dominion University, whether in traditional or distance modes. I have the authority to deny you entry to the classroom should you arrive late; to ask you to cease any disruptive activities; and to ask you to leave. A student’s failure to comply with the University’s classroom conduct policy may result in the Office of Student Conduct and Academic Integrity pursuing disciplinary action under the Student Disciplinary Policies and Procedures. For more information, please refer to http://www.odu.edu/content/dam/odu/offices/student-conduct-academic-integrity/docs/Academic%20Disruption.pdf.

Academic Integrity
All students are expected to understand and to abide by the University Honor Code:
“We, the students of Old Dominion University, aspire to be honest and forthright in our academic endeavors. Therefore, we will practice honesty and integrity and be guided by the tenets of the Monarch Creed. We will meet the challenges to be beyond reproach in our actions and our words. We will conduct ourselves in a manner that commands the dignity and respect that we also give to others.” http://www.odu.edu/about/monarchcitizenship#par_columns_1

You should understand your rights and obligations, what constitutes a violation of the honor code and academic integrity, what disciplinary procedures and sanctions you may face, and what options I have should I suspect a violation.  The College of Arts & Letters’ web page includes information on plagiarism as well as a tutorial on how to avoid plagiarism (see http://al.odu.edu/al/resources/grad.shtml). If you are unfamiliar with the honor code and disciplinary procedures, I suggest you refer to the Code of Student Conduct, Sanctions, and Disciplinary Procedures in the Old Dominion University Undergraduate Catalog at http://www.odu.edu/ao/bov/manual/pdfs/1530.pdf.

Students with Disabilities
Students are encouraged to self-disclose disabilities that have been verified by the Office of Educational Accessibility by providing Accommodation Letters to their instructors early in the semester in order to start receiving accommodations. Accommodations will not be made until the Accommodation Letters are provided to instructors each semester. In accordance with the University’s policies and procedures, I will work to accommodate students with disabilities. If you require such accommodations, please contact me by email, phone or during office hours as early in the semester as possible. See http://ww2.odu.edu/ao/polnproc/pdfs/4500.pdf.

Sexual Harassment
It is the policy of Old Dominion University to provide students and employees with an environment for learning and working that is free of sexual harassment, whether by members of the same sex or the opposite sex, which is prohibited by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.  I expect all students to understand and abide by the University’s sexual harassment policy and procedures, as detailed at http://www.odu.edu/ao/polnproc/pdfs/6320.pdf.

Course Evaluation
The syllabus is a contract between the professor and students regarding course requirements, expectations, and assessment, which establishes my obligations to you in teaching this class. I also take this contract to include your obligation to evaluate the course at the end of the semester. Student evaluations provide important feedback for me, and they are essential for measuring teaching effectiveness in the profession. Chairs and Deans see course evaluations every year in reviewing faculty performance.  Committees at all levels of the University rely on the evaluations in making decisions regarding faculty retention, promotion and tenure. ODU takes your input very seriously, and a high rate of student response is necessary for a meaningful assessment of teaching effectiveness. Therefore, I ask you to commit yourself to filling out the online course evaluation when prompted at the end of the semester.