Band 1 through 5 are co-curricular ensembles — meaning after-school rehearsals and performances are part of the grade. Students are placed by ability, not strictly by grade level. Sign up runs through your East Lake counselor; talk to Mr. Black about which course is right for your student.
Band 1–5
Band
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Level 4
Level 5 · Honors
East Lake's band course covers Concert Band and Wind Ensemble — the primary classes for the study of wind band literature. Wind Ensemble is the select group: a wide variety of advanced literature, with placement by audition and director discretion. Maintaining ensemble size means not every qualified student plays Wind Ensemble; those students mentor and lead in Concert Band.
Fundamentals are taught through performance on a primary or secondary instrument. These are co-curricular, so after-school rehearsals and performances are graded. Playing tests use a 0–4 rubric covering tone, range, intonation, technique, articulation, pulse, dynamics, phrasing, and musicianship.
Note: Wind Ensemble members must be in the marching band. Private study is highly recommended.
Enroll: speak to Mr. Black
Inst Tech 1–5
Instrumental Techniques
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Level 4
Level 5
The course for all ELHS percussionists. Students learn music fundamentals through performance on every percussion instrument: mallet instruments, snare, and timpani at minimum, plus auxiliary accessories. Days are spent on technique and guided study of each instrument.
Reading music is essential. Co-curricular: after-school rehearsals and performances are graded, evaluated on the same 0–4 rubric used by the concert ensembles.
Note: Open to all ELHS percussionists. Private study highly recommended.
Enroll: speak to Mr. Black
Jazz
Jazz Ensemble
Open Enrollment
Year-Round
Big Band Format
The East Lake Jazz Ensemble runs throughout the year. Membership is open to any ELHS student; at the director's discretion, auditions may take place to determine placement within the group.
Students develop performance skills on their instrument while learning the jazz idiom through Big Band repertoire. Daily listening is essential to building an ear for jazz styles. Improvisation is discussed throughout the course, with the Jamey Aebersold series referenced constantly. Students are encouraged to purchase the Aebersold book in their instrument's key.
Note: Discretionary placement auditions. Open to any instrumentalist.
Enroll: speak to Mr. Black
AP Music Theory
AP Music Theory
Open Enrollment
Honors / AP
Open to all ELHS students. The course corresponds to one or two semesters of an introductory college music theory course — covering musicianship, theory, materials, and procedures of tonal music. Musicianship skills (dictation, sight singing, harmony) are central.
Mr. Black has taught AP Music Theory since 2010 and has one of the highest pass rates in the county. Pinellas County Schools pays for the AP exam, which all AP students are required to take in May.
Note: No prerequisite courses, but students should read and write musical notation and have basic performance skills on voice or an instrument.
Enroll: speak to Mr. Black
Music Prod Tech
Music Production Technology
Open Enrollment
All Grade Levels
Open to all ELHS students. The course focuses on the elements of the Music Production Technology industry: planning, management, finance, technical and product skills, the underlying principles of the technology, and the labor, community, health, safety, and environmental issues that shape the field.
Note: No prerequisites. Hands-on production and technical skill-building.
Enroll: speak to Mr. Black
