For Members

Welcome to DPops

Welcome to the family of the most enthusiastic and coolest musicians in the world!

On this page you will find information and resources to help you settle in and know the family. We’ll keep everything short and simple. If you ever want to know more about anything or if you have suggestions, feel free to:

Calendar

Here are the important dates for the year.
Updates will be posted here, announced at rehearsal, and sent to you by email.
At the beginning of semester, you should also be added to the gcal.

Rehearsals are in Berkeley MPR on Sundays from 12:00pm to 2:30pm. Evening rehearsals will be held at the end of breaks. The full schedule is available here, on the gcal, and will be given at the first rehearsal of the semester.

Pre-Start
8/27 (7pm – 9pm) and 8/28 (1pm – 4pm) Reauditions
Phelps Hall 310 and 407
Re-auditions for returning members. Signup sent by email.

​8/28 (10:30pm) Freshmen Event
LC208
Freshman insomnia cookies event. All members encouraged to come and tell freshmen about DPops.

9/04 – 9/06 Auditions
LC206 and LC213
Auditions. Signup available here.

9/08 (9:08pm) ?
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9/10 (11:00am – 11:50am) First DPops Brunch!
Berkeley Dining Hall
Join DPops for the first scrumptious and nutritious brunch of the year! An excellent opportunity to meet and get to know the DPops family! Same time, same place every week!

9/10 (12:00pm – 2:30pm) First Rehearsal
Berkeley MPR
After brunch, head down to the Multipurpose Room in the basement right below the dining hall and it’s time to get poppin’!

Concerts
11/03 (9:15pm) Family Weekend Concert 
Davenport Dining Hall
​Dress rehearsal 11/01 (Call: 6:45pm) in Berkeley MPR

12/08 (8pm) December Concert
Battell Chapel
Dress rehearsal 12/04 (Call: 6:45pm) in Battell Chapel

2/23 (8pm) February Concert
Battell Chapel 
Dress rehearsal 2/20 (Call: 6:45pm) in Battell Chapel

4/27 (8pm) April Concert
Battell Chapel
Dress rehearsal 4/26 (Call: 3:45pm) in Battell Chapel

Board Elections & Conductor Auditions
4/21 (2pm) –  Board Elections
Branford-Saybrook Room
Elections for board of 2018 – 2019. All members who will be at Yale in the 2018 – 2019 academic year are eligible and encouraged to run. Members who have attend eight or more board meetings in the 2017 – 2018 academic year are eligible to vote. Details will be sent in an email from Kate and Ryan.

4/29 (12pm) Conductor Auditions
Berkeley MPR

Concert Attire

All black! Dress shirts, slacks, blouses, dresses, or skirts. No jeans, t-shirts, or sneakers.
Members may also wear white dress shirts if paired with a black jacket.

Attendance Expectations and Policies

Absences and Late Arrival
Two simple rules:

  1. Arrive at every rehearsal on time
  2. Communicate. If you know you are going to be late or miss rehearsal, please email co-presidents and your section leader at least 24 hours in before the start of rehearsal

Clarifications:

  • Valid reasons for missing/being late to rehearsals may include:
    • Medical reasons
    • Family emergency
    • Religious/cultural holidays
    • Mandatory academic conflicts
    • Other reasons, please contact co-presidents who will be as accommodating as possible
  • After two unexcused absences in a semester, the musical leadership will meet with you and discuss your situation
  • 2 unexcused lates = 1 unexcused absence
  • Downbeat is at 12:00pm. 12:01pm is late.
    This means you have to give yourself enough time to set up and be ready at 12:00pm.
  • Rehearsals end at 2:30pm. Leaving early without contacting co-presidents and section leaders beforehand will be considered late.
  • Exceptions to the 24 hour rule will be made for emergencies and unforeseeable circumstances

Reason
Commitment and enthusiasm are major factors that drive the orchestra forward. Being late or leaving empty seats not only hinders our musical improvement, but also the community aspect of DPops. DPops is a selective group and we have to turn down many talented musicians each year. It would be unfair to them if we do not take the privilege of being in the group seriously.

Concert Week
Concert week is an important time. In addition to the expectations above, if you have an unavoidable conflict with dress rehearsal, you are expected to find a substitute for the rehearsal and let co-presidents and your section leader know.

Why? Dress rehearsal is an opportunity to set up and hear the orchestra in the concert space. Missing musicians may mean empty seats which could be confusing for string players playing divisi or missing parts entirely in horns.

Where can I find a sub? Other music groups can be a good place. You can look at other college orchestras, YSO, or YCB. If you need help, you can always ask your section leader and co-presidents.

Leaves of Absence
If you intend on not playing with DPops for a period of time, please contact the co-presidents and conductors. Situations will be handled on a case by case basis with the following guidelines:

  • Depending on the length, your spot may not be guaranteed when you return since someone else may have filled in the empty spot
  • Your previous commitment to DPops will be taken into consideration (rehearsal attendance and punctuality)
  • You may be asked to be a substitute
  • Exceptions will be made for unforeseeable circumstances such as injury

For First-Years

At the start of every year, First-Year Liaisons will be elected by first-years in DPops. Usually between two and three are elected. This is a board position that focuses on integrating first-years into DPops, usually involving organizing events such as study breaks and parties. Announcements will be made at the second rehearsal.
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If you have questions, you can contact Gemma who was First-Year Liaison last year.

Arranging for DPops

DPops boasts a long-standing tradition of student arranged repertoire, featuring works by our own home-grown arrangers. If you are interested in serving a greater role in shaping DPops’s musical vision while learning something new and cool, join the DPops arranging team for the unique opportunity to have an 80-piece orchestra play your music! We will have workshops beginning this semester to introduce DPops members to the arranging process.
Email our head arranger, Chenyu, for more information.

Membership Next Year

Re-auditions
All returning orchestra members are required to re-audition at the start of every year.* This is to help with seating for the upcoming year. Re-auditions are similar to the auditions when you first joined DPops except now that you know that the conductors don’t bite, it’ll be even more chill!

  • Principal chairs will be asked to prepare a short solo of around 2 minutes and be ready to sight-read a short excerpt
  • For others not interested in principal chairs, you can choose between either the short prepared solo or sight-reading

Re-auditions will be held during the week of Camp Yale before classes start. If you know that you will not be able to make that time, you can also sign up for re-auditions during regular auditions usually held the week after the Extra-curricular Bazaar. An email will be sent out over summer with the dates. Any questions please use the form above or contact the co-presidents!

​*Members who joined before Fall 2016 can also choose to just come in and talk instead

Getting More Involved

Congratulations on scrolling to the bottom of the page. You have demonstrated a genuine interest in DPops. So what’s the next step? Board meetings!

All DPops members are invited to board meetings which are held every Tuesday from 5:45pm to 7pm in the Davenport Seminar Room (go into the dining hall, grab food, then head up the stairs).

What happens at board meetings? Board meetings are simply a place where ideas about DPops are bounced around. These ideas may include anything such as what social events to plan, what pieces to play, what theatrics to have, and much more! It’s super fun! You can also ask any board member about meetings.

At the end of every academic year, elections are held for board positions the following year. Emails will be sent out by the co-presidents and announcements will be made at rehearsal.

Can’t make board meetings but you’re still bursting with ideas? Share them with the rest of DPops by posting on our Facebook group, “DPoppers (Past and Present)“!

More Questions

Did not find what you were looking for or you still have ideas? Please: