Dear Members,

Welcome to 2014-15 of MTAC South Coast year! The entire board and I sincerely hope you had a relaxing summer and are reinvigorated to start teaching again. First, I would like to welcome the new members who joined us this year:  Wenny Chandra, Elizabeth Lee and Monica Lee.  Although our branch is small, it still offers many exciting events and plenty of performing opportunities for everyone to explore.

Please plan to attend our first branch meeting of the year. It will be held at 10am on September 17^th at Field’s Piano. It is a mandatory meeting in which you’ll receive the branch directory and CM package.  Come and mingle with our old friends and meet new friends! If you are interested in performing at our branch meeting, please contact our vice president, Chi Asada, who is in charge of the programs.

The MTAC State convention in Los Angeles was quite amazing. The presenters were fun and informative. I want to thank the following members who represented our branch at the convention: Sally Liu, Naoko Ono and Alice Tasi as the branch delegates; Willie Chen, Sally Liu and Sandely Miller helped in the page room.  The next year’s convention will be held in San Jose. Please plan ahead.

A big Thank you to teachers who chaired our last year’s activities; all events went smoothly and successfully! I am very grateful that these teachers will help out this coming year once again. I do realize how busy everyone is, but we truly need your participation to provide opportunities for our students, and to keep our branch productive. You will soon receive a member interest form. Let our board know in what way and how you can help!

Our first event of year is Masquerade Fundraiser concert on Oct. 18^th and Oct. 19^th. Two of our enthusiastic teachers, Kevin Kao and Victoria Park, will host this event. The amount we raise from this concert will benefit other branch events. It is essential to the branch that you encourage your students to perform. Stay tune for more details.

I’ve received an invitation from our sister branch, MTAC-OCC, who will celebrate for their 40th Anniversary on September 21^st at Mission Viejo Country Club. Please go to the following link to RSVP: http://mtacocc40thanniversary.rsvpify.com/ . The early bird deadline is September 11^th.

Lastly, I would like to share with you this funny video from You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psP0XgTI2VE What a good work out by the end!

Best wishes for a fulfilling year of teaching and music making!

Melody