Greetings!

WSFMC FALL CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 19, 2026

10:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon

Newport Covenant Church
12800 Coal Creek Parkway SE - Bellevue, WA 98006

We only have ONE gathering a year, so please make arrangements now to attend. We need your participation and your input in order to have a successful

State Federated Club. ALL MEMBERS ARE INVITED!

Business is kept to a minimum, followed by a presentation, Q&A, and lunch!
It's a great time to gather, share ideas, and have your questions answered.


At this conference, we will be saying farewell to our fabulous state treasurer,

Carol Hibbard. She is moving on to the next chapter of her life (retirement)

and we want to thank her for all she has done to contribute

to the success of the WSFMC!

Sally L. Palmer

WSFMC President

e-mail: wsfmcpresident@gmail.com

WELCOME to Our Newest WSFMC Board Member!

Rajveer (Raj) Singh has volunteered to be our American Music Division Chair!

Raj is a senior at Eastlake High School, and is a piano student of Sally Jung from the Greater Newcastle Federated Club. We're so glad to have a young, enthusiastic Junior member take on this role. Come meet Raj at the Fall Conference on Sept. 19th. He'll be letting us know what his goals are for the American Music Division in our state.

Take the Stage! Join the Parade!
Celebrate American Music - Composers & Musicians!
Submitted by Raj Singh, WSFMC American Music Division Chair
Picture Source: H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock / H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock

Every November, music teachers, performers, and local music clubs across the nation participate in a nationwide movement: American Music Month. At the heart of this celebration is the National Federation of Music Clubs (NFMC) signature campaign—the Parade of American Music—and its prestigious national competition, the Professor R.A. Schramm Parade of American Music Award.

Let’s seize this opportunity and march beyond the 18 th century European masters. Let’s dedicate the month of November celebrating and spreading awareness of American composers and musicians – ranging from classical icons to Jazz and folk and living, local contemporary composers.

Any level of your club’s engagement in the movement during the month of November, qualifies for the Schramm Parade of American Music recognition. Clubs competing for the Schramm Award shall fulfil any combination of the key requirements, such as:

1. Hosting an all American composer/musician recital
2. Securing a mayoral/gubernatorial proclamation
3. Generating public relations and media coverage
   

For full details, please review Form AM 1-1. CLICK HERE for the form
PLAN NOW! The contest parameters must happen in the month of November. You can replace the word "program" with "recital" if that works better in your studio.

Participating in the Parade has many benefits for your club. There is excitement for youth members to perform American repertoire that is popular, modern and relatable to their generation and times, fostering a deeper love for music. Securing a mayoral photo-op builds the club’s credibility and public presence. Furthermore, winning a cash award or a certificate of merit positions your local club as a leader within the Federation.

As the WSFMC American Music Division Chair, we are here to support you. We look forward to your participation in the Parade of American Music by bringing your club’s artistic talent into the national spotlight and serve the bigger cause: Elevating American composers and stimulating public appreciation and awareness of American music.

Submitted by Deborah Freeman, NFMC President
To ALL NFMC Members

Please be aware of a widespread security alert regarding a phishing scam using fake "Evite" or online event invitations to target members.

Scammers are sending malicious emails designed to look like routine invitations—often displaying the name of a fellow NFMC officer, music club member, or acquaintance—to trick recipients into revealing email passwords or downloading malware.

Key Red Flags to Watch For

• Password Prompts: Real Evite invitations never require you to enter your email address and password to view an event or RSVP. If a page asks for your email login, close it immediately.

• Unusual Sender Address: Legitimate Evite emails come strictly from an @evite.com domain. If the invitation comes from a personal Gmail, Yahoo, or unfamiliar address, it is fake.

• Suspicious Links: Before clicking "RSVP" or "View Invitation," hover your mouse over the button. The web address should lead directly to evite.com or evite.me. If it points anywhere else, do not click.

• File Attachments: Valid digital invitations do not include PDF or ZIP file attachments.

What You Should Do

1. Do Not Click or Reply: If you receive an unexpected or suspicious event invitation, do not click any links or download attachments.

2. Verify Separately: If an invitation appears to come from an NFMC colleague, contact them directly via phone or a new email thread (not by replying to the invitation) to confirm whether they sent it.

3. If You Already Clicked or Shared Information:

o Immediately change your email account password and enable two-factor authentication (2FA).

o Run a malware scan on your device.

o If you reused that password on other accounts (such as banking or administrative portals), update those passwords as well.

Thank you for remaining vigilant as we work to keep our digital communications secure across all state and local organizations. 

LET'S DO IT!

NFMC Conference Report - June 9-13, 2026 - Scottsdale, AZ

Upon returning home from the NFMC Conference, Lorraine and I compared notes of the different sessions we attended and we compile a report for you. Here are some highlights:

• Online NFMC Magazines
• Practice for Hope
• Strengthening Piano Hymn and Sacred Music piano solo events for Festival
• New Membership module
• and so much more!


CLICK HERE for the report 
(This report will be updated when all voting has taken place on the proposals mentioned.)

CLICK HERE for some fun pictures from the conference and the Music Instruments Museum.

ALL THINGS FESTIVAL

ALTERNATING vs. COMBINING?? A Festival Question
This is a Festivals question I heard asked a lot at the NFMC Conference this year. I asked the NFMC Vivace Chair, Sandra Preysz, to share her short powerpoint presentation with me and she kindly did so. 


CLICK HERE for this information.

AT-A-GLANCE Festival Timeline & Who Can Do What in Vivace

CLICK HERE for this very helpful resource.

Want help with VIVACE?

CLICK HERE to access links to answer many questions. A very helpful resource!

Congratulations to the First Place Winner of the 
NFMC American Music Junior Award - 
Sally L Palmer Junior Music Studio!! The award is $250.

To view this opportunity for next year, CLICK HERE

CONGRATULATIONS JEANNE PARK!

Congratulations to Jeanne Park, 2026 Winner of the Michael R. Edwards Graduating Senior Performance Award!

$5,000 award

Jeanne is a graduate of Skyline High School in Sammamish, WA., and will be attending Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. We want to mention that Jeanne took composition classes with our own Sharon van Valin of the Greater Newcastle Federated Music Club, and was the First Place 2025 Class IV winner in the WSFMC Junior Composers Competition! Congratulations Jeanne!


CLICK HERE for Jeanne's wonderful bio
Click Here for Jeanne's performance of Carmen Fantasie Brillante with the Evergreen Philharmonic. An incredible performance!

CLICK HERE for more information about applying for this award.

Are you, or anyone you know, interested in starting a new Senior Club? It's easy! 


• Start the conversation with a small group - 3 to 5 people works well.
• You will need a President and a Treasurer.
• Talk about the type of club you envision
  

Here are the types of Senior Clubs you might consider:


1. Teacher Club - performance opportunities for students; Festival oriented
2. Performance Organizations - larger membership with divisions; performance driven
3. Mixed Group - teachers, music educators, music appreciators; music education; community outreach.

DID YOU KNOW? ARE YOU IN TUNE?
Did you know that the NFMC has a monthly electronic newsletter that is available to everyone at no cost?? Each of the nine divisions of the NFMC put a short synopsis of what's going on in that division and offers reminders. It's a quick and easy read. WE NEED EVERYONE TO SUBSCRIBE!

Scroll down to the bottom of the NFMC website's home page (nfmc-music.org) and you will find this:

Sign up here for the NFMC Monthly Newsletter (IN TUNE)

Then enter your email and click on SIGNUP NOW. It's as easy as that!

Also, join the NFMC Facebook page for additional events and award winners.

NFMC JUNIOR MUSIC COMPETITIONS

Submitted by John Van Lierop, Jr., WSFMC Awards/Competitions Chair

The applications and requirements can be found on the NFMC Home page. On the menu click Competitions & Awards, then click Junior Division and finally all the Junior Division Competitions appear. Everything is now done online, including the application and payments, as well as uploading any videos. I will briefly describe four piano competitions that are available for 2027


CLICK HERE for four piano competitions

I have a request- Could you teachers please inform me when you enter one of your students in any of these competitions? We want to recognize your students in one of our future Melody Lines, whether they are a National winner or not. Just being in the competition takes a lot of work!

MEMBERSHIP
Submitted by Sally Palmer, WSFMC President & Membership Chair


If you are talking to a prospective new member of the Federation, how would you answer this question: 
"Why would I want to join the NFMC / WSFMC?"

If you are talking to a prospective new piano teacher of the Federation, how would you answer this question: 
"What exactly is a Festival?"

If you are talking to a prospective new member of the Federation, how would you answer this question: 
"Does the Federation do anything else besides Festival?"

And, final question:
WHO ARE YOU TALKING TO? Have your answers ready and then . . . 
TALK TO SOMEONE!

CONGRATULATIONS HEATHER DONOVAN!! 
Submitted by Heather Donovan, Puyallup Federated Music Club

Heather Donovan is one of our festival teachers in the Puyallup club. She is a piano

and harp teacher and recently self published her first children’s music education picture

book on Amazon called Gustav’s Musical World. It’s a fun picture book about her dog

Gustav who points out notes on the staff throughout the book.

The goal of the book is to promote music note recognition on the staff to children and beginning musicians before starting lessons or in addition to beginning lessons. The idea is that the reader will start to recognize what the notes look like just by reading and rereading the book as children tend to do with picture books. It’s a good addition or alternative to flashcards and a great supplementary book for lessons or music libraries.

This is the first book in a series in which more notes will be added to each book.

If you are interested in purchasing this fun and educational book, CLICK HERE to find it on Amazon.


CONNOR CHEE - Pianist and Composer
Sandpaintings: 16 Piano Pieces Inspired by Traditional Navajo Art

Those of us who attended the NFMC Conference in Scottsdale, Arizona, were really honored to attend a fabulous concert performed by Mr. Connor Chee. 

Renowned Navajo pianist and composer Connor Chee is celebrated for his evocative weaving of Navajo melodies, inspired from his cultural heritage, and classical piano techniques, producing many hauntingly beautiful melodies. He is an outstanding story-teller through his music.

Connor has been featured in prestigious concert halls and festivals across the globe. Beyond his performances and recordings, Connor is dedicated to music education and cultural preservation, sharing his knowledge and passion with the next generation of musicians.

In Sandpaintings: 16 Piano Pieces Inspired by Traditional Navajo Art, Connor Chee draws from the sacred elements of Dine (Navajo) art. These pieces evoke the spirit of Navajo traditions with themes derived from stones, clouds, lightning, and mountains, offering a harmonious blend of cultural reverence and musical innovation.

Connor's Sandpaintings is worth checking out! CLICK HERE, to access this compilation on the Alfred Music Publishing site.

WASHINGTON STATE TO SHINE BRIGHTER

How many of you, when you receive an NFMC magazine - Music Clubs Magazine and/or Junior Keynotes - go right to the back to see if anything has been submitted under "state news" for Washington State? It always makes me sad when there is no article for WSFMC. How can we rectify that?

For the Junior Keynotes magazine, it would be great to submit articles related to:

• Grand and President Cup winners
• Competitions and awards that have been won by our Juniors
• Junior Club activities and achievements, including service projects
• Accolades and accomplishments from any of our Junior Counselors (teachers)

For the Music Clubs Magazine, it would be great to submit articles related to:

• What's happening in our Senior Clubs such as special programs, honors, awards, projects
• Accolades and achievements from our Student/Collegiate Division
• New Senior or Collegiate members who join your club

PICTURES can be included and are enthusiastically desired.



There are only three times a year these magazines are published and it feels like a long time between submission and publication (hopefully this will be remedied when the magazines are offered online), but nonetheless, we want our state to be RECOGNIZED.

If any of our Junior Associate Clubs would like to submit something (programs, achievements, etc.) to the Junior Keynotes magazine, please do so!! As well as this bimonthly newsletter!

Submit all articles and pictures to me - Sally Palmer, WSFMC President & PR Rep. Please make sure pictures are in jpeg/jpg format. wsfmcpresident@gmail.com

Thank you!

WE LOVE OUR JUNIOR ASSOCIATE CLUBS!!

Bellevue Youth Symphony Orchestra - https://www.byso.org/

Cascade Youth Symphony Orchestras - https://www.cyso.us/

Maple Valley Youth Symphony Orchestra - https://www.mvyso.org/

Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra - https://syso.org/

Student Orchestras of Greater Olympia - https://studentorchestras.org/

Tacoma Youth Symphony Association - https://tysamusic.org/

Check out these websites for upcoming events and how you can show your support.

If you know of a group of junior age students who could benefit from being members of the Washington State Federation of Music Clubs, please contact Sally Palmer, Membership Chair.

Next Melody Lines Newsletter coming October 1st.

Please submit any announcements or articles by September 15th.

We would LOVE your contributions!!

Sally Palmer, Editor

LIABILITY INSURANCE COVERAGE 2025 - 2026

Submitted by Dr. Yelena Balabanova, WSFMC Liability Insurance Chair



NFMC and its members are purchasing Liability Insurance only. This provides coverage to a third party for bodily injury or property damage the entity causes. You must be a member in good standing to obtain insurance!

National designated deadline to submit requests:

August 15 for events September 1 – December 31

December 1 for events January 1 – August 31



• Cost per event is $20. Add $5 extra per event if registered after the designated deadline
• Cost per event having consecutive days is $25.
• An event on a single day but at multiple sites costs $20 per site.
• No requests will be processed without an accurate address and date of event.
• If an event requires a rider of an additional insured, give the exact language required.
• Any changes requested after a certificate is issued will result in a $5 change fee.
• If you need to change an event date, and wait to inform NFMC until the original date has passed you will owe another full event fee. There is NO credit in that situation.
• A certificate verifying insurance coverage is issued only to an event that requests it. Certificates will be sent to the state liability chair and will be mailed to requested members.
• Coverage is not guaranteed until payment is received and processed by NFMC Headquarters. "No payment = No Insurance" 

WSFMC members:

Inform Insurance Chair by email in advance when you will make the payment online,

so Yelena can process the submission the same day you make the payment.

Make payment on www.nfmc-music.org/payment/

Select "Liability Insurance" under Plans

and Fill in your "Event Name, Date and Location" under Notes

Email payment receipt and forms below to YelenaBalabanova@gmail.com

2025-2026 Liability Insurance Request NFMC Liability Insurance Letter

NFMC Liability Insurance Request Form

Child Protection Policy Form