<html><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div><blockquote type="cite"><div class="gmail_quote"><div><div style="font-family: times new roman,new york,times,serif; font-size: 12pt;"><div style="font-family: times new roman,new york,times,serif; font-size: 12pt;"><div style="font-family: times new roman,new york,times,serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br><br> <div style="margin: 0px; overflow: auto; background-color: rgb(149, 149, 149);" align="center"> <table style="width: 600px;" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="600"> <tbody><tr> <td style="padding: 0px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" width="100%"> <br></td> </tr> <tr> <td style="border: 1px solid rgb(102, 51, 102); padding: 2px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1"> <table style="border: 1px solid rgb(153, 102, 153);" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(51, 0, 102); width: 596px;" rowspan="1" colspan="4" bgcolor="#330066" height="109" width="596"> <table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;" color="#ffffff" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="5"><p align="center">American String Teachers Association </p></font></td></tr></tbody></table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(102, 51, 102); width: 596px;" rowspan="1" colspan="4" bgcolor="#663366" width="596"> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255); padding-left: 5px; font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; padding-right: 5px;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#ffffff" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b>ASTA eNEWS</b></font></td> <td style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255); padding-left: 5px; font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; padding-right: 5px;" align="right"><font style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#ffffff" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b>Spring 2008</b></font></td> </tr></tbody></table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(153, 102, 153); padding-top: 17px; padding-bottom: 10px; width: 160px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#996699" valign="top" width="160"> <table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(51, 0, 51); color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#330033"><font style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#ffffff" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><b>In This Issue</b></font></td> </tr> <tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(153, 102, 153);" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#996699"><b><a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-decoration: none; font-size: 8pt;" shape="rect" href="#1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK5"><font style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;" color="#ffcc66" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="1">Big Publications Sale</font></a></b></td> </tr><tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(153, 102, 153);" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#996699"><b><a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-decoration: none; font-size: 8pt;" shape="rect" href="#1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK6"><font style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;" color="#ffcc66" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="1">New Children's Book</font></a></b></td> </tr><tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(153, 102, 153);" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#996699"><b><a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-decoration: none; font-size: 8pt;" shape="rect" href="#1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK7"><font style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;" color="#ffcc66" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="1">2008 National Conference </font></a></b></td> </tr><tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(153, 102, 153);" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#996699"><b><a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-decoration: none; font-size: 8pt;" shape="rect" href="#1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK8"><font style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;" color="#ffcc66" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="1">Call for Showcase Articles</font></a></b></td> </tr><tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(153, 102, 153);" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#996699"><b><a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-decoration: none; font-size: 8pt;" shape="rect" href="#1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK9"><font style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;" color="#ffcc66" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="1">Post Available Positions</font></a></b></td> </tr><tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(153, 102, 153);" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#996699"><b><a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-decoration: none; font-size: 8pt;" shape="rect" href="#1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK10"><font style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;" color="#ffcc66" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="1">Student Membership Rates</font></a></b></td> </tr><tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(153, 102, 153);" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#996699"><b><a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-decoration: none; font-size: 8pt;" shape="rect" href="#1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK11"><font style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;" color="#ffcc66" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="1">Student Award Certificates </font></a></b></td> </tr><tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(153, 102, 153);" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#996699"><b><a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-decoration: none; font-size: 8pt;" shape="rect" href="#1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK12"><font style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;" color="#ffcc66" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="1">Gift for College Grads</font></a></b></td> </tr><tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(153, 102, 153);" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#996699"><b><a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-decoration: none; font-size: 8pt;" shape="rect" href="#1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK13"><font style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;" color="#ffcc66" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="1">Membership Dues</font></a></b></td> </tr><tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(153, 102, 153);" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#996699"><b><a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-decoration: none; font-size: 8pt;" shape="rect" href="#1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK14"><font style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;" color="#ffcc66" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="1">Chapter Rebate Structure</font></a></b></td> </tr><tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(153, 102, 153);" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#996699"><b><a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-decoration: none; font-size: 8pt;" shape="rect" href="#1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK15"><font style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;" color="#ffcc66" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="1">New Membership Rate</font></a></b></td> </tr><tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(153, 102, 153);" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#996699"><b><a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-decoration: none; font-size: 8pt;" shape="rect" href="#1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK17"><font style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;" color="#ffcc66" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="1">Merle J. Isaac Winners</font></a></b></td> </tr><tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(153, 102, 153);" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#996699"><b><a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-decoration: none; font-size: 8pt;" shape="rect" href="#1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK18"><font style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;" color="#ffcc66" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="1">2008 National Orchestra Festival</font></a></b></td> </tr><tr> <td style="background-color: rgb(153, 102, 153);" rowspan="1" colspan="1" align="center" bgcolor="#996699"><b><a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-decoration: none; font-size: 8pt;" shape="rect" href="#1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK19"><font style="color: rgb(255, 204, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 8pt;" color="#ffcc66" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="1">Special Project Grants </font></a></b></td> </tr> </tbody></table></td> <td style="background-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); width: 1px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" bgcolor="#666666" height="1" width="1"> <br></td><td style="width: 7px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" width="7"> <br></td><td style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); padding-top: 10px; padding-left: 5px; padding-right: 5px; width: 428px;" rowspan="1" colspan="1" bgcolor="#ffffff" valign="top" width="428"> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td rowspan="1" colspan="1" width="100%"> <br></td> </tr> <tr> <td rowspan="1" colspan="1" width="100%"> <a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK4"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> <div align="center"><b><font color="#006666" face="Garamond" size="4">ASSOCIATION & CHAPTER NEWS</font></b></div></font></td></tr></tbody></table><a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK5"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000" face="Courier New"> <div> <div style="border-color: rgb(102, 51, 102); border-bottom: 1px dotted rgb(102, 51, 102); color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b><font face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif">Need an ASTA Publication? Buy Now and Get 20 Percent Off!</font></b></font></div> </div></font> </font><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font></p> <font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif"> </font></font><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif" size="3">For a limited time only, until May 15, all ASTA publications and products are on sale at 20 percent off. Go to the bookstore link at </font><a rel="nofollow" href="http://ui.constantcontact.com/visualeditor/www.astaweb.com%20" target="_blank"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif" size="3">www.astaweb.com</font></a><font size="3"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"> to view all publications. Please note that the prices listed reflect the 20 percent discount. To add even more value to this offer, a special "combo pak" of the popular Ultimate Strings, Vol. 1: Alternative Styles and Ultimate Strings Vol. 2: Classical Virtuosity can be purchased for just $5 when you spend $25 or more. (These cds normally sell for $9.95 each.) What a DEAL!</font></font></font></font></span></div> </td></tr></tbody></table><a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK6"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font><div style="border-color: rgb(102, 51, 102); border-bottom: 1px dotted rgb(102, 51, 102); color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b><font face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif">ASTA's Buzzin' About Its Newest Book, <i>Honey Bee's Song</i></font></b></font></font></div><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font></p> <font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif"> </font></font><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3"><i><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">Honey Bee's Song</font></span></i><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">, written by Cynthia Swiss and colorfully illustrated by Judy Leyshon, is a children's story about a little girl named Karen who busily practices her violin in a lovely garden filled with lavender bushes, butterflies,</font> <font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">and bees. Of course, one of the bees is special and becomes her friend. She composes a piece of music for all of her new bee "friends" called "Honey Bee's Song." Read how music in the garden was a perfect expression of joy and friendship for Karen and the bees. According to Swiss, "I want this book to be an</font> <font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">inspiration to all young musicians." Order this book online at </font><a rel="nofollow" href="http://ui.constantcontact.com/visualeditor/www.astaweb.com%20" target="_blank"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">www.astaweb.com</font></a><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"> for</font> <font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">just $8. (This includes the 20 percent</font> <font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">discount.)</font></span></font></font></font></font></div> </td></tr></tbody></table><a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK7"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> <div style="border-color: rgb(102, 51, 102); border-bottom: 1px dotted rgb(102, 51, 102); color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b>ASTA Thanks Sponsors for Success of National Conference</b></font></div> <font color="#000000" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Verdana;"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"> <div> </div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; ">The four-day 2008 ASTA National Conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico was a great success. Held, for the most part, at Albuquerque Convention Center, the conference featured nearly 200 informative sessions and showcases, a strings-only product exhibit hall, the National Orchestra Festival, the National High School Honors Orchestra, a variety of outstanding performances, and much more! See our special conference highlights section in the May issue of <i>American String Teacher</i>. </div> </font></span><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"> </p><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Verdana;"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">Thanks to all who attended. Special thanks go to our conference sponsors, who played a huge role in the success of the event. Please see the upcoming May issue of AST for a complete list of sponsors.</font></span></div> </font></font></td></tr></tbody></table><a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK8"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font><div style="border-color: rgb(102, 51, 102); border-bottom: 1px dotted rgb(102, 51, 102); color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b>Call For Showcase</b></font></font></div><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font></p> <font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif"> </font></font><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Verdana;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">Would you like to have exclusive placement of your company's new products, services, or information "showcased" in <i>American String Teacher</i> (AST) and on our website? If the answer is "yes" please send all releases, not more than 300 words, to </font><a rel="nofollow" href="http://ui.constantcontact.com/visualeditor/June07/may%2007/maryjane@astaweb.com" target="_blank"><span style="color: windowtext; text-decoration: none;"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">maryjane@astaweb.com</font></span></a><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">. This extraordinary benefit is offered to String Industry Council members only. Don't let this opportunity pass you by to advertise for FREE to a targeted audience of nearly 11,500 potential buyers. Space is limited.</font></font></font></span></div> </td></tr></tbody></table><a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK9"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font><div style="border-color: rgb(102, 51, 102); border-bottom: 1px dotted rgb(102, 51, 102); color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b>Fill That Position by Posting It on ASTA's Website</b></font></font></div> <span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Verdana;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000" face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"> <div> </div>An economical and highly visible way to fill that position at your company, studio, or school is by posting it on ASTA's "Job Posting" section of our website. For only $75 and an unlimited text description available, you can advertise your available position for 60 days! Click <a rel="nofollow" href="http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=0010tFX0kj1kQuh4Ew7D1UCa9LCJbbcuQVBj9EmvYcOjBJLvO316zAYJ1PXxGz0Jj184GttpG9NNps7fYFW25u9xUTJb6YjdPZI8exZI0ff3Q8D1fsp2fYuh7FJ5nfJqfLWyyH8p0qzEle9ewkFcWGXv6HVkdvvAbyX7sBXaWTfW4KBBn1es3nIz-L5GlUM9fSSliepppUjDnbWDdR-quzzqsoEnFi5U16Yv5vycqHiD0Y=" target="_blank">here</a> to take advantage of this fabulous deal.</font></font></span></td> </tr></tbody></table><a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK10"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000" face="Courier New"> <div> <div style="border-color: rgb(102, 51, 102); border-bottom: 1px dotted rgb(102, 51, 102); color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b>ASTA Offers New Membership Rate for Students</b></font></div> </div></font> <font color="#000000"> </font></font><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif" size="3">The ASTA Board of Directors passed a motion to lower student dues to $30 from $44, effective July 1, 2008. The new rate reflects an online version of the <i>American String Teacher</i> (AST) journal versus a hard copy. According to students at the conference, an online version is preferred. Students and all members will be able to access this online version of AST behind the "Members Only" area of our website at </font><a rel="nofollow" href="http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=0010tFX0kj1kQs-LZMDz1nTkmDMnGpuaeIZ9pSToChNO2PUNrF9VlijnC549FFl6JSzSHBKipgKZz4gnzLssQ1bu1YsAyvXU36HTYmL0m2UFo0m7bNjHRf_-Q==" target="_blank"><font color="#800080" face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif" size="3">www.astaweb.com</font></a><font size="3"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"> for the August AST.</font></font></font></font></span></div> <font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font></td></tr></tbody></table> <a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK11"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font><div style="border-color: rgb(102, 51, 102); border-bottom: 1px dotted rgb(102, 51, 102); color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b>End-of-Year Student Award Certificates Available</b></font></font></div> <span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Verdana;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000" face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"> <div> </div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; ">The end of the school year is the perfect time to recognize your students, and ASTA has created a line of award certificates for that purpose. The certificates are printed on high-quality parchment index paper and are suitable for framing. With the presentation of these attractive and affordable awards, your students' achievements are formally recognized by ASTA. Certificates are available in five categories, including Most Improved and Student Leadership, and are offered in packs of 25 for the member price of $12.95 ($14.95 nonmember). Two combination packs are also available. To order, visit the bookstore at </div> </font><a rel="nofollow" href="http://ui.constantcontact.com/visualeditor/may%2007/www.astaweb.com" target="_blank"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">www.astaweb.com</font></a><font color="#000000" face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">.</font></font></span></td> </tr></tbody></table><a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK12"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font><div style="border-color: rgb(102, 51, 102); border-bottom: 1px dotted rgb(102, 51, 102); color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b>ASTA Memberships Make Great Gifts for College Graduates</b></font></font></div> <span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000" face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif" size="3"> <div> </div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; ">With graduation right around the corner, why not give the gift that keeps on giving? Continue your student's growth with a gift membership to ASTA. For information about the different types of memberships available and the many benefits enjoyed by ASTA members, visit </div> </font><a rel="nofollow" href="http://ui.constantcontact.com/visualeditor/www.astaweb.com" target="_blank"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif" size="3">www.astaweb.com</font></a><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">.</font></font></font></font></span></td> </tr></tbody></table><a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK13"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> <div style="border-color: rgb(102, 51, 102); border-bottom: 1px dotted rgb(102, 51, 102); color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b>Membership Dues to Mirror Annual Rate of Inflation</b></font></div> <span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3"> <div> </div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; ">The national ASTA Board of Directors passed a motion in 2006 to raise membership dues annually by at least the rate of inflation in order to remain financially sound.<span> </span>In accordance, as July 1 begins our new fiscal year, the rates will increase to the following amounts, which reflect the 2.8 percent rate of inflation.</div> </font></font></font></span><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"> </p><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">Professional: $99</font></font></font></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">Senior: $70</font></font></font></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">Dual: $138</font></font></font></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">High School Chapter: $66</font></font></font></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">Library Subscription: $82</font></font></font></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">Library Subscription (Ad Agency): $74</font></font></font></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">Institutional: $301</font></font></font></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">String Industry Council: $176, $246, $339</font></font></font></span></div> </font></td></tr></tbody></table><a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK14"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> <div style="border-color: rgb(102, 51, 102); border-bottom: 1px dotted rgb(102, 51, 102); color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b>New Chapter Rebate Structure</b></font></div><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"> </p><font color="#000000" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif"><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font size="3"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">Earlier this year, the national ASTA Board of Directors passed a motion to increase the rebate from a nominal figure (note to myself, ask Jody) to a percentage basis. Starting July 1, 20 percent of individual membership dues will go directly to your state chapter. This will ensure that as dues increase due to inflation each year, the state chapter's refund grows as well.</font><span> </span></font></span></div> </font></font></td></tr></tbody></table><a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK15"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font><div style="border-color: rgb(102, 51, 102); border-bottom: 1px dotted rgb(102, 51, 102); color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b>ASTA Announces Special Membership Rate for Graduating Students</b></font></font></div><p><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">ASTA is pleased to announce a new membership initiative for graduating seniors. We will be offering a discounted professional membership rate of $75 for first year teachers. This is a savings of more than 20 percent off the regular professional membership price! This transitional membership rate will also allow first year teachers to register at the 2009 ASTA National Conference at the discounted student rate.</font></font></font></font></span></p><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">To qualify, students must be a current ASTA student member that will graduate in 2008 (spring, summer or fall semesters). Students must join between April 1 and June 30, 2008 by using the ASTA Transitional Membership Form.</font></font></font></font></span></div><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font></p><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000" face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif" size="3">The national office will mail forms offering this special rate to qualifying students. Please send complete contact information of your graduating students (name, ASTA ID#, address and email address) to </font><a rel="nofollow" href="mailto:kari@astaweb.com" title="mailto:kari@astaweb.com" target="_blank"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif" size="3">kari@astaweb.com.</font></a><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3"> Please be sure to pass this email on to any other graduating students who could benefit from this discount.</font></font></font></font></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table><a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK16"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><p align="center"><b><font color="#006666" face="Garamond" size="4">EVENTS & COMPETITIONS</font></b></p></font></td></tr></tbody></table><a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK17"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font><div style="border-color: rgb(102, 51, 102); border-bottom: 1px dotted rgb(102, 51, 102); color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b>ASTA Announces Winners of the 2008 Merle J. Isaac Composition Contest</b></font></font></div> <span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3"> <div> </div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; ">ASTA is proud to announce the winners for the 2008 Merle J. Isaac Composition Contest. The winner in the Junior Division is Kevin Hartnett of Lee Summit, Missouri for "Indignation."<i><span> </span></i>In the Senior Division, the winner is Susan Day of Littleton, Colorado for "Shores of Ireland."<span> </span>ASTA thanks Robert McCashin, chairman of the committee, from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia for all his time and effort to ensure the success of this contest.</div> </font></font></font></font></span><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font></p><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000" face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif" size="3">Note: The Merle J. Isaac Composition Contest deadline is January 15.<span> </span>Additionally, please remember that the Senior Division is open to both full and string orchestra. The Junior Division remains string orchestra. Initiated in 1959, this contest is held annually to encourage the composition, publication, and performance of quality music for school orchestra programs. Please check the ASTA website for complete contest details at </font><a rel="nofollow" href="http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=0010tFX0kj1kQtce_0a7Di6tv-hTNQGatn_N8CtTFQAvL6loi-pCsvQhtKAYPuzefm3VZcckpBIGAYZbFHy2pOHF3R_6sKvqhXIlvUGYDr5senCIRzEz7muXw9nxuD44xkRC7p5rnWx5huKmHQnMIDT8Q==" target="_blank"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif" size="3">http://www.astaweb.com/competitions/MerleIsaac.htm</font></a><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">.</font></font></font></font></span></div><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font></p> </td></tr></tbody></table><a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK18"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> <div style="border-color: rgb(102, 51, 102); border-bottom: 1px dotted rgb(102, 51, 102); color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b>Kudos to the 2008 National Orchestra Festival</b></font></div> <span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3"> <div> </div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; ">Congratulations to all the talented young musicians who participated in the 2008 National Orchestra Festival at the ASTA national conference. Thank you to adjudicators John Clinton, Kathleen Horvath, and Ray Ostwald. And, thanks to clinicians Bob Phillips and James Kjelland, and the many elective master class clinicians. </div> </font></font></font></span><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"> </p><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><b><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3">Final Results</font></span></b></div><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"> </p><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><b><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">Middle School String Orchestra</font></font></font></span></b></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">1. Las Flores Middle School String Ensemble, Las Flores, California--</font></font></font></span><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">Steve Benefield, conductor</font></font></font></span></div><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"> </p><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><b><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">High School String Orchestra</font></font></font></span></b></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">1. Virtuoso <font color="#000000">Program</font> Orchestra da Camera, </font></font></font></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif" size="3">San Anselmo, California--</font><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">George Thomson, conductor<span> </span></font></font></span></font></div> <div> </div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">2. Punahou Symphony Orchestra Strings, Honolulu, Hawaii--</font></font></font></span><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">Craig Young and Jonas Carlson, conductors<span> </span></font></font></font></span></div> <span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3"> <div> </div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; ">3. Iowa City West High School Symphony String Orchestra,<span> </span>Iowa City, Iowa--Wayne Thelander, conductor</div></font></font></font></span><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"> </p><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><b><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif" size="3">High School Full Orchestra</font></font></span></b></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><font color="#000000"><font size="3"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">1. Las</font> <font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">Vegas</font></span><span style="font-family: Verdana;"> <font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">Academy</font> <font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">Philharmonic</font> <font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">Orchestra, </font><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">Las</font> <font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">Vegas--</font></span></font></font></font><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font size="3"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">Karl Reinartz, and Brian Downey, conductors</font></font></font></span></div> <div> </div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif" size="3">2. Springville High School Philharmonic, Springville Utah--</font></font></span><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font size="3"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">Sam Tsugawa, conductor</font></font></font></span></div><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"> </p><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><b><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">Grand Champion</font></font></font></span></b></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">Virtuoso Program Orchestra da Camera, San Anselmo, California--</font></font></font></span><span style="font-family: Verdana;"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"><font size="3">George Thomson, conductor</font></font></font></span></div> </font></td></tr></tbody></table><a rel="nofollow" name="1196eb2c38ecbd07_LETTER.BLOCK19"></a><table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font><div style="border-color: rgb(102, 51, 102); border-bottom: 1px dotted rgb(102, 51, 102); color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="3"><b>Apply for a Special Project Grant</b></font></font></div> <span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Verdana;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif"> <div> </div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; ">ASTA Special Project Grants are designed to provide financial assistance to projects planned at the state chapter level. Funding is available for new projects that will advance the ASTA mission and increase the strength, visibility, and activities of your state chapter. Only one project per state may be funded but states may submit more than one project for consideration. Grants of up to $850 will be awarded.</div> </font></font></font></span><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font></p><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Verdana;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><font color="#000000" face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">The postmark deadline to apply for a Special Project Grant is June 1, 2008. Special Project Grants will be awarded to finance projects or events that are new to a state and are scheduled to take place between July 1, 2008 and June 30, 2009. Revised guidelines and application forms are available at </font><a rel="nofollow" href="http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=0010tFX0kj1kQsLC10-Qg470q9roHioadX5TsEz4VTgj9IonJmW80qja9AoTbyYvNP-3iCnny95dkf3c3uPW044kxeKCGGlAOLJGR7DeC5l7OTByXVAn86kWIGwJZlcarY7AyPWn2ZKq6La-0NY67SzDg==" target="_blank"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">http://www.astaweb.com/foundation/AwardsGrants.htm</font></a><font color="#000000"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">.</font></font></font></span></div><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#666666" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> </font></p> </td></tr></tbody></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td rowspan="1" colspan="1" width="100%"> <table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><font color="#006633" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="5"><b>SAVE THE DATE!</b></font></div><p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;" align="center"> </p><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><font color="#006633" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="4">2009 ASTA National Conference </font></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><font color="#006633" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="4">March 18- 21</font></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; "><font color="#006633" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="4">Atlanta, Georgia</font></div></font></td></tr></tbody></table> <table style="margin-bottom: 6px;" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" align="left"><font style="color: rgb(51, 0, 51); font-family: Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;" color="#330033" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"> <div align="left"><font face="Garamond,Times New Roman,Times,Serif">ASTA eNEWS is free service and an official publication of the American String Teachers Association. It is designed to give you quick updates on what's happening within ASTA and in the string music industry. <div> </div></font></div> <div align="center"><font color="#006633" face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif"><b>Americian String Teachers Association</b></font></div> <div align="center"><font face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif">4153 Chain Bridge Road</font></div> <div align="center"><font face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif">Fairfax, VA 22030</font></div> <div align="center"><font face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif">phone: 703/279-2113</font></div> <div align="center"><font face="Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif">fax: 703/279-2114</font></div> <div> </div></font></td></tr></tbody></table></td> </tr> </tbody></table> </td> </tr> </tbody></table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td rowspan="1" colspan="1" height="10" width="100%"> <br></td> </tr> </tbody></table> </div> <div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); padding-top: 10px;" align="center"> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tbody><tr> <td> <div style="font-weight: bold; font-family: verdana,arial; font-size: 8pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); padding-bottom: 10px;"><font style="font-family: verdana,arial; font-size: 8pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" color="#000000" face="verdana,arial" size="1"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://ui.constantcontact.com/sa/fwtf.jsp?m=1101854733120&ea=stevereed52%40yahoo.com&a=1102063512598" target="_blank">Forward email</a></font></div> <table style="font-family: verdana,arial; font-size: 8pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); width: 600px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tbody><tr> <td rowspan="1" colspan="1"><font style="font-family: verdana,arial; font-size: 8pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" color="#000000" face="verdana,arial" size="1"> <a rel="nofollow" shape="rect" href="http://visitor.constantcontact.com/d.jsp?v=001dkaXUUk6sOC4Y1rQxPIzuMOztMUav7pEPQaHf6iqL5Bjhfugnl0n387DNNb_NWlm&p=un" target="_blank"><img alt="Safe Unsubscribe" border="0"></a> </font><div><font style="font-family: verdana,arial; font-size: 8pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" color="#000000" face="verdana,arial" size="1">This email was sent to <a href="mailto:stevereed52@yahoo.com" target="_blank">stevereed52@yahoo.com</a>, by <a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);" shape="rect" href="mailto:asta@astaweb.com" target="_blank">asta@astaweb.com</a></font></div> <div><font style="font-family: verdana,arial; font-size: 8pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" color="#000000" face="verdana,arial" size="1"><a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);" shape="rect" href="http://visitor.constantcontact.com/d.jsp?v=001dkaXUUk6sOC4Y1rQxPIzuMOztMUav7pEPQaHf6iqL5Bjhfugnl0n387DNNb_NWlm&p=oo" target="_blank">Update Profile/Email Address</a> | Instant removal with <a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);" shape="rect" href="http://visitor.constantcontact.com/d.jsp?v=001dkaXUUk6sOC4Y1rQxPIzuMOztMUav7pEPQaHf6iqL5Bjhfugnl0n387DNNb_NWlm&p=un" target="_blank">SafeUnsubscribe</a>™ | <a rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);" shape="rect" href="http://ui.constantcontact.com/roving/CCPrivacyPolicy.jsp" target="_blank">Privacy Policy</a>.</font></div> </td> <td rowspan="1" colspan="1"><font style="font-family: verdana,arial; font-size: 8pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" color="#000000" face="verdana,arial" size="1"> </font><div style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102); padding-bottom: 5px;"><font style="font-family: verdana,arial; font-size: 8pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" color="#000000" face="verdana,arial" size="1"><a rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 102, 102);" shape="rect" href="http://www.constantcontact.com/index.jsp?cc=TEM_News_111" target="_blank">Email Marketing</a> by</font></div> <font style="font-family: verdana,arial; font-size: 8pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" color="#000000" face="verdana,arial" size="1"><a rel="nofollow" shape="rect" href="http://www.constantcontact.com/index.jsp?cc=TEM_News_111" target="_blank"><img border="0"></a> </font></td> </tr> </tbody></table> <div style="font-family: verdana,arial; font-size: 8pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); padding-top: 20px;" align="left"><font style="font-family: verdana,arial; font-size: 8pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" color="#000000" face="verdana,arial" size="1">American String Teachers Association | 4153 Chain Bridge Road | Fairfax | VA | 22030</font></div> </td> </tr> </tbody></table> </div><img height="1" width="1"></div></div></div><br><div class="WgoR0d"> <hr size="1">Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! 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