Hawaii Five-O and English Folk Song Suite, both without fail 😂.

I have fond memories of the McMaster Concert Band. Matthew Airhart was the conductor in the mid 80s. It was audition only and I didn’t study music. I learned so very much musically from the challenging repertoire and it brought me to a higher level. The parties and the social side was amazing as there were regular social activities. (Hint hint!) People from that band went on to become well known musicians within the community. Laura Thomas, Glen Brown are a couple of examples and of course our very own Mary Sobota and Paul Romanow.

@shewis one of my favs too!

@gordon hmm...
If I could have played with another group, it would have been "Velvet Knights" out of Anaheim, CA. But sadly, they have folded due to financial mismanagement.
They were fun to watch, the shows entertaining.
You can see for yourself...

My Grandmother (piano) and my mother (voice) were my first two music teachers and my biggest influences. For trombone, Rob Sommerville (Lakeshore Music) showed me have fun while I play, Mike Polci (McMaster University) taught me how to listen and John Jasavala (Western) taught me how to practice.

"Porgy and Bess". How could it miss with the song "Summer Time"?

@gordon
Okay...I might be showing my age with this one. But Gordon Lightfoot has two songs that I cannot decide between. "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" and "If You Can Read My Mind "

That's not what I heard at a recent concert, @julian. Are you sure you're right about that? 😉

@clarplayr said in What do you miss most about the BCB during the pandemic lockdown?:

I miss the laughs. The clarinet section always has a great time joking around with each other.

That we do. Sometimes we have too much fun. Apologies in advance @joanner.

@wjerome I was still relatively new as a BCB member, and I remember when the Executive discussed and planned out for the band to perform out of city in the summer. I was so looking forward to going on that trip for the experience of playing on a platform / barge in the lake; not knowing that there was such a set-up! The trip was to Gravenhurst. Unfortunately it was that town that ended up cancelling out - if memory serves me well too - as the organizers could not adequately fund / sponsor the bus trip for BCB.

I have some phenomenal talent in my Salvation Army church band. It would be amazing if we could get either our euphonium player/co-conductor, Rob Miller, to play, or our tuba player/co-conductor, Rob Brown, to play. Also, it's something that could definitely be arranged since I've known them for 30 years and I'm sure they'd be happy to be guest artists

@Pualanasn Good to know. Thank you

When I was a kid I was obsessed with Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker ballet. I especially love the clarinet lines throughout. When I was offered the chance to learn an instrument at age 11, I knew exactly which one I wanted to play...clarinet. I also learned to play saxophone and played in jazz bands when I was in school, but I have always come back to my original love, the clarinet.

@TeresaWhite I like the trivia idea - I think it's been tossed around as an idea before, but never implemented. Anything to get the audience more involved!

My favourite venue is the Central Park Bandshell. There's something magical about playing an outdoor concert on a soft summer's evening that just makes me feel that all is right with the world. It was also the "big stage" in Burlington when I was growing up and one that I've been playing on since I was a kid. So many great memories.

Somewhat similar to Jerry Ford's recollection I remember what was probably my first time coming out to band under Cliff Hunt. There were only 3 or 4 trumpets there but cliff called out Amparito Roca. I expected Eric Ford, then leading the Teen tour, who could play rings around me, to play the first part and solo but even though he knew nothing about me he said I should do it. Fortunately I had played it before in the girls and Boys band and possibly the early days of the concert band before Cliff. I got through it without a hitch and Cliff liked me ever since then.

@Dannomyte I agree with you about Christmas Festival. I first played it in 1970, and I'd only been playing flute for three years, and the busy flute part during Oh Come All Ye Faithful seemed so impossible at that time. I still like the piece.

Those both help @lisa-yl, but it's really the marches.