Remembrance

HMS Belfast in 1948

The Croydon Band will be playing for the remembrance service on HMS Belfast again this year.   I think this is the most important thing we do as a band, it is a real honour.   Two of our cornet players will be playing the last post, as well as the full band accompanying hymns for the service and some solemn music before hand and some marches afterwards.   Tonight was the last rehearsal for this, and all in all I think it went pretty well, we have a decent selection of solemn music for before the service, and a couple of appropriate marches for afterwards "A Life on The Ocean Wave" and "Hearts of Oak".   For years we used to play "On the Quarter Deck" and I could never understand why, it's not a very good march and nobody ever recognises it, so last year we changed to "A Life on The Ocean Wave" and got quite a few favorable comments.   I just hope that this year we are able to get it right again.

This is the second of these services I will have conducted, but I have played in them for many years and have always got a kick out of seeing how important it is to the veterans, especially those who served on the Belfast herself.   Last year I was very nervous, I hope that this year I will be a little more relaxed, and will be able to enjoy the experience.

Cartoons

I love cartoons, I must have said this before, but it's true.   This one tickles my fancy and is specially for all you closet Jazzers

Hi Honey, I'm home

Well I know it's been a long time, but here goes, lets get restarted.

I'm still conducting the Croydon Brass band, and we have had a few gigs, including two to celebrate our Centenary year. the last one was last month, and I was very encouraged in that most of the band that played were regular members coming along to rehearsals each week.   When I took over back at the beginning of 2010 we had only four or five players at most rehearsal, now we regularly have have 11 or 12, that means that we have more than doubled our regular attendance.   Which in turn means that we Can play some good challenging music and put on decent performances.

The Croydon Symphonic Band is still strong, however we have lost one of our bass players and one of our trombones, we have had some new members join so the numbers are more or less the same, but we are short on heavy brass.   The change in Bass players has left me with a problem, the chap who has left played a Cervany BBb. ad the New Toy blended nicely in tone, the new player uses a Besson Sovereign, my CC just doesn't blend at all so I have been using new Little New Standard EEb which works perfectly, the problems is that I am just not using the CC at all.   I am playing the EEb the Euph and the Trombone but the Mrs T and the New Toy seem to just be living in their cases.

Since I need the money to buy a new van I am planning to put the CC up for auction on e-bay, a great shame but I can't see a way round at the moment.

Disk number five

I notice that all my disks so far are Orchestral, well that's primarily what I listen to, but I would not want to be without some rock, so what would I have? Beatles? Stones? Who? Yes? King Crimson? all these and many more have a place in my record collection - and yes most of these are on records, large flat round black things that go round and round on a record player - but as I suspect I will have only one it will David Bowie, and the track would be "All the Mad Men" from man who sold the world, great song, great sound and great keyboard playing by Rick Wakeman.

Disk number Five All the Mad Me by David Bowie

Comments

I have been trying to leave a comment on another blog which I follow, and for some reason I can't fathom have been unable to, maybe it is just my technical inability, but anyway It's good to see you back Shayla, we have missed you

Sunday Morning

Sunday morning and happiness is a new razor blade! yes nothing quite like a really good shave, a leisurely shower followed by breakfast in the garden - life can be very good.

Bad Boy

I have slipped yet again and missed quite a few posting opportunities, this is not because I have had a boring time, rather I have been too busy, with some ups and some real downers.

The other week I heard the incomparable Grimthorpe Band in concert, this was truly inspiring, Croydon are a long way from them in almost every way, except the most important ones, we both try to perform to the best of our abilities at all times, and we both enjoy playing! I think those are probably the two most important things there are.

Last wedenesday was the final rehearsal before the CSB concert at St John's Smith Sq, I should have been there but.... just as I was about to leave for the rehearsal I realised that my diary and wallet had been stolen from my van earlier in the day. Certainly I could have done without losing the money, but by far the worst is all the fuss of replacing all my cards, AA; RHS; B&Q trade; Macro; Driving license etc. etc. - and then there are all my appointments, contact phone numbers, suppliers business cards. All in all a real downer