Author: Elizabeth

We were few, but we were mighty – in the best possible way!

That sums up out inaugural rehearsal.

I am excited to have met so many new-to-me faces! I do hope you`ll be back out soon! (Please do take a moment to introduce yourself to me. I`m not always the best with names, so it may take one or two tries for it to stick!)

Here`s the list of pieces I`ve got in mind to rehearse on Saturday – these are not in any particular order, and those I`ve marked with an asterisk (*) are guaranteed to be rehearsed:

*5 – Broadway Journey
*65 – Moana
*66 – Arctic Fire
67 – Holiday
*64 – Bolero
68 – Jazz Chaconne
7 – Swing the Mood
8 – Themes Like Old Times

Here are some listening links for some of our repertoire. I encourage you to take a listen – it can help put your own part in perspective:
Arctic Fire

Moana – Concert band arrangement
I would also encourage you to listen to the source music – from the film. (I`m told the film is currently on Netflix – I really enjoyed it and would definitely watch it again). Here are the links to the four songs included in the medley:
Where You Are
How Far I`ll Go
You`re Welcome
We Know The Way

Broadway Journey
Bolero

Here`s the link to the discourse on scales. It goes into some of the music theory around scales, and how to determine which notes are part of the scale, and which are not. I confess, the one thing that is missing is how to transpose from concert pitch to instrument pitch. I will work up an entry on that topic, which I will try to have posted before Saturday.

 

While it wasn’t really a bad winter, I’m awfully happy that the days are getting longer and spring seems to be well and truly underway!

Your Millennium Band Executive Committee has been working to get everything in place for the 2018 season, and I have the honour and privilege of announcing the details of our 2018 Season!

So, without further ado, here is the information we have available. I am hopeful that we won’t have to make any changes, but I promise to advise of any corrections if and when they are available!

Please note: due to a booking at the Legion, we have had to adjust rehearsal time a half hour earlier for the Saturday morning practices. The hall is booked by another group at 12 pm, so we’ll have to vacate promptly after rehearsal.

Rehearsal Dates:
May 12 – Saturday – 9:30 to 11:30 am – St James Legion #4 (1755 Portage Ave) – if possible, please try to arrive a wee bit early so that we can get music assigned and begin the fun as close to 9:30 as possible!
May 19 –  Saturday – 9:30 to 11:30 am – St James Legion #4 (1755 Portage Ave)
May 26 – Saturday – 9:30 to 11:30 am – St James Legion #4 (1755 Portage Ave)

The following rehearsal dates are all Wednesdays, and will take place at Bourkevale Community Centre – 100 Ferry Rd – from 7:00 to 9:00 pm.

June 6
June 13
June 20
June 27
July 4
July 11
August 8
August 15
August 29

Concert Dates:
The following times are performance times for advance planning purposes. (Call time is usually 30 minutes earlier). Additional details will be supplied as they are available.

Wednesday, July 18 – 7 pm – Lindenwoods
Saturday, August 11 – 2 pm – Victoria Beach
Wednesday, August 22 – 7 pm – Concordia Village
MONDAY, August 27 – 7 pm – Shaftesbury
Saturday, September 8 – 8 pm – Bourkevale Community Centre Hoe Down

Membership Dues for the summer are $20/person.

Our intrepid librarian will be trying something a little bit different with the music this year. In addition to the wear and tear on the binders, the music itself was wearing quickly, so he has devised a solution to help preserve the library. He’ll provide more details at our first rehearsal, but your feedback through the summer will be very much appreciated.

We have two brand new pieces that have been added to the library for the season: a medley from “Moana” and “Arctic Fire.” I’m very excited about sinking our teeth into them!

Speaking of music. I am always open and interested to hear your feedback on music. If, at any time, you have a suggestion for a piece (whether it’s in our library or not), please don’t hesitate to let me know! I cannot guarantee that we’ll do it, but I will definitely consider it for a future season. (I’m reachable at the info@mbmillenniumband.com email address).

I hope to see you all on May 12!

Sincerely,

Elizabeth
on behalf of the Manitoba Millennium Band Executive

That went well.

Our final concert of the year last night was a tremendous success! It’s high up there among the best concerts of the season! (I think I say that about all our concerts – you just keep getting better, though).

I rather liked the drama of losing the big lights and the starting of the fireworks in Eine Kleine Rockmusik (just in time for the 1812 Overture, no less!) Talk about going out with a bang! I’ve been after the committee to give me a Cannon Budget for some time now, but I think I could be satisfied with a Fireworks Budget instead! I’ll spend the winter working on my arguments in favour of adding pyrotechnics to our shows. In all seriousness, you demonstrated amazing professionalism by carrying on without missing a beat despite the explosions and sudden darkness!

The pieces we sight-read didn’t sound that way at all. They sounded very well prepared. Great reading, everyone! I’m so pleased that you’re starting to make those knowledge transfers – listening to what’s happening around you, being deliberate with dynamics, being aware of not only the melody, but also bringing out interesting parts when you have them. In effect, you’re starting to do your own analysis of the piece as you’re playing. This will really slingshot your musical ability to the next level.

And now that I’ve touched on the topic of growth, it has been such a pleasure and an honour to witness everyone’s musical growth over the summer. (It has happened for everyone – including myself). I hear you making different musical choices than you might have earlier in the summer. I can hear people making adjustments in their playing to ensure that key parts come out of the texture when numbers are different or our venue causes certain timbres to fade into the background. These are the types of things the pros do.

I want to extend some acknowledgements to some people who have gone over and above for last night’s hijinks:

• Jim Woolison and Duncan Hasker – who came out an sight-read the concert last night to support our depleted trumpet section. They read amazingly well, and their help is much appreciated!
• Dave Patrick (aka Octo-Dave) who covered so many percussion parts that I couldn’t tell we only had him at the back. I’m still in awe at how he can make concert instruments sound like a drum kit. Dave, you are amazing, and we are so lucky to have your talents among us!
• To the people who helped with set up and tear down – I didn’t catch all of it, so I can’t name any names. But thank you for taking the extra time to help out. This really does matter to our hosts, and the people who have commitments that preclude them from arriving early. We really appreciate your doing the extra work for us!

I would also like to say a very big and very public thank you on behalf of the band to our Executive Committee:

• Dave Patrick – for making sure our finances are in order, that we’re living without our means, and that we’re able to have an awesome day and party at Victoria Beach that is mostly subsidized by the band.
• Tony Purvis – for his passion and enthusiasm, for his encouragement and generosity in sharing his knowledge as we transitioned to a new librarian, and for his continued guidance as a founding committee member.
• Jeff Yakel – for taking on the largely unseen but tremendous job of maintaining the library: collecting wayward music, random requests from band members/me for extra copies of parts, and so forth. It’s not a pretty job, but we’re lucky to have you to do it.
• Bruce Wiebe – for setting up all our gigs. This involves liaising both ways – ensuring that the band has the rather large amount of space we require, that the band is aware of any requirements the audience/site may have, ensuring that we know details of parking arrangements, site access, etc.
• Christina Paul – for providing input as a representative from the band on decisions made on behalf of the band. This fills a very important role your committee works for the good of the band, so the band should have a voice in the direction the committee is steering.
• To all the people who come out early and stay a little later to help with the set up and tear down. It’s very important to our hosts that we leave things as we find them, and of course, we need a general type of set up, so it’s important to us. There are too many to name (and I don’t want to miss anyone), but a thousand thank yous to you for giving of your time this way.

2017 has been a spectacular season. I am so proud of what you were able to achieve. We’ve had overwhelmingly positive feedback from our audiences, and most have extended an invitation to return next summer. You have all put so much effort into making this group something truly unique in Winnipeg. It is an honour to be a part of it.

So, as we disperse for another year, I want to thank each and every one of you for having been a part of this season. I know it may not seem like it, but each one of you brings something special, and we do feel the lack without you.

I hope to see all of you next summer!

Happy playing!

Elizabeth.

Thanks to everyone who came out to our Lindenwoods gig on Wednesday. It was definitely one of the high points of our season! I am so proud of everything we were able to accomplish this summer! Once again, we bettered ourselves in a lot of our pieces! Some audience members made sure to express their gratitude for us going out – one lady remarked that it’s obvious that we love what we do, and a gentleman commented on the repertoire: he said it brought back a lot of memories of his children’s band days, as well as happy memories for himself.

We’re down to the end – just one more gig to go.

Details for the last hurrah of 2017 are as follows:
Saturday, September 9
Bourkevale Community Centre – 100 Ferry Rd
Baton drops: 8:30 pm
Call time: 8:00 pm

Concert Dress is (in order of preference – DO dress for the weather!):

1. Green Millennium Band T-shirt & Black Bottoms
2. Forest Green top & Black Bottoms
3. All Black

This will be an outdoor gig, so ensure you have music-fastening devices of some type.

Also, a stand light (battery powered) would be an ideal thing to bring. Please bring extras to share if you have them!

Concert Programme:

11 – Cartoon Symphony
2 – Michelle/Eleanor Rigby/Yesterday
*10 – John Williams Marches
9 – Arabian Dances
64 – Bolero
58 – Les Miserables
*57 – Wade in the Water
***Break***
1 – The 80s
4 – Standard of St George
25 – The Blue Orchid
*34 – The Lord of the Rings
22 – The Stripper
63 – Hallelujah
17 – Eine Kleine Rockmusik

*Please take a look at these pieces in advance as we have not read them this summer. (They’re pretty straightforward and I don’t expect them to cause problems).

I will not be doing any talking to the audience in between songs. We are also slated to play for 90 minutes. There will be a very short break (10 to 15 minutes) in between sets.

As we’ll be playing outside – this time sans canopy – it’s going to be really important for you to watch and trust me. I’ve noticed that we’ve started having some intonation issues in recent weeks and these seem to get more noticeable as we move through our program. This coincides with our outdoor gigs, so I suspect a combination of not being able to hear well and some overblowing earlier on. Please try to pay attention to People can hear us (even if we can’t hear ourselves) – we don’t need to huff and puff and blow the house down.

Before you leave at the end of our concert, please make sure you put your music back in numerical order in the binders, and that you turn your binder in to the library. This is very important so we can have music ready for you next season!

Have a wonderful end to your Labour Day weekend, a fantastic first week of September, and I hope to see most of you out on the 9th!

Happy Playing!

Elizabeth.

Our gig at Victoria Beach was pretty spectacular. It may be our most solid performance there of my tenure thus far. When things started to go sideways, you heard and were able to react quickly to orient yourselves and carry on. There was no overblowing or spreading of tone. Even at the end of the day, your tone sounded effortless (I know some of you were hurting, but you controlled it!) Despite having a different balance than we’re used to (light on low brass and flutes), from where I was standing, we balanced our sound really well – all the parts that needed to be heard came through clearly.

So, congratulations to all of you! Hallelujah was the best we’ve ever played it (and that’s saying something!) Windjammer was the best we’ve ever played it. Space and Beyond was the best we’ve ever played it. Michelle/Eleanor Rigby, Bolero, Eine Kleine, Arabian Dances, Blue Orchid, Les Mis – all of these were the best or among the best we’ve ever performed. Mario was probably our shakiest number (which was expected), but it still sounded really good, and I’m pleased as punch at the whole outing.

I also want to send a HUGE shout out and thank you to Jim and Frances Woolison. It is such a joy to be able to retire to their cottage and just relax after a job well done. Their hospitality is second to none, and it makes for a really lovely day out of the city (especially for those of us who don’t get much chance to get away). Thank you for giving us a home at Victoria Beach – it really means a lot to us!

UPDATE – Our September 9 gig at Bourkevale has changed times. We are now slated to perform at 8:30 pm. We will be playing outside, and it will be dark. Stand lights (battery powered – please check your batteries beforehand!) would be ideal. If you have extra stand lights, would you please consider bringing them to loan? (The website has been updated to reflect the change in time).

Up next is our concert on Wednesday. This time, we’re at Lindenwoods Terrace – 490 Lindenwood Drive East.

Please make every effort to be there for 6:30 pm.

While we generally have a bit more space, this is the Place with Posts, so if we’re playing inside, they will need to be taken into consideration when it comes to seating – there will be a Band Shuffle to account for this, and we will likely be spread widely. If the weather is fine and not too hot, (i.e. safe for the residents), we may play outside under the pergola, in which case, we’ll be narrow and deeply organised. Either is possible, so please bring your clothespins, plexiglass, or whatever music securing device you have at your disposal, but don’t be disappointed if they set us up indoors.

Concert Programme:

11 – Cartoon Symphony
64 – Bolero
40 – Windjammer
59 – Super Mario
58 – Les Miserables
17 – Eine Kleine Rockmusik
2 – Michelle/Eleanor Rigby/Yesterday
63 – Hallelujah
36 – Space and Beyond

If this is going to be your last performance with us for the season, please make sure you return your binder to the library or we will have to send The Enforcer after you to extract it. Also, the binders should be turned in with all music in the correct order. The librarian has a very big job, and music out of order just makes it harder.

See you on Wednesday!

Happy playing!

Elizabeth.

Good morning!

Kaeren (Clarinet) is also looking for a ride to Victoria Beach.

She lives near McPhillips and Notre Dame but is willing to meet her ride in the city at a convenient mutually agreed upon location.

Please email any offers to info@mbmillenniumband.com and we’ll connect you to one another!

Thanks!

Elizabeth.

I can’t believe it’s that time already! But, here we are, minutes (it feels!) away from Victoria Beach! This is a long blow, folks. But it is a fun one and well worth the trek!

The administrative stuff:

Cars are not permitted past the parking area, but we have special dispensation for 2 shuttle vehicles to move gear (and people who have mobility issues). The shuttles will be near the guard building and will make trips to and from the bandstand as required.

Please aim to arrive early! Bodies should be in chairs by 1:30 pm as we will definitely have to perform the Band Shuffle! (It may even require an encore).

We are playing under a canopy, but there’s a built-in picnic table that wreaks havoc on our seating arrangement. (Happens every year). So I can pretty much guarantee that unless you play percussion, you’re going to have a different vantage point of me. Also, you are likely not going to sit beside your regular neighbour. We try to keep sections together as best we can, but, life happens. (This is why early arrival is critical – it lets you stake out your section’s real estate). Forewarned is forearmed.

We will play about 45 minutes or so, take about a 20 minute break, then play another 45 minutes. I will probably talk a bit more than usual in order to help you give your chops a rest.

After the gig, we will retire to the Woolisons’ cottage for a barbecue ($5/person, BYOB) and fellowship. Shenanigans may ensue.

Some things to consider when it comes to playing outside:

• You will not be able to hear yourself.
• You may not be able to hear much from anyone else, as though a thick layer of cotton batting is stuffed into your ears (you may even check that to make sure. A couple of times).
• It will feel like you’re blowing your face off and your horn is not producing like it should. It may make you question whether your horn is broken, whether you’re broken, if life has any meaning at all, or whether you’re trapped in a hallucination (No? Those last two are just me? Well, carry on, then).
• You will definitely not hear things the way you’re used to hearing them – we won’t be sitting in the same spots and the air devours our sound.
• It will feel weird and you will feel an overpowering urge – in every fibre of your being – to overblow like you’ve never blown before. (I am not even kidding).

So, what do we do about this? Well, I’m glad you asked.

Stay calm.

Watch me.

Trust me.

Trust me.

Trust your preparation.

I’m serious – Trust me. I will guide you.

Play the way you normally play – dynamics, expression, etc – unless I override that! Sometimes weird things happen out there and we need more cowbell – I mean, we’re OBOE with band accompaniment (that really did happen, by the way) – or something completely different.

And did I mention? Trust me.

Concert dress is our standard: black bottoms and Millennium t-shirt/forest green top/black top.

Warm Up starts at 1:55 pm – we’ll probably do a couple of scales – let’s say F and Bb to change it up a bit.

Concert Programme:

11 – Cartoon Symphony
64 – Bolero
4 – Standard of St George
58 – Les Miserables
59 – Super Mario – Click this link to watch the video!
2 – Michelle/Eleanor Rigby/Yesterday
22 – The Stripper

INTERMISSION

17 – Eine Kleine Rockmusik
9 – Arabian Dances
1 – The 80s
40 – Windjammer
25 – Blue Orchid
63 – Hallelujah
36 – Space and Beyond

Make sure you are practising good self-care! Expect to require hats, sunscreen, insect repellent. Bring lots of water with you – this is thirsty work!

If you are able to bring one person (and his oboe) to Victoria Beach, we are looking for a ride. James lives near St Vital Centre and has no way to get to Victoria Beach as of this writing. Please email the info@mbmillenniumband.com address if you’re able to help out and I’ll facilitate the connection.

See you at the beach!

Happy playing!

Elizabeth.

Good evening,

Our oboe player does not have a ride to Victoria Beach. He lives near St Vital Centre and is very easy to find! Does anyone have room to bring one extra person?

Please contact us at info@mbmillenniumband.com and we’ll connect you with James to make arrangements.

The Concordia Village concert this week goes down in the books as a success. There were a few minor hiccups, but we held it together really well and I’m so proud of you!

Holy Mars, Batman!!! We did it!! NO ONE played in the gaps for the first time ever!! Did you hear how COOL that was??? Let’s do that every time!

One thing I’ve been on your case about, and it was pretty obvious in Michelle/Eleanor Rigby/Yesterday, is making sure that we get our dynamic level DOWN to start a crescendo. In Eleanor Rigby, we didn’t do that as well as we have at rehearsals, and we had some tone issues because of it. I’m mentioning this for several reasons: it will help save your chops (mission critical with Victoria Beach looming on the horizon), it will be more dramatic, and it will keep us from having that spready, blatty, out of control tone. You know – the one we all cringed at during Wednesday’s concert.

I also wanted to commend you on a job well done in Eine Kleine Rockmusik. When the Eine Kleine theme returned, you remembered to keep it nice and light, and that was so effective! (Next project: matching quarter note length in that section). Also, the balancing – particularly with solo trumpet – was exactly where it needed to be!

Windjammer sounded really good! Awesome trumpet work – it sounded effortless! And I also wanted to again, express my appreciation for that final crazy section, where we have to main themes playing over an ostinato rhythm (aka the waves). I heard BOTH themes clearly, so the waves did an awesome job at carrying us without overwhelming, and the opening melody came though really nicely with a full, open tone. I can’t ask for more!

I was approached by several audience members who asked me to convey their appreciation to the band. One hopes we’ll be back next summer, another commented on how evident it is that we love what we’re doing and how it got her heart pumping. Job well done!

So. I’m sad to announce that our rehearsal on Wednesday is the very last one of the season. While sharing what we’ve worked so hard on with an audience has a very important role and is generally good and fun to do, my heart is in the rehearsing. I love pulling things apart and getting into the nitty-gritty. I love what happens to our pieces when we rebuild them, knowing about a cool inner part or the way a line dovetails into a different instrument. Also, it’s at this point that I start to feel more like a traffic director (and an empty nester) than anything else – you are as prepared as I can help you to be. And you are prepared!

This is another dress rehearsal – this time for our big gig at Victoria Beach!

We have some administrative details to work out – I’ll be doing a count at rehearsal, so this is for the people who ARE going to Victoria Beach but are NOT able to attend rehearsal:

Car Pooling

The band will be covering the parking fee for members (your membership dues at work!), so we are strongly encouraging as much car-pooling as possible. Please consider whether you are willing to go with someone else, or if you’re willing to drive others. We’ll try to get people paired up on Wednesday. (If you need or can provide a ride but can’t make rehearsal, please let us know in the comments or by email).

Post-Event Social Time and Meal

The concert on the 26th will be followed by a meal and fellowship at the Woolisons’ cottage. This year, we’re doing Roast Beef on a Bun – and I believe we’re asking for $5/person to help defray the costs (I’ll confirm this on Wednesday). It is BYOBeverage. You are welcome to bring others – of the significant or family variety. But, since we have to procure the victuals, we need a count. Once again, I’m taking the official count on Wednesday, but if you can’t be at rehearsal, please let me know in the comments how many of you and yours are dining with us.

Practise Self-Care

Make sure, along with clothes pins/plexiglass/other music fastening devices, that you pack the following: sunscreen, a hat, insect repellant, and VERY importantly, plenty of water to stay hydrated.

Music

This is about the time we have some final departures. Please do not forget to turn in your binders. Also, if you know you can’t attend a concert, please make sure you leave your binder with the library – it will be at all gigs. If you have rearranged any music, please ensure it’s put back in its original place in the binder before you turn it in. This saves our librarian a LOT of effort!

This is our long concert – it’s two sets with a short break in between. The intention for our rehearsal is to spot-check as needed, but really we’ll be spending more of our time on the pieces we haven’t been rehearsing so much (italicized below).

TENTATIVE Concert Programme:

11 – Cartoon Symphony
64 – Bolero
4 – Standard of St George
58 – Les Miserables
59 – Super Mario
2 – Michelle/Eleanor Rigby/Yesterday
22 – The Stripper

INTERMISSION

17 – Eine Kleine Rockmusik
9 – Arabian Dances
1 – The 80s
40 – Windjammer
25 – Blue Orchid
63 – Hallelujah
36 – Space and Beyond

Finally, if you are NOT able to attend the September 9 gig (at Bourkevale), and you have not already let me know, please do so as soon as possible (either in the comments or via email) so that I can make sure we have parts covered.

For those among you who have concluded your playing season with us, I’m sorry to see you go, but so pleased that you were able to join us! We’ll miss you as we continue our shenanigans!

Happy playing!

Elizabeth.

Here are the details for our second concert!

Where: Concordia Village
1125 Molson St
When: Wednesday, July 19 – Warm up starts: 6:55 pm sharp

Please do your best to arrive at 6:30 pm so that we have time to do perform the Band Shuffle before our warm-up.

We’ll be performing in the really lovely new auditorium that was installed about a year ago. (It’s quite the thing. Trust me, you’re going to LOVE it!) The stage is wide and shallow, so we’ll probably have to go with a few long rows as far as seating is concerned.

There is limited visitor parking and a secret entrance which I’ve included on the attached satellite view of the Concordia Village campus:
Concordia Directions August 16, 2017

Concordia Village is right across Molson from Concordia Hospital.

Concert Dress:

1. Millennium Band (forest green) t-shirt and black lower body covering – this is preferred.
2. Forest Green top, black lower body covering.
3. All black

Concert Programme:

Bb Scale (we’ll play this a couple of times – fair warning!)

64 – Bolero
11 – Cartoon Symphony
2 – Michelle/Eleanor Rigby/Yesterday
17 – Eine Kleine Rockmusik
59 – Super Mario
58 – Les Miserables
40 – Windjammer
63 – Hallelujah
36 – Space and Beyond

In other news, I am the repository for Lost and Found items. There are two up for grabs (I’ll have them with me at the concert next week):

1. A black face cloth left at Shaftesbury
2. A red water bottle left at tonight’s rehearsal

Based on our rehearsal tonight, I’m very confident that we’ll turn in a solid performance!

Happy playing!

Elizabeth.