Scotch College

Military band at primary school

Captivated faces, full of curiosity and delight, greeted the Military Band on their recent day tour of local Primary Schools.

The audience was to be a challenge; young children can be quick to lose interest and find it hard to keep still. However, the Military Band overcame any problems easily with a program that entertained musically and visually as well as providing an opportunity for audience participation.

The band left Scotch first thing in the morning, resplendent in their scarlet uniforms, complete with helmets. The first port of call was Auburn South Primary School, a venue familiar to some of the bandsmen who were former pupils. The routine which was successfully executed three times during the day, under strict time constraints, began. It involved unpacking the bus, setting up music stands, music and chairs, unpacking, assembling and tuning instruments and then, when it was all over, reversing the process and getting back on the bus.

During the concert, the band played some of its repertoire and Andrew Thomas and Nicholas Monk, the SCUO and Drum Major, explained what the band did and what their positions meant. Various instruments were introduced with demonstrations such as a rendition of 'The Teddy-Bears' Picnic' on the bass clarinet. The percussion section, under the leadership of Stephen Liew, presented an impressive drum sequence.

The highlight of each concert occurred when a child was picked from the audience and given the opportunity to conduct the band. Most participants did extremely well and the band managed to keep going until the 'Daryl Summers' style cut off. I would hasten to add that Mr Ferguson's job conducting the school orchestra was not threatened.

The other venues were Ringwood Heights Primary School, where two concerts were given to cater for an audience from prep up to Year 6, and Surrey Hills Primary School, where we gave an outside performance, finishing moments before heavy rain. Lunch consisted of an abundance of pizzas delivered in multiple stages by the Headmaster of the Ringwood school.

At each school we were warmly received and it provided a good opportunity to promote learning a musical instrument.

Thanks must go to Mr Schmidli and Mr Ferguson for their help in organising the day and we were also grateful for Mr Ferguson's services driving the bus.

Mr D. Brown