Latest news updated 24th February 2013

A Musical Twist

– A Concert with a Difference

Ardee Concert Band presents “A Musical Twist – a concert with a difference” on February 28^th 2013 at 8pm in the Bohemian Centre, Ardee. This is a new departure for us as we normally have just one concert every year in December. As well as giving the Junior and Intermediate bands a chance to perform to family, friends and supporters, it is also an opportunity for the senior band to put on a slightly different programme than the usual Christmas concert.

The senior band conducted by Brendan Breslin will play a mixed and entertaining programme, some of which will involve some members of the band showing their theatrical abilities as well as their musical abilities. Some of the younger members have been rehearsing their acting parts for the past number of weeks to bring a different dimension to some of the band arrangements. The admission is €5-00, payable at the door on the night, children must be accompanied by an adult. The Intermediate Band will be conducted by John Gaynor and the Junior Band by Kevin Reilly.

Solo & Ensemble Competions

We have a busy schedule over the coming months. We are hosting the Annual Solo & Ensemble Competition in the Bohemian Centre on this coming Sunday 24^th February. This competition is open to all members of bands in the North East area of the Irish Association of Brass & Concert Bands and will include members from Drogheda Brass Band, Lourdes Brass Band, Navan Silver Band, St. Mary’s Brass & Reed Band from Kingscourt as well as members from Ardee.

St. Patricks Day

In March, we have the busiest day of the year, St Patrick’s Day, when we play at 12pm Mass in Ardee for deceased members of the band and then in the afternoon, we have the privilege of leading the very successful Ardee Parade.

Trip to Derry

In April, we have the National Band Championships in Limerick on the 6^th and a return trip to the Britannia Band in Derry for a joint workshop is scheduled for the 20th.

Annual General Meeting

On Monday last, 11^th February, we held their AGM where there was a great turn out of members, parents and other interested parties. The officers of the new committee are as follows Chairperson Austin Nevin, Vice Chairperson Jenny McKeever, Joint Secretaries Aisling Reilly and Darragh Browne and Treasurer Peter McKeever. The band has a large very active committee of over thirty members. Some new additions to the committee this year are Bernadette Keaskin , Grainne Dillon, Evelyn Russell, Helena Balfe as well as the new Joint Secretaries, Aisling Reilly and Darragh Browne.

Christmas Day Mass

The culmination of this season for the band members will be playing at 12.30 Mass on Christmas Day, then a well-earned rest for all the members till the New Year.

The Band committee and members would like to wish all their bingo goers and supporters a very Happy Christmas and New Year.

Latest News updated 08/11/2012

Weekend Music Workshop

Last weekend saw the band really put through its paces with 14 hours of rehearsals over the three days.

Friday saw the usual Friday evening rehearsal with Brendan Breslin but this time it started at 7pm and finished at 10pm! Saturday started bright and early at 10am when the band broke into sectionals with seven specialist tutors for each instrument, flute, clarinet, sax, double reeds, trumpets, lower brass and percussion. After seven hours of intensive group and full band rehearsals, some senior members headed for a well earned meal and a few relaxing beverages.

A 10.30am start on Sunday morning woke people up and after 4 hours of very enjoyable rehearsals and band training, every member agreed that it was an excellent weekend of music making

Latest news updated 21st October 2012

Ardee Concert Youth Band take another trophy

On Saturday October 20^th 2012, the Ardee Concert Youth Band took the Northern Ireland title in the 4^th Grade Concert Band section of the North of Ireland Band Championships in the prestigious Market Place Theatre, Armagh. The 30 strong group mostly ranging in age from eleven to fourteen years travelled to Armagh city with conductor John Gaynor accompanied by some committee members, parents and family. For some of these young people it was their first time to compete. They played an own choice selection of two pieces” Lift off” by Peter Meecham and “Colours of the Wind” the Disney theme music from the film Pocahontas. They gave a great performance and we are all very proud of them. They enjoyed their day out in Armagh and they performed brilliantly, they were great ambassadors for the band and the town.

Band Activities

As usual the band room has been a hive of activity. The Senior band has been working very hard under the baton of conductor Brendan Breslin. It was felt that the senior band would opt out of the Northern Championships which they won in 2011 for this year. They are preparing for a weekend music workshop from November 2^nd until the 4^th .

New Junior Band

All lessons have now resumed and new classes started. The band also started a new junior band which will be a training band for younger musicians who will aspire to getting into the Intermediate Band and eventually into the senior band. This group is under the guidance of Kevin Reilly. It is hoped that the children who have started learning band instruments will join this group in January.

New Recorder Groups

There is a new recorder group of thirty four beginners. The tutors for this year’s recorders are Gerry Farrell, Sarah Clare and Darren Kirk.

Halloween Spooktacular Party

All our young members are looking forward to the Halloween Spooktacular Party which promises to be spooktacularly good according to organisers James Gargan, Sinead Nutley and Aisling Reilly. This will take place at 7.30pm on Sat 27^th October and is for members of Ardee Concert Band only.

Bingo

Bingo goers were surprised to see the hall transformed into its Halloween glory in preparation for the season. Bingo continues every Sunday at 8pm in the Bohemian Centre with lots of prizes including a weekly jackpot, all welcome.

Website updated 13th September 2012

Busy autumn schedule planned for Ardee Concert Band.

Now that schools resume, it’s time for Ardee Concert Band to turn its attention to the new academic year for its budding musicians and prospective new members. But before that can happen the band members, committee and parents will be out in force for their annual Church Gate Collection this coming weekend Saturday 8^th and Sunday 9^th of September. The band provide music lessons for the young people, and indeed some not so young, from Ardee and surrounding areas, so this collection is vital in funding all that the band provide for the local community. Collectors will be at all Masses in Ardee and Ballapousta. All donations will be gratefully received. “The people of the community are always generous and supportive both financially and otherwise” says Fiona Reilly PRO.

This is always a very busy time for the band, rehearsals resume after the holidays for both the Senior and Youth bands. All lessons resume and preparations for next year’s assessments and grade exams begin. The band policy sub committee have been meeting over the last few weeks to try and get things up and running. The sub committee consists of Band Chair person Austin Nevin, secretary Dermot Murray, vice chairperson Jenny McKeever, Treasurer Peter McKeever, PRO Fiona Reilly, John Gaynor conductor of the Youth band, also band members Kevin Reilly, Niall Doherty, Alan Cox and committee member Tim O Callaghan. The sub committee and indeed all the sub committees make recommendations to the general committee who make final decisions.

New Recorder Group

At this time of year, thoughts turn to starting our newest recruits which is done every year in the form of a recorder group. All schools in the district will receive information leaflets. Parents can be on the lookout for these or check out the band web site for this information as sometimes forms can get left in the bottom of the school bag and be discovered too late. The starting age is eight and older. There are already some applicants on a waiting list who looked to join during the year. Our annual Enrolment Night for new members will be held in the Bohemian Centre on Monday 17^th September at 7.30pm. An adult preferably a parent should accompany all children.

Junior/Training Band

This year the band is starting a new venture in the form of a training band. All those learners who have just completed a year on a brass, woodwind or percussion instrument will now form our first ever training band. It is hoped that the successful members from last years recorder group who will start band instruments in the next few weeks will join this group early in the New Year. This group will be under the guidance of Kevin Reilly. The idea is to get the students used to playing in a group earlier. The transition for learners in the band will now be Recorder group for a year, for some this may take longer, then going on to tuition on a band instrument for four months approx, before progressing to the Training Band. Hopefully then into the Youth Band, all the while on tuition. Finally if members have reached the required standard and still committed they will progress into the Senior Band. It is hoped that as this progression evolves it will raise the standard of the senior band in the long term.

The band would like to hear from any musicians moved into this area who would consider joining, they would be most welcome as would any past members who now find time on their hands and would like to rejoin. With all of the above, the future of Ardee Concert Band as an organisation is very bright.

Website updated 10th July 2012

Success for Ardee Concert Band in South of Ireland Band Competitions.

On Saturday last, 7^th of July, 2012 forty members of Ardee Concert Band took part in the South of Ireland Band Competitions, which are held annually in Clonakilty, Co Cork. It was worth the trip, as they took 2^nd prize for the second year in a row. Most members and their families and partners travelled down on Friday and although the weather was a bit inclement, the band still managed to perform outdoors for the people of Clonakilty.

Twenty-four bands entered the competitions, eleven in the Senior Section, which was won by Dublin Concert Band beating Ardee by a narrow margin. In 3^rd place was Barrack St Concert Band from Waterford. Also taking part in the Senior Section were bands from Fermoy, Clonakilty, Limerick, Drogheda, Dublin, Arklow and Ennis

Ardee’s conductor for this trip was Brendan Breslin. Brendan a Tyrone man now living in Dublin is the current musical director. The prize for the Best Percussion section was won by Ardee percussion section, Niall Doherty, Paul and Annamaria O’ Brien. The adjudicator was Denis Wilby, a Yorkshire man well known in band circles.

This was an entertainment type of competition, each band had to do a fifteen minute programme of their own choice, the only stipulation was each band must perform a march. Ardee’s choice was the March “Punchinello”, a Latin American style piece ”Malaguena” followed by the “Derry Air” and “Just a Closer Walk With Thee” a New Orleans jazz style piece.

The band were the last performance of the day and brought the house down with a little comic sketch in the middle of their last piece, Just a Closer Walk With Thee. A special mention must go to the band members who took on the acting roles, Mark McLoughlin who played dead but came to life again, to Sean O Brien who played the representative of the IMF and to Peter McKeever who played the doctor. This piece also included a Dixie land sextet and they were Oisin Clarke, James Walsh, Jenny McKeever, Nicky Callan, Paul O Brien and lastly Niall Doherty.

All of the pieces the band played in Clonakilty can be viewed on YouTube, just search for “Ardee Concert Band Clonakilty”

Website updated 01st July 2012

Ardee Band head to Clonakilty for South of Ireland Band Competitions

Ardee Concert Band will travel to Clonakilty for the South of Ireland Band Competitions due to be held there on Saturday next the 7^th of July. After the torrential rains hit Clonakilty last week, the band commiserated with the people of Clonakilty through competition organiser, Eileen Kingston. Eileen thanked the band for their good wishes and stated that the people of Clonakilty were looking forward to a smile being put on their faces by the visiting bands.

Ardee Band has been putting a lot of preparation into their programme for the competition and also for the street performance, which they hope to give on Friday evening, 6^th July. The conductor for this year is Brendan Breslin and he has planned an interesting programme, as this is an entertainment style of competition. Forty members are due to travel, some are going for the whole weekend and the remainder are making a day trip in order to take part. There are several supporters travelling also, mostly parents and partners and family of the band members, “Clonakilty has a special place in the hearts of the members of Ardee Concert Band” says Fiona Reilly PRO. There are eleven bands in the senior section including neighbouring Lourdes Brass Band from Drogheda. The competition is of a very high standard and should be very entertaining.

Grade Exams

In recent weeks the Bohemian centre has been a hive of activity. On May 16^th and 17^th, forty members sat the grade exams through the Royal Irish Academy of Music. The accompanist for the higher grades was Edward Holly and band member Gerry Farrell accompanied the remainder. The standard yet again was very high. Special recognition must go to Rebecca Mc Eneany who received a distinction in Grade 3 saxophone

Awards Night

On Friday 25^th May, the Awards Night was held where Grade Certificates were presented to members by Vice-chairperson, Jen McKeever. The parents and members attending were entertained by the Recorder Group and by the Ardee Concert Youth Band under their conductor John Gaynor who presented medals to every member of the Youth Band who performed so well at the National Band Championships in Cork last April and took 2^nd place in their section.

Assessments

All members who started on band instruments last September were assessed recently by Laura Jones and these members will now form a new group within the band, a Junior Band where they will learn the basics of playing in a band before moving to join the Youth Band.

Youth Band

The Youth Band has been busy preparing a summer programme as they hope to perform in the locality a few times over the summer under the baton of John Gaynor. Even though school is out for summer, the Youth Band rehearsals keep going.

Future Engagements

The Ardee Concert Band’s next performance will be at the Ardee Credit Union open day on Saturday July 14^th and after that in Farmleigh on 29^th July. Follow the band on their web site, www.ardeeconcertband.com or on Facebook for all their news.

Website updated 19th March 2012

Ardee Band leads 45^th Parade

St Patrick’s Day is usually the busiest day of the year for Ardee Concert Band and this year was no exception. At twelve o’clock mass which was offered for the living and deceased members, they performed a programme of Hail Glorious St Patrick, An Irish Blessing, Vivaldi’s Winter, the hymn to St Columba, Faith of our Fathers and the St Patrick’s Day march, all conducted by Harry Kelly.

The members had a quick turn around when they had to be back in the band rooms for 2.30pm to form up for the Parade at three o clock. The band was led this year by Fiona Reilly PRO acting as Staff Major in the absence of Paddy Ward. The four flag bearers Clodagh McClean, Lauren Mathews, Samantha Connolly and Sinead Nutley carried the Ardee Town flag, the Louth flag, the Leinster flag and the Italian national flag in honour of our visitors from Nettuno. This was the 45^th parade for the town and it just gets better and better every year. The band were the original organisers of the parade, which started in 1968.

Next weekend the 24^th and 25^th are busy for the band again as it’s the weekend of their Church Gate Collection at all masses in Ardee and Ballapousta. For the junior members of the band, it’s their annual trip, which this year is to Bowling and Quasar in Dublin. Committee members will supervise the youngsters for the day. We appreciate our young members and like to let them mix with each other without their instruments.

The members of the Youth Band and the Senior Band have a busy few weeks ahead as the National Band Championships are being held in the Cork School of Music on the 14^th and 15^th of April, both bands are working towards these competitions.

Website updated 15th March 2012

Momentous musical memories created in Ardee

Saturday last 10^th of March was a momentous day for Ardee Concert Band when they hosted an intense musical workshop and were delighted to be joined by their guests for the day, the Britannia Concert Band from Derry. The Derry band arrived at 10am to a welcoming reception of refreshments after their long and early journey. After some welcoming speeches from Austin Nevin chairman of Ardee and from Colin Laird, chairman of Britannia, the workshop began with sectional master classes given by professional tutors Brendan Breslin of the Garda Band. Alice Nolan and David Collins of the RTE Concert Orchestra.

Brendan who was the lead tutor and conductor for the day took the percussion section; Alice took the woodwind musicians and David the brass. The tutors imparted their expertise, demonstrating techniques in breathing; articulation and sound production for the brass and woodwind players while Brendan put the percussionists through their places.

After lunch the two bands formed together for the afternoon under the baton of Brendan performing the three pieces that were chosen by him for learning purposes. The pieces were a march called Punchinello, an Irish Blessing and a piece named Eire by Melanie Donahue. The members of both bands got plenty of time to chat with one another over the copious cups of tea and coffee during the day, which were supplied by committee members Aine Finegan, Caroline Kirk, Loraine Walsh, James and Nora Gargan and Chairman Austin Nevin.

The members of the Derry band were bowled over by the friendliness and the warm reception which they received from the Ardee band. They were also very impressed with the premises and facilities in the Bohemian Centre. Both bands enjoyed the day and learned a lot from the three tutors. This was a wonderful collaboration for the two bands, it was a very worthwhile experience for both bands, friendships were made and the Ardee band members are looking forward to a return visit to Derry at some stage in the future, probably later in the year.

This is the third time Ardee Concert Band has had collaboration with a band from Northern Ireland and this encourages cross border liaisons having already fused links with Fermanagh Concert Band and St Eugene’s Concert Band form Omagh.

Colin Laird, Chairman of Britannia Concert Band, presented the Ardee chairman, Austin Nevin, with a beautiful engraved plaque in recognition of the day.

The members of Ardee came together again on Sunday morning to do some more work on the test piece for the national championships with the tutors with the additional expertise of James McCafferty of the Garda Band.

On Sunday afternoon it was the turn of the Youth Band to have workshops. This was a wonderful opportunity for the younger members, they all enjoyed their afternoon and gained a lot from it. All in all it was a great success.

Website updated 11th February 2012

Hectic schedule for Ardee Concert Band.

Having recently led the Save St. Joseph’s Hospital protest march in Ardee on Saturday 28^th January, the members of Ardee Concert Band have a very busy schedule over the coming weeks.

Band AGM

First and most importantly is the A.G.M., which is on Monday next 20^th of February. Although this is usually well attended by interested parties, we like to remind members, associate members and especially, parents of younger members, of this meeting.

Solo & Ensemble Competitions

The North Eastern Region of the Band Association are holding their annual Solo & Ensemble Competitions in Ardee on Sunday next 19th March. These competitions are open to 6 bands in the area, Drogheda Brass Band, Lourdes Brass Band, Navan Silver Band, Mullingar Town Band, St Mary’s Brass & Reed Band, Kingscourt and Ardee Concert Band.

Launch of National Tree Week

On Sunday 4^th of March at 12pm the band will perform at the National Tree Week Launch Ceremony organised by the Tree Council of Ireland and hosted by the Ardee Tidy Towns Committee. The President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, will officially launch National Tree Week 2012 with a tree planting ceremony at 12 noon, this will be the first official visit of our new president to the town.

Joint Workshop with Britannia Concert Band

On March 11^th the members of Ardee will host a visiting band from Derry. Britannia Concert Band from Derry was formed in 1866 and boasts a great history and tradition of music making. They plan to do a joint workshop where the members from both bands will break into small groups for some intensive tutoring. Afterwards the bands will combine to perform together with further tutoring. Two very experienced professional musicians and conductors, Brendan Breslin and James Mc McCafferty have already agreed to act as tutors for the day. Unfortunately there is no plan to do a public performance as it is designed to be a learning day for both bands.

St. Patrick’s Day

Of course, one of the busiest days of the year for the band is St Patrick’s Day. The band will play at the 12pm mass for deceased members with a quick turnaround to lead the Parade in the afternoon at 3pm.

Church Gate Collection

On Saturday and Sunday 24^th/25^th March we have our church gate collection. The band appreciates the generous donations given by the people of the town in the past and hope that people continue to be as generous.

Members’ outing to Quasar & Bowling

Also on Sunday 25^th March approximately 80 young members will go on a trip to Quasar & Bowling in Blanchardstown. The band have now got 115 young members under 18 in the organisation, most of them still receiving weekly tuition.

National Band Championships

Finally the band are also preparing for the National Band Championships, which are being held on the 14th/15th of April in the beautiful surroundings of the Cork School of Music. This year both the senior band and youth band intend to compete.

Bingo

As usual we have our weekly Bingo in the Bohemian Centre every Sunday at 8pm.

So with all these activities going on and rehearsals and lessons in the bandroom every night, the band has a hectic schedule in the coming weeks.