This week we bid farewell to Adam Brown who is off to Coventry (of his own accord...) to start a new job and to be with his fiancée, Sarah. Adam has been a terrific member of the Band over the last 3 years playing both Eb & Bb bass at various times in concerts, contests and recordings. We wish him well in his new venture and hope to see him back at Band at some point soon :)
Downshire Brass is delighted to welcome its furthest travelled new member, Alannah Jeune.
Alannah is a musician from Christchurch, New Zealand who studied recorder and trumpet at the University of Canterbury. She has travelled to Belfast to start a Masters in her other interest - Religious History, at Queen's University Belfast. She comes from Addington Brass Band in Christchurch which she joined three years ago and was immediately hooked!
So far, Alannah is enjoying Belfast and starting to understand the local accent, although still has difficulty with Belfast slang, and the speed of speech! She is also enjoying talking to other students about New Zealand which is apparently a place where people communicate via Haka and live in small hobbit-like dwellings. She is most relieved that the New Zealand opinion of Belfast weather being cold, wet, windy and devoid of sunshine seems to be an exaggeration!
Members of Downshire Brass played to a packed hall today at Newtownbreda High School as part of an on-going partnership between the Band and the School.
Year 8 pupils, who have just joined the School, had the chance to hear a dectet from the Band performing pieces and demonstrating the fundamentals of brass instruments, acoustics and brass playing! A large group of first years followed-up with a chance to try out instruments ranging from cornet to Eb bass and percussion.
Michael Alcorn said, "we are delighted to be working with pupils and staff in the School to extend the excellent work achieved last year by tutors from Downshire. We anticipate that there will be stiff competition for the brass places that are available this year on the programme!"
Downshire is delighted to announce Ryan Parks as their new soprano player. Chairman Gary Dodsworth said, "Ryan has been a valued member of the cornet section at Downshire since he joined in 2009 and his move to soprano is important for us as we prepare for a busy year ahead".
Speaking of his move, Ryan said, "it's an exciting challenge for me to play sop and I'm really enjoying the opportunity to tackle one of the key seats in the band".
Downshire Youth Band was back in full swing with Robert Mercer at the helm this week. A busy bandroom is always a great sight. We are still accepting young players and beginners into our Youth Development Programme. Please contact the band via the website or contact our Youth Development Officer, David Bird (07793 766200) if you are interested in joining us.
This weekend saw the Band start it's second season supporting the Ulster Rugby team at the Kingspan Stadium in Belfast and spending an extended period locked away in a recording studio working on our latest CD project. Eight tracks were recorded on Saturday and a further four are scheduled for Sunday before a quick dash to the Lisburn Road for our final Music in the Parks event for 2014!
We are currently seeking to recruit a soprano cornet player to join Downshire Brass with immediate effect. The Band has an exciting schedule of events over the next 12 months including local contests, concerts, a CD recording and most significantly, a trip to Freiburg, Germany to participate in the 2015 European Brass Band Championships.
Downshire Brass rehearses on Mondays and Thursdays from 8.00pm - 10.00pm.
Please contact Gary Dodsworth (mob: 07939 986813) gary.dodsworth@downshirebrass.com for more information about this vacancy, or to arrange to attend one of our rehearsals.
or get in touch via our website www.downshirebrass.com
Congratulations to Downshire's Dave Bird who has just received a doctorate in composition from Queen's University. Dave's PhD, a portfolio and thesis, explores experimental compositional practices and was completed at the Sonic Arts Research Centre at Queen's.
Dave has been a key player in the Downshire cornet line-up for the last few years as well as a tutor at the Newtownbreda Brass Academy and with JAM.
Congratulations, Dr Dave, from everyone in Downshire Brass!
In order to provide as much encouragement as possible to our very youngest players and in a break with typical trends in the funding for bands, Downshire recently took a decision to acquire some new instruments for our Junior Band to replace the “well used” ones which had previously been provided.
We are delighted to announce the purchase of 6 cornets, 5 tenor horns, 1 baritone, 2 euphoniums and 2 tubas. Such a large purchase is possibly unheard of within the local brass banding community in recent times and demonstrates the Band's commitment to its youth development programme. Needless to say, the kids are absolutely thrilled!
We would like to thank Newtownbreda High School for their kind donation towards the cost of the instruments.
No cost, no catch - raise free donations for us every time you shop online! Click on the logo below.
Downshire Brass is delighted to announce that it has been invited to represent Northern Ireland at the European Brass Band Championships in Freiburg, Germany in May 2015. The Band will shortly begin an ambitious programme of fundraising to support the trip to Southern Germany to participate in the Challenge section of the competition.
Gary Dodsworth, the Band's Chairperson said,
"this is a great event for us to work towards over the next ten months. The chance to participate in these hugely prestigious Championships and to experience the playing of the best Europeans bands will be something very special. And a trip away with Downshire is always a fun and enjoyable experience."
Downshire is already planning a trip outside Northern Ireland in 2014 with a return visit to the Land O'Burns contest in Troon in August. Plans are also well under way for new CDs for the youth band and senior band in the coming months.
Regarding the trip to Germany, Musical Director Michael Alcorn said,
"I'm thrilled to be preparing the band for such a major event. It promises to be a great opportunity for Downshire and I know everyone will rally around the task of preparing a major programme for Freiburg."
Sunday 22nd June saw the inaugural Downshire BBQ take place at Ardnavally Scout Centre with members of our Junior, Youth and Senior Bands attending along with friends and family. This was an opportunity for friends of the band and members of our different groups to get to know each other a bit better and to discover a few of the more slippery characters within our ranks. After a few attempts, the BBQ was finally lit and a few members stepped up to showcase their culinary talents, tongs in hand.
Once everyone was fed and watered, our younger members (and those young at heart) got the chance to hone their aerodynamic abilities on the slip ‘n slide. It’s amazing what fun can be had with a tarpaulin, a garden hose, a couple of litres of washing-up liquid and a hill. In true world cup spirit, a five-ish a side match followed which, given the now sodden grass, saw a few bruises and a few bruised egos to match. Many thanks to all who helped to organise the event and also to those who came along. A great day out – roll on next year!
Downshire Youth Band will be making a CD over the summer and we would welcome help from any young players in Belfast or beyond who might like to take part in this exciting venture.
The band has already worked up a repertoire of pieces for inclusion on the disc and this would be an ideal project for any young players over the summer break!
Please get in touch using the following form if you are interested in taking part.
Downshire Brass introduced a new award at its end of year concert on Monday. The Doreen Alcorn Cup for Outstanding Musical Contribution was presented on behalf of the family and by Mr Bertie Alcorn in memory of Doreen, who was a long-time supporter of brass bands and a regular attender at youth band concerts.
The first recipient of the award was Youth Band euphonium player Oisin McDonnell.
The long-established Sam Doherty Endeavor Cup, which recognises a wide contribution to the band by a young player, was won this year by Tegan McCullough from Downshire’s Junior Band. The Cup was presented by David Bird, Downshire’s Youth Development Officer.
Individual certificates of achievement were presented to all members of the Junior and Youth bands in recognition of their hard work and attendance during the year.
Downshire Junior, Youth and Senior Bands shared the stage last night at Malone Presbyterian Church Halls. This was the first time that the three bands had performed together since the formation of the new Youth Band. Downshire Brass was the warm-up act for impressive performances by the Junior Band, conducted by Roger Doherty and the Youth Band conducted by Brendan Coyle. All three bands took part in a rousing performance of "Stand Up for the Ulstermen" at the end of the concert.
Downshire Junior Band 2014
Downshire Youth Band 2014
Downshire's new youth band will be centre stage at Stranmillis Primary School's summer fete tomorrow. The weather forecast is looking good! Why not pop along for a listen?
14 June 2.45pm - 3.45pm
In addition to a busy schedule of performances in June, we are preparing for another BBC Radio Ulster recording on 26 June for "Strike up the Band". The show will be broadcast later in the year.
Downshire is pleased to announce the appointment of Hannah Copes as the Band's new Principal Cornet player. Speaking of the appointment, the Band's Musical Director, Michael Alcorn said "we are thrilled to have Hannah join us at Downshire. She is a rising star and will bring a lot to the future of the band in the coming years".
Read MoreWe are delighted to announce a partnership with Ulster Rugby to bring a new musical dimension to matches at Ravenhill.
Read MoreDownshire Brass has just launched an innovative partnership with Newtownbreda High School in South Belfast. More than 100 first year pupils took part in the launch of a new brass academy at the School and tried out instruments ranging from cornet to tuba and also percussion. Over the coming months the pupils will be given individual tuition to get them started on various instruments before they are intergrated into Downshire’s new Junior and Youth Bands.
13 members of Downshire took part in the morning workshop which included a short concert, demonstrations on hosepipes, vuvuzelas, and a sheep’s horn and then provided opportunities for all the children to try the range of brass and percussion instruments on offer.
School Principal, Mr Colin Black said “we are grateful to Downshire Brass for providing an excellent opportunity for our pupils to experience the joy of playing brass instruments. I am sure the academy will go from strength to strength.”
Speaking after the event, the Band’s musical director, Michael Alcorn said “we are thrilled to be working so closely with Newtownbreda to develop this brass academy and we have already spotted some talented young players coming forward to take part in our new programme.”
