As 2011 ends, we look back on an interesting and challenging time for the band.

Those of you who keep up to date with our news will be aware of the player moves and contest results which we have posted on the website throughout the year, and we have recently rounded off the season with our annual Christmas concert, which was held in St. John’s church in Epping on December 3^rd.

Once again, we were joined by the young musicians from St. John’s school under the direction of Rebecca Harvey, which added another layer to the programme. As well as their own featured pieces, the two bands came together to accompany the audience in some traditional carols, set as usual amongst the spectacular array of Christmas trees on display in the church.

We have changed our Christmas Carolling arrangements for this season - Due to weather issues and licensing restrictions, our usual habit of playing carols round the streets of Epping was not entirely successful last year, so this time we decided to go for something different, and secured a day playing at Van Hage’s garden centre near Ware. Although it was a rather cold day, this proved to be a successful and enjoyable event, as well as a good fundraiser for the band.

As we consider the coming year, we are optimistic that it will be a good one for us - The band has gained several new players, to the point that we only have one empty seat in the main band and we are looking forward to the usual round of contests and concerts to keep us busy working, as usual, under the baton of Denis Desmond, our Musical Director.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the people who have supported us throughout the year and look forward to seeing you all again in 2012.

The band have recently returned from a trip to Ireland, having visited Youghal in Co. Cork, (where we played a highly successful concert two years ago).

Once again the concert in St. Mary’s Collegiate Church was a sell-out affair, and the band enjoyed the chance to play alongside the Youghal Pipe Band for a second time.

The programme was a varied selection of pieces, including vocal solos (American Trilogy, Solitaire) from James Miller; Band solos (the Pearl Fishers’ Duet for Euphoniums, Can’t Take My Eyes Off You for Trombone, Sugar Blues for Cornet); and some ensemble pieces featuring various sections of the band (Mr. Sandman, You are the Sunshine of My Life, the Addams Family).

There were also some arrangements of well known songs from the shows (West Side Story, Breezin’ Down Broadway).

The ensemble pieces with the pipe band were The Rose of Kelvingrove and Amazing Grace.

Some excerpts from this concert, and the follow-up concert the subsequent evening in the neighbouring town of Midleton will (once edited) appear on the band’s YouTube account http://www.youtube.com/eppingforestband, and we will also put up some audio links on our own website here along with some photos of the weekend which we will be posting in the near future.

Now that we have returned from our trip, the band is concentrating on the next big event, the Southern Counties Amateur Band Association Autumn contest in Folkestone. Despite our relegation to the Third Section nationally from next year, we are still currently graded as a First Section band with SCABA so have had to choose our test piece accordingly. We have started work on it, and hope to leave Folkestone with a creditable result.

Recruitment to the empty seats in the band is proving to be a success - Peter Nelson joins the horn section and Michael Fairless and Mel Hanmore have signed on front row cornet. This only leaves the band with a couple of empty seats to fill (another Bb tuba and one more cornet player), so this bodes well for 2012 as the band strive to maintain and improve their standards and regain Second Section placing.

After Folkestone we will be playing in Epping town on 15^th October to welcome our friends from Eppingen who are visiting as part of a town twinning event. Following this we will be working hard to put together our Christmas concert, which takes place in St. John’s church, Epping, on Saturday 3^rd December at 7.30pm.

Following the Area Contest, where we received a disappointing placing, the band looks forward to the rest of the year.
We will now be contesting in the 3rd Section of the London and Southern Counties Area Contest, and look forward to this challenge next year. Hopefully we will be able to improve on this year’s performance, and start to climb up the rankings again.

Roy Frost is taking a break from the principal cornet seat, and this is currently being filled by Roger Mitchell who has been playing with us for over a year now. Roy remains in the next door seat, though, and continues to provide his usual high-class contribution to all that we do.

New players to join us include Brian Rose on flugel horn and Robin Hall on 2nd cornet.

We are heading towards a busy summer with a number of jobs including our own Prom Concert at the end of July. This is shortly followed by a trip to Ireland, where we hope to re-live the success of our previous visit to Youghal two years ago.

October will see the band contesting in the SCABA autumn contest in Folkestone on the 8th, and then entertaining our friends from Eppingen the following weekend as part of events organised for the town twinning weekend.


For a full list of the band’s upcoming engagements, please see the band website at www.eppingforestband.co.uk


Can we enhance your event?

Ever considered having a brass band to perform at your event – why not give us a try, we can perform incidental music to full concert programmes. Visit our website or contact Denis Desmond, MD on 07960 085841

Join us:

Are you a brass/percussion player looking for a new outlet? We still have a few vacancies to be filled to complete our line up. In particular we are on the lookout for cornet players and a Bb bass player.

Feel free to contact us via our website or pop in to see us at one of our rehearsals – the end of Tidy’s Lane (by the playing fields) on Monday’s between 8:00-10:00 pm.

Reflection:

As we go into 2011, the band are busy preparing for the first contest of the year, the London and Southern Counties Regional competition, held in Stevenage. The Test Piece for the second section this year is Eric Ball’s Resurgam (from the Latin ‘I will Rise Again’) . This work was first used as a test piece for the Championship section 60 years ago at the Belle Vue contest in 1950, and has remained a favourite piece of the brass band repertoire ever since.

However well-loved a piece, Resurgam is still a tough musical challenge for any band, so we are working hard to get our contest performance up to scratch!

(Interesting trivia point - Resurgam was also the name given to two vessels designed by George Garrett, the Victorian clergyman and pioneer of submarine design).

The band are also pleased to report that despite the current financial climate and ‘Age of Austerity’ in which we find ourselves, the requests to book the band for jobs over the summer are still coming in, and it’s good to know that the organisers of such events still appreciate the difference that live music can make to their ventures.

However, the problem of attracting new players remains an issue - It’s getting harder and harder to find new young people locally who want to join a brass band, and we are not the only band in the locality who find ourselves short of players on occasions. Fortunately we have a good working relationships with the other bands in the vicinity, notably Harlow Brass, Fairlop Brass and East London Brass, and the ability to lend players to each other in order to boost the numbers (and sound!) before an important concert is a great asset to all concerned….our thanks go to those members of other bands who help us out, and also to our own players who give up their time to assist our sister bands in the local area.

What’s new:

Sadly, we have had to say goodbye to Keith Hedges, our Flugel Horn player and compere par excellence. Keith has relocated to the Midlands, and the band wish him and his family (Tracey and Alexa) all the very best for the future. A presentation was made to Keith on the night of his final rehearsal with the band to commemorate his 27 years of service.

The Flugel Horn position is currently being filled by Melanie Hanmore from Harlow Brass until a permanent appointment is agreed upon.

We welcome a new addition to the front row cornet section - Lynette Bonfield has kindly agreed to boost our ranks for the upcoming contest. Lynette knows the band well, having played with us in the past, added to which her sister Collette is our First Horn player.

The band is also delighted to have Noel Lysons on board, who has joined us on Eb Bass.

Following on from the Area contest, the band will be giving the annual President’s Concert on Saturday April 9^th at 7.30pm in St. John’s church. As usual, we will be putting on a show with a varied and exciting repertoire and hope to see many of our supporters there.

For a full list of the band’s upcoming engagements, please see the band website at www.eppingforestband.co.uk

Can we enhance your event?

Ever considered having a brass band to perform at your event – why not give us a try, we can perform incidental music to full concert programmes. Visit our website or contact Denis Desmond, MD on 07960 085841

Join us:

Are you a brass/percussion player looking for a new outlet? We still have a few vacancies to be filled to complete our line up. In particular we are on the lookout for cornet players and bass players.

Feel free to contact us via our website or pop in to see us at one of our rehearsals – the end of Tidy’s Lane (by the playing fields) on Monday’s between 8:00-10:00 pm.

Reflection:

2010 was a successful and busy year in the Epping Forest Band calendar and included a trip to our twin town of Eppingen, Baden-Wurtenberg, Germany in July. The hospitality afforded to us by our hosts was second to none and included a guided tour of the town and a visit to a winery – very much appreciated and enjoyed by us. The band not only gave a concert but also took part in a parade (a particularly large and colourful affair), a marching first for many of us to rousing applause from locals.

In October, we had a pleasing result in the Folkestone contest achieving a very respectful 6th place in the first section – nationally we are a second section band.

We performed at the Epping and Waltham Abbey town shows in the summer entertaining the crowds with music from the classics, shows and film.
Remembrance Sunday saw many of our members take part in services for other towns as well as our own in St John’s Church.

We gave our annual Christmas concert in St John’s Church, Epping, on Dec 4th to a full audience enhanced by the Christmas Tree Festival. At the concert we showcased the St John’s School Band along with vocalist James Miller. This turned out to be one of our best Christmas Concerts and was a great finish to 2010.

What’s new:

We are aiming to continue the successes of 2010 in 2011. Our first priority will be the Area Contest, held in Stevenage in March in which we perform a set test piece, Resurgam by Eric Ball, against other bands in the area, the result giving our place in the national league tables.

Our next concert will be our President’s Concert to be held in St John’s Church on Saturday 9th April starting at 7:30pm when we will be performing a varied and entertaining programme. Tickets available ‘on the door’

Can we enhance your event?

Ever considered a brass band to perform at your event – why not give us a try, we can perform incidental music to full concert programmes. Submit a Booking Request.

Join us:

Are you a brass/percussion player looking for a new outlet? We have a few vacancies to be filled to complete our line up. In particular we are on the lookout for 3 cornet players, 1 Eb tuba and 1 Bb tuba players. Also we need a tuned percussionist.
Would you like to see what we’re about?
Contact us or pop in to see us at one of our rehearsals – the end of Tidys Lane (by the playing fields) on Monday’s between 8:00-10:00 pm.

We wish all our supporters a very happy new year and look forward as always to providing musical entertainment for your enjoyment throughout 2011.

Epping Forest Band are pleased to announce we came 6th in a field of nine competitors at the Autumn 2010 SCABA contest.

The band can read the adjudicators comments here...

Epping Forest Band recently undertook a trip to Epping’s twin town of Eppingen to join in the Heimattage festival. As usual, the band were hosted by local Eppingen families, and had the opportunity to participate in many of the events on offer. The town is always busy at the Heimattage weekend,so there was plenty to see and do, including a guided tour of the town and a trip to a winery to sample some of the local vintage.

However, the weekend was not just about having fun and drinking wine - Saturday evening saw the band on the main stage where they entertained the crowds along with some of the bands and dance groups from Eppingen’s other twin towns.

On Sunday morning the band met up again to provide an hour of lunchtime music on the main stage. Following this, the band took part in a procession through Eppingen consisting of 68 groups and floats connected with the town. This is a new experience for Epping Forest Band, who are more used to playing sitting down, so, prior to the visit, the band had to practise marching (and stopping!) in the bandroom car park.

The weekend was a great success. The band enjoyed themselves enormously, and are now refreshed and ready for their next outing, a Proms Concert on Epping Green, which takes place on Sunday 1^st August at 3pm.

23rd of May saw the band presenting an evening of Music from Stage and Screen, with a special guest ensemble from St. Cedd’s school in Chelmsford.

The concert, in the St. John’s Arts and Recreation Centre began with the piece ‘Orient Express’ by Philip Sparke. Sparke is one of a number of composers to write ‘train music’ for bands (think of Vivan Ellis’ ‘Coronation Scot’ for starters), and this evocative piece, whilst not strictly from stage or screen, conjured up the great days of steam in a way which would not have been entirely out of place in any film of the railway era.

Epping Forest Band are pleased to announce that at the SCABA Annual Spring Contest 2008, held in Hove (in the snow) on the 6th April 2008, we won:

Another year and another Proms on the Green concert.  New pictures can be seen here.  Many thanks to all those who attended this free concert for the people of Epping.  We raised over £300.

Epping Forest Band open a web shop!

Shop online and raise money for Epping Forest Band

Epping Forest Band based in Epping has launched a new online fundraising webshop.

Epping Forest Band is asking its supporters to shop online at http://www.buy.at/eppingforestband and raise money at no extra cost for Epping Forest Band.

Over 100 retailers are accessible through the webshop, including Tesco, Marks & Spencer, John Lewis and RAC. Many retailers provide exclusive offers to the webshop, such as discounts or offering free delivery to the customer, providing more reasons for supporters to buy products through the webshop.

The webshop is straightforward to use and no technical knowledge is required.

James Miller at Epping Forest Band says: "The webshop facility is such a simple but effective idea. We receive a commission on each purchase you make. Donating to our organisation couldn’t be easier!"

There will always be a permanent link in the left-hand menu.

Epping Forest Band are pleased to announce that at the SCABA Annual Spring Contest 2007, held in Hove on the 22nd April 2007, we won:

BAND GET TOGETHER BOOKED!

Have a look at www.riverleecruises.co.uk

Linda is arranging a Band social evening - on Saturday 2nd June. It will be a buffet cruise on the River Lee, leaving Broxbourne at 7.30 pm Cost £20 per head (for age over 12)

The cruise lasts three hours and those of us that went in 2005 thought it would be good to go again, this time earlier in the year so we can enjoy a bit more daylight.

This is a social event - partners etc are very welcome (The boat can accommodate 25 to 60 people on a buffett cruise.)

I have personally paid the deposit and will need to know how many people will be going by the Swaines Green job on 5th May.

Bye for now, Linda

Click here for directions to the departure point.

Pictures taken in 2005 can be seen here.

Sorry to all of you who saw the following error message over the last few days:

Bandwidth Limit Exceeded

The server is temporarily unable to service your request due to the site owner reaching his/her bandwidth limit. Please try again later.

Rest assured it was a temporary problem caused by the Guestbook being over run with spam.  I was also on holiday.  I've had to disable the Guestbook for the time being, and also up our server space.  Now you can all upload photos from the last few jobs!

Daniel

EFB Webmaster