2006 Victorian Championships

Retrospective: Overview and A Grade

The 2006 Victorian Championships were held on the weekend of 14-15 October, in Ballarat, by joint organisers the Victorian Bands League and the Royal South Street Society.

With a seating capacity of 900, the Wendouree Centre for Performing Arts in Ballarat, which was only completed in August of this year, was a clear winner with the bands, organisers, and audience.  Accoustically it was superb, logistically it was a breeze - with adequate rooms suitable for warm-up, sign-on and administrative procedures.  The foyer was spacious with Musos Media and Wrights Music having trade stands over the two days.  The location was ideal, with plenty of amenities within close walking distance.

The audience numbers for most band events were encouraging.  The main part of the auditorium, which holds approx. 650 people was nearing capacity for some of the sessions.  It was great to see the Junior Grade bands well supported with several hundred people in the crowd first thing Sunday morning. Unfortunately, the numbers were down for the B Grade bands, most likely due to the Sunday evening time slot.

Joint organisers, the Ballarat Royal South Street Society and the Victorian Bands League, announced at the conclusion of the competition, that the 2007 Victorian Championships would be held on the Weekend 11-12 August, in the Wendouree Centre for Performing Arts.

The number of solo entries in the Royal South Street competition was significantly down on previous years, in both the junior and senior events. So much so, the Royal South Street Society are considering whether or not to continue with this component of the weekend.  The Victorian State Solo titles are held as a separate weekend in July of each year.  

The scheduling moved smoothly without significant drama througout the two days.  Although the Sunday morning session was delayed by 30 minutes due to the late arrival of the theatre technician, by the late afternoon/early evening, the events were back on track.  The rotation of the two adjudicators allowed the sessions to follow-on from each other without breaks.

It was extremely pleasant to see all conductors asked to the stage at the conclusion of each event to receive acknowledgement.  The winning and placed conductors were also asked to address the public and all conductors did so with professionalism and respect. The politeness of the audience whilst awaiting the results and throughout the presentation was refreshing.

More careful consideration needs to be given to the concluding event processes, however.  The reading of the points was sometimes confusing, ambiguous and incomplete.  The trophy presentation seemed to stumble its way through, with the order of what was being presented by whom, to whom, and when, seemingly made up on the spot, with the end result being apparent mayhem of conductors, officials, and the adjudicator bumping into each other in confusion. Wrong trophies were presented and in the instance of the A Grade, no trophy at all was presented.

In each grade the bands were required to perform the test piece, which decided the VBL state championship, and a hymn, march and concert item.  The scores for the hymn, march and concert items were added together to determine 1st and 2nd placings for the Royal South Street Society Trophy which also carried a cash prize. 

Helping 4BRDU with the coverage for this contest was Mark Fitzpatrick and his partner Laura.

A Grade
Test:  The Night to Sing, Bramwell Tovey
Adjudicator:  Major Eric Anderson

The A Grade bands were this year presented with a very challenging work in the form of Bramwell Tovey's The Night to Sing.  Unfortunately, none of the three bands really came to terms with the demands of this work - technically nor musically. Each of the three bands however, delivered many special moments, and the bands individually clearly had strengths in different places.  If one was to combine these strengths, we may have come close to the performance we were looking for.

That being said, the stellar effort and time put into preparing for this competition by the bands was very obvious.  All three bands should be applauded for having made the decision to turn up and  tackle the selected test The Night To Sing.

The results were:
Hymn, Test, Concert, March
1. Hawthorn (Peter Sykes) 47, 95, 44, 48
2. Kew Melbourne (Mark Ford) 44, 94, 46, 47
3. Footscray Yarraville (Phillipa Edwards) 45, 91, 43, 47

Footscray-Yarraville
Conductor:  Phillipa Edwards

As expected, Footscray had been well prepared by MD, Phillipa Edwards.  Musically, for us, this bands performance of the test piece satisfied us the most. However, technically, the band did struggle with the demands of this piece, which unfortunately detracted from the overall performance.

The highlight of Footscray's performance was Nick Wilkons on Flugel in The Children of Sanchez.  Nick commanded centre stage and performed with great style and presence.  The band incorporated some choreography in troms and cornets, which was effective.  The accompaniment was a little too loud at times - but it must have been hard to curb the obvious enthusiasm and enjoyment for the music.

ORB was very well played, steady, and a good choice for the band.

The performance as we heard it:
Hymn:  Mid All the Traffic, Leonard Ballantine:
Slightly nervous start with some intonation problems.  Rich bass sounds.  Music flows well with lovely phrasing.  Some untidy entries. Softer dynamic lacking.  Nice.
Test:
Exciting opening.  Bass detail struggles to cut through.  More euph - under balanced.  Sop and solo cornet duet well done.  Lilt well captured.  Solo work - some fine playing but too many insecurities.  Sop a little too loud at times.  Great character and shaping.  So many sections the band is struggling with technically.  Needed more softer of softer dynamic to improve contrast.  Untidy to finish.  Musically this performance had so much to offer.
Concert: The Children of Sanchez, Chuck Mangione arr. Gilj:
Great effect cornets into tubas. Great sound flugel and stylistically excellent.  Tempo just right.  Great perc.  Good work troms and cornets.  Improv. well done flugel.  Accomp. a little OTT at times.
March:  ORB:
Steady tempo established well.  Cornet solo well done ? getting tired. Tempo does slow a little in softer passages and then picks up again in louder sections.  Length of notes maybe could be shortened in general to enhance the march style. Tendancy to rush.  Intonation problems creeping in.  Very rhythmic.  Needs more dynamic contrast.

Footscray-Yarraville perform Children of Sanchez with flugel soloist Nick Wilkons

Hawthorn
Conductor:  Peter Sykes

The performance of Hawthorn was awaited with eager anticipation.  This band has gone through many changes in the last year and under new MD, Peter Sykes, people were keen to hear the band and its much talked about new sound and style.  The formation of the band was the first obvious change.  With the solo cornets standing behind the tubas, for us at times, the melody line/upper part at times struggled to be heard.  Though at other times, the blend and balance was fine.  One of the most obvious strengths was the depth and breadth of bass sound.  One would imagine that in time, given this solid foundation, the sound of the band can only continue to improve.  For us, though, the sound at times was harsh and penetrating rather than open and round.

Dave Barker was the stand out soloist for us in this section, his musicality and experience never more evident than they were this evening.

The concert item, whilst a magnificent work, was arguably not a good choice for this occassion.  La Cathedralz Engloutie can really not placed in the "crowd-pleaser" category - the audience could have definitely enjoyed something a little more upbeat.

The performance as we heard it:
Hymn:  It Is Well, Phillip Bliss arr. Leif Sundstrup:
Intonation not always 100%.  Some great chordal sounds with solid tuneful bass end. Good dynamic contrast but sometimes bigger sounds become a little harsh - could be warmer.  Lovely solo cornet sound - very musical.  Mute noises detract.  Lovely phrasing.
Test:
Good opening sounds. Clarity in bass section excellent - the best tonight. Transitions take time to settle. Vertically frequently not together.  Very loose - seems as if the sections aren't listening to each other nor within sections.  Too many times just not together. Soloists generally good.  Solo cornet very good.  Frequently missing percussion parts.  Musically some wonderful moments but the general lack of togetherness prevented more of these moments.  
Concert:  La Cathedralz Engloutie, De Bussy Arr. Clifton Springs:
Intonation problems in muted cornets. Good bass sound, some inner parts lost.  Music line does not flow well enough.  Moments of beautiful sounds,  balance not always good.  e.g. 2nd/3rd cornets sometimes too prominant and not balanced within the section - individuals stand out rather than a 'block' of sound.
March:  Ravenswood, William Rimmer:
Style too 'soft' and unmarch like - needs to be more rhythmic.  Dynamic contrast lacking.  Looseness again. Tendency to rush at times. Solo cornet line very well played and very stylistic but not prominant enough.

Hawthorn showing new formation

Kew Melbourne
Conductor:  Mark Ford

Kew has had a big year of competition having played in both the Australian and New Zealand Nationals.  The band perhaps didn't play quite as well as in New Zealand in July of this year, but the demands of this test piece stretched the band to its limits.  That being said, the band largely rose to the occasion.  One could definitely feel MD, Mark Ford, trying to extract everything musically possible from the players during the test piece but often, the band just didn't follow this lead. 

The Hymn Tune, Just As I Am, is a very difficult hymn to pull-off with exposed parts and complex musical lines and phrasing, and for Kew, it didn't quite come-off on this occasion.

The band relaxed nicely into Windows of the World - a piece they obviously enjoyed greatly, largely driven by a superb percussion section lead by Broden Ford.

This was Jen Magoulas's first contest in the Principal Cornet chair and what a superb job she did - particularly for someone so young.  Jen played with great security, accuracy, and always with a beautiful sound.  Musical nuances, flair and style are sure to develop very quickly for this very talented player.  

The performance as we heard it:
Hymn:  Just As I am, Heaton:
At times sections not quite together e.g. tubas behind cornets.  Sounds from cornet section loveley and warm.  Some insecurities in troms and not always together.  One gets the feeling of tentativeness throughout.  Lovely euph.  Phrasing a little 'gappy'.  Perhaps a little slow which bought on insecurities.  Beautiful sounds on ending chord.
Test:
Tubas strong but surprisingly unclear at times.  Some entries early on not always together.  Could be more rhythmic in order to generate 'lilt'. Transitions smooth.  Soloists all very well done with only the occasional blip.  Super sop/solo cornet work.  Percussion outstanding.  Euph bravo - best of the day!  (nice lip trill as well!!) Technically well played.  Wanted to 'feel' more though, and looking for more contrast in dynamics. Good 'read' from MD and well prepared.
Concert:  Windows of the World:
Very spirited tempo!! Horns keep up - only just!!  Neat tutti cornet work.  Tuning basses? Some very effective playing.  Great work again perc.  Basses great wall of sound but needs more drive on the first of the bar. End movement fast as well. ?some degree of clarity lost at the expense of tempo.  Definitely lots of fun and very enjoyable.
March: The Waltonian, arr. Wyss:
Cracking tempo - just on the edge.  Technically very well handled by band.  Could be more rhythmic, and some groups are rushed.  Nearly there troms!  Great style from cornet and euph in duet.  

Kew Melbourne

The decision:
Like the majority of people we spoke with after the results, we too, did not agree with the winner of the Championship. Whilst Hawthorn did have some fine moments, the general untidiness was too much for us to ignore.  Kew, although not by any means a brilliant performance, were significantly more in control of the test than its competitors. 

Peter Sykes with Major Eric Anderson

When the adjudicator, clarinet player Major Eric Anderson, provided his feedback to the audience at the conclusion of the session, he said the decision was very close, but for him, the winning band played well together vertically.  The immediate thought was, "oh well, thats Hawthorn out".  How wrong we were. But then...what would we know!

The banding world downunder now looks upon the coming 2007 Nationals with great interest in the area of adjudicator appointment. At this stage, Major Anderson has been appointed to adjudicate the B Grade section. This contest is the second time Major Anderson has been at the centre of controversial decisions - the other occasion being the 2005 NSW Championships.

Will the contest committee now consider changes?  Time will tell.

Amanda Casagrande