Brass musicians of all levels and ages from around the State of New Jersey recently enjoyed a packed day of communal music making at the Salvation Army New Jersey Citadel led by conductor Dr. Jonathan Corry.
He was joined for the 'All Age Brass Day' by the acclaimed former New York Staff Bandmaster Ron Waiksnoris who was playing soprano cornet.
Respect and fun
On arrival players aged from 12 to 80, and from cornet to tuba, were placed band in formation by SA NJ Divisional Bandmaster Nathan Power to work through Ray Steadman-Allen's arrangement of 'They Shall Come from the East'.
The day was packed with engagement, respect, fun and understanding as the players worked on pieces from Reid Gilje's arrangement of 'Circle of Life' to Norman Bearcroft's march 'To Regions Fair'.
The younger musicians had lots of fun leading older counterparts on 'How to Train Your Dragon' and 'Aladdin', whilst there was also the chance to work on the funky 'Gospel Brass Machine' by Mark Taylor and 'Spero Per Musica' by Tom Davoren.
For the enjoyment of the more seasoned bandmembers, BM Mark Baker of The Salvation Army Montclair Citadel Band led Dean Goffin's magnificent 'Arise, My Soul Arise!'.
Dorothy Gates' arrangement of 'See, What a Morning', Ray Farr's take on 'Riverdance', and 'Music from The Incredibles' also added to the eclectic mix.
Our thanks got to Dr. Corry and after a time of devotions, the day concluded with performances of several of the works amid a great sense of community and accomplishmentorganisers
Conductors
Aspiring conductors also had the opportunity to work with Dr Corry on conducting technique, with a number taking to the podium to direct the band.
Speaking about the event, Major A. Philip Ferreira told 4BR: "It was truly inspirational. The array of music touched genres for everyone — and to hear Philip Wilby's arrangement of Scholefield's 'The Day Thou Gavest' with its multiple levels of dynamics was a real treat.
Our thanks got to Dr. Corry and after a time of devotions, the day concluded with performances of several of the works amid a great sense of community and accomplishment."
