THE BAND CONTEST.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVI, Issue 35, 10 February 1905, Page 2

THE BAND CONTEST.

j » PREPARATIONS FOR A START. All the preliminaries for a successful start to the North Island Band Contest on Monday are now made, and the contest, which is the most important held for years in the colony, will be opened in His" Majesty's Theatre on Monday morning. The Wanganui Baud, one of ! the leading brass bands of the colony, arrived this morning, and is billeted at the Royal Hotel, and Mr W. L. King, the judge, also arrived by the Eotoiti today, and is staying at the British Hotel. The contest would be important for this one thing alone, that for the first time in many years the Wanganui and Wellington" Garrison and the Kaikorai Bands will meet and decide the championship of the colony, besides which there are a great number of other bands from all parts of the colony to compete together as soloists. INTERVIEW WITH MR KING. A "Star" interviewer had a conversation with Mr King this morning on the subject of the contest. "I regard the contest," he said, "as probably the most important ever held in the "colony, not only because of the number of bands competing, but also that the three best bands of the colony arc to meet for the first time for several years, and they are all three at the top hi their ability. The Wanganui Band admits that it is better than it has ever been, and much better than when it played at Masterton. Of the Kaikorai, Conductor Laidlaw opines that it is at its best just now; and Wellington Garrison is reported to be as good as ever it lias been." Chatting about the progress of band music in the colony, Mr King said: "Praetieallv the first band contest in the colony "was held in 1881 at Christchurch—a small beginning. '83 another contest was held at Invercargill, and from that time contests have been pretty frequent. In ISBS, Wellington held a contest, in which Auckland was represented by the Auckland Artillery Band under Mr Hunter, now the Auckland Garrison. Things were not quite the same then as now—each band had to give a full programme each night, and they were judged on the general performance. The feature of that contest was the sight-reading, eince abandoned as impracticable, though desirable. In 1892 Wellington held a big contest, in which Christehuich Garrison got first place and Wellington Garrison and Kaikorai got the other places. It was not till 1895, however, that Wellington Garrison got its first win. That was at Tima.ru, where twelve bands competed, and from that time Wellington Garrison has had things pretty well its own way. In 1898 Wanganui Garrison came to the front, and though it didn't get first place,, it was second with Kaikorai, and it has been well placed ever since, winning the championship at Palmerston North last year. Wellington Garrison and Kaikorai did not compete, however. "What do you think of this year's pieces t" "They are of very good standard. The system is now very different from what it used to be. Up till 1899 all the work was 'own choice , selections. In Christehurch that year the first test piece was laid down—an arrangement of Beethoven's work. Now the association has made all the pieces test, so that all bandsmen are on an equal footing. The band selection, 'La Straniera' (Belleni), i 3 an arrangement of the work or that name, parts of which are very well known, especially the 'Bolero'; the whole is a bright selection. The second piece is 'Gems from Mendelssohn.' arranged by Dan Godfrey, and the hardest test piece ever submitted to the bands of the colony. It includes parts of such pieces as 'The War March of the Priests' ( 'Athalie' ), 'The Spring Song, 1 and The Rondo. , It will be a very good piece, but musicians will recognise we cannot produce the same effects a* an orchestra or a choir, and our rendering may not be quite what they are accustomed to. The quick-step march, The Victor's Return,' is a good, smart thing of its kind, and will please the public. ,, "The other pieces?" "I have spent a good deal of time in looking through the solos and quartettes, and I am especially pleased with the latter—they are the finest we have had. In the solo tests there is some of the most difficult work ever attempted in the colony. I am looking forward with great pleasure to these tests, more especially as there has never before been such a gathering of fine trombone players. The contest as a whole will bea red page in the history of brass bands in the colony. It will cause a marked improvement in the quality of brass band playing in Auckland, and therefore I hope to see the same enthusiasm and practical support shown here as is extended to the hands in other parts of the colony." Hitherto the most important contest has been that at Masterton in 1893, when. Mr J. Ord Hume, the prominent English band expert, was the judge. On that occasion Wanganui started well, but lost ground and finished a few points behind Wellington Garrison for first place- In 1893 Wanganui journeyed to Timaru, and there took first place. In 1596 there was another big contest in Ihinedin, in which Oamaru Garrison got first place, Wellington Garrison second, and Kaikorai third. This was the time •when the finest band piece written was the test, "Tannhauser."