Category: Article

John won his first NZ trombone title at the age of 15 in 1954. He arrived in Dunedin from Te Awamutu in the very early 1960s at the invitation of the Roslyn Mills Kaikorai Band. His early contributions included teaching, conducting their junior band and playing as principal trombone before taking up the baton in 1966 at the age of 27. Under John’s direction the band won National Championships in 1969 and 1970.John was appointed as Conductor of St Kilda Brass in 1975. He took a break in 1979 and took up the baton again between 1984 and 1989. He was Band Chairman in 1981 and 1982. And while with St Kilda won three NZ trombone titles in 1978, 79 and 84. He won Champion of Champions in 1978John set the standard for trombonists in New Zealand with 8 Championship wins over 30 years.

His leadership and influence within the Dunedin brass band scene and with St Kilda Brass cannot be underestimated.Condolences to Jenny, Nicola, Kathryn and their extended families.

Goodbye 2020 and welcome 2021 and the chance the perform!

The Saints have lined up an exciting start to the New Year making up for the cancelled events in 2020. We start the year with something different:

“The Rat Pack Gig”

The Saints will join up with guitar, piano, dancers, and singers to provide cool entertainment at the Dunedin Town Hall on the February 12. The event is to support the Otago Medical Research Foundation.

April 17-18 Dunedin will hold the annual Art Festival and the The Saints will be involved in street art music for:

“The Java Dance Gig”

What’s happening in the band room?

This year our conductors’ team will include Kenneth Young (Leading NZ conductor and composer, and current Mozart Fellow at the University of Otago), he will lead St Kilda in the Otago / Southland Provincial contest, April 10-11 in Invercargill.

Associate Professor Peter Adams will make a welcome return to lead the Rat Pack Gig.

They will be supported by Dr. Errol Moore in what is shaping up to be an impressive triumvirate of musical leadership.

This year we are inviting new and returning students to join St Kilda Brass, the premiere Brass Band in Dunedin and the only A grade Brass Band in NZ to have retained it’s A grade status since its inception ….The Saints.

We also invite any current or new Dunedin based Brass and Percussion players wishing to play at an A grade level to please get in touch

We offer top quality Instruments and tuition to fully develop your playing and have an exciting and interesting year of new music making to look forward to.

Contact

Email: chairman@stkildabrass.org.nz

Phone: Peter McHenry (021 283 8611)

From ODT 11 October 2019

A prizegiving concert last night was especially significant for St Kilda Brass as a new musical director was officially welcomed and four new copper timpani drums were put into use.

New musical director Shane Foster, formerly of Alpine Energy Brass in Timaru, had been working for both bands for the last 12 months but was now officially full-time with the Dunedin-based band.

St Kilda Brass co-chairman Peter McHenry said the “Friends and Family” concert was also the band’s first performance with four timpani drums, which were bought with the help of grants from the Lion Foundation and Otago Community Trust and together cost $30,000.

The drums sounded “fantastic” and opening number Through the Plains, by percussionist Paul Lovatt-Cooper, showed them off to great effect, Mr McHenry said.

“Our old ones were not of the quality that we need for our performances; we needed copper ones that are just that next level up,” Mr McHenry said.

“It’s a pretty major investment for us.”

The band had managed to sell its old set of timpani fibreglass drums to a group in Christchurch.

The concert was “really good” and was attended by 60 or 70 people.

Prizewinners were soloist of the year Harry Smith, who played the euphonium, bandsman of the year Mr McHenry, and the cornet section, which was named best section. Player of the year was Ian McCabe, on bass trombone.

After a 40 year gap the NZ Championships returned to Hamilton.  St Kilda Brass under the baton of Peter Adams were there too.

The band’s accommodation split over two motels was ‘interesting’, familiar to many of Hamilton’s emergency housing recipients, and perhaps unchanged since that 1979 contest. 

The contest as usual opened with the solo and party events.  Saints achieved a trio of 3^rd placings: Kerry Wood (Amateur Cornet), Keenan Buchanan (Eb bass) and Tony Van Alphen (Bb bass).  After intensive rehearsals with Drum Major Kerry Wood the band were disappointed that the heavens opened just in time for the Friday Parade of Bands.

This was probably the best organised contest I’ve attended in my own 38 years of playing.  Held at the Claudelands Event Centre, the raised stage was (personally) a pleasure to play on – not too dry, not too bouncy, and provided no worries of proscenium arches and disappearing percussion and tubas.  The chief adjudicator seemed to hear all the notes, particularly any of the less than totally outstandingly beautiful ones.  The warm-up rooms and pre-performance spaces were magnificent, and marshalling personnel friendly and efficient.  Final results were at the wrong end of the placings, but not egregiously unfair in a large and difficult field.

Particular thanks due to Peter McHenry for his amazing organisational skills, assisting musicians Jamie Lawson (Footscray Yarraville) and Mark Close (APO), and our regular out-of-towners: Kerry Wood (Auckland), Keenan Buchanan (Palmerston North), and David Froom & Matthew Toomata (Christchurch).

Onwards to Christchurch 2021…

We recently received a visit from Claire Clark of Wellington and Alister McKenzie of Christchurch. They were searching the band room for our photo of the 1903 New Zealand Representative Band selected to travel to England. They are related to John McKenzie the Bass Trombonist in the 1903 Band. John McKenzie was Claire’s great grandfather and Alister’s great uncle. Claire is researching the 1903 Band’s history and was thrilled to find a copy of one of their programmes for sale on the internet from a Swedish bookseller! The 1903 New Zealand Representative Band had 6 bandsmen with Dunedin roots: Edward Kerr, Solo cornet, Kaikorai Band; J. McKersey Solo horn, late Dunedin Navals Band; Arthur Jones, 2nd horn, North-east Valley; James Flint, 1st baritone, North East Valley Band; Robert Pettit, 1st trombone, Kaikorai Band; John McKenzie, Bass trombone, Dunedin Navals Band; and Claude Davis, BB flat bass, Kaikorai Band.

Claire would like to put together bios of each of the 26 bandsmen and the Conductor to recognise their place in history. She is also interested to find descendants of the bandsmen.  If you have any information please contact Claire at tandc.clark@outlook.com.

 

Last week 6 of the Saints squeezed into a car together with instruments and travelled to Balcultha. Here’s the ODT’s take on it – for the final product you’ll have to take to the skies with Air New Zealand.

ODT Article (page 24, Saturday 29 September, 2018)

Courtesy of ODT – 8 November, 2015

At the site of the former Carisbrook stadium, Dunedin artist Aroha Novak had created temporary art installation The Brook Project, which will be on display for eight days.

The installation included more than 100 embroideries relating to the economic, social and political history of the Carisbrook site. They were attached to the wire fence that surrounds the site.

About 60 people turned out for an event that featured everyone from Tahu and the Takahes to the St Kilda Brass Bandits, who used items including road cones to make their music.

Ms Novak said she was pleased “all these people have come together to help produce this vision that I’ve had”.

Courtesy of ODT – 15 July, 2014.

Contagious virtuosity helped Dunedin musicians win the band of the year award at the 2014 New Zealand Brass Band Championships in Invercargill.

Musical director Peter Adams said the virtuosity of St Kilda Brass Band leader Steve Miles was ”contagious” and instilled the confidence in the band to win the top prize at the national championships on Friday.

Mr Miles won soloist of the year award playing a euphonium. “A trumpet on steroids,” said Kimberley Johnston, who won the Brass Bands Association of New Zealand administrator of the year award.

Mr Adams said the band’s contemporary programme – including Enter the Galaxies, Valero, Carnival Cocktail, Misty and The Dreaded Groove and Hook – “reflected the youthful vitality and energy” of the band’s University of Otago student base.

Band chairman Errol Moore said the open ensemble was won by himself, Mr Miles, Harry Smith, and John McAdam. Jess Schweizer won the junior flugel championship.
Shawn McAvinue – ODT