A word from your President

Welcome to our first online E-newsletter and a new direction for Cairnsbands. Yes, even the name is being promoted differently.

As an organisation we are still Cairns Municipal Band Inc. although now we are marketing ourselves simply as "cairnsbands". Much easier to remember and say!

This year is set to be an exciting one with many opportunities for new ventures and growth for our organisation. The Cairns Youth Stage Band is one initiative which is already attracting much interest.

Growth of this kind is exciting but also brings with it its challenges. We need your help to maintain the momentum to reach our goals. Behind the scenes there have traditionally been only a handful of committee members doing most of the work.

Nominate now to join our team! A total restructure of job roles has been implemented. Subcommittee roles have now been formed to assist the committee. For more information and to nominate online please check our Committee Page on our website!

Marketing is important to us. We have already taken the opportunity to promote other musical groups and organisations that we are affiliated with. The Hotshots Bigband and Cairns Concert Orchestra now appear on our website. This will raise the profile for all of us.

It is certainly great to see that our website traffic has almost tripled in the last 2 months as can be seen in this graph! The yellow represents unique visitors; currently attracting nearly 60 per day.

The Cairns Concert Band has been performing well and will have its first playout on the 15th March with the Magic of Music.

Tropical Brass however has continued to struggle with low attendance numbers. We are currently exploring options to enhance leadership and direction so we can breathe life into this group once again. Tropical Brass has been an important part of our organisation for many years so every attempt is being made to invigorate it. Any suggestions or initiatives are most welcome.

Tunefully yours, Tim Koch.

And a word from your Vice President

Well we've had two weeks of rehearsals with Ron running the band and things are looking great. We are already in the mindset that we could be looking at two bands before much longer. A band of real juniors and a band of better players will allow each group to better develop skills at the most suitable pace.

Just so everyone knows, we have some members of the Concert Band who have joined up, doubling on different instruments and we have a bunch of oldies turning up to help out and to fill in the gaps. Without hesitation I am happy to say that all concerned here are having fun along the way. A group of parents staying for the hour rounds off a really good night.

Remember we are still in very early days so if any member is aware of any player who would still like to 'have a blow' please let them know about Thursday night rehearsal. We love trombone players especially.

The Concert Band has had a strong start to 2008 as we prepare for this Saturday's (15th March) big concert with the Cairns Concert Orchestra. Adrian has come up with a really top programme using all new music that sounds great and is good stuff to play. We are a little behind in our rehearsal due to the floods of last week but we'll catch up this week with an early start.

It was however a bit disappointing for Adrian to 'no show' rehearsal. I have been reliably informed that Innisfail was open if you cut down to Townsville, then across to Charters Towers, up through the Lynd to Mt Garnet/Ravenshoe/Atherton. Adrian, you could have made it and easy. We still had a good blow despite the weather so thanks Eddy for filling in so well.

Everyone keep your eye on the website Gig Guide because we have a number of jobs coming up and some extras are in the planning stages. Things could change soon.

Now as a footnote here I would like to stress on players the importance of counting your rest bars yourself. Relying on others can cause problems particularly if those doing the counting are prone to error or are childish pranksters (a la Knobby and Ron). If however you find yourself coming in early through no fault of you own, then make the entry good and strong. With a bit of luck you might convince some in the audience that you are right and the band is wrong.

Finally, it is great having Elke playing the bassoon for the concert. It sure adds to the sound, so thank you Elke for making the long trip down on Wednesday evenings. Werner is useful too.

Welcome to our new members

Please welcome our new members; these enthusiastic musicians have joined us in the last number of months:

• Robin Smith - flute
• Lorraine Smith - percussion
• Sean O'Shea - tuba
• Steve Hannah - bass guitar
• Leesa Cooke - clarinet and saxophone
• Reuben Grant - saxophone
• Thomas Ash - trumpet
• Jasmin Falden - saxophone
• Craig Williamson - saxophone
• Jordon Bacic - trumpet

Food for thought!

All organizations including ours have a great mix of people.

The mix can be described as follows:

• Wheelbarrows - no use unless pushed;
• Kites - they fly away unless kept on a string;
• Tennis Balls - you can't tell which way they will bounce;
• Balloons - Full of the wind of their own importance and ready to burst;
• Watches - Open faced, quietly busy, wholly dependable, always at hand, full of good works.

Appreciation

Our thanks must go to Cairns City Council for their assistance to us through Grants and Services during the last year.

Our equipment has been upgraded to include top of the range Manhasset Music Stands, and additional Sound items, as well as the addition of the Roland Electric Piano and some wonderful new Music.

Sound minimizing Fencing on the Eastern Boundary was also made possible. This made the neighbours happy too.

As a result of our series of performances 'MUSIC EASY STYLE' our finances were improved which covered the cost of our Annual Insurance premium.

So we definitely owe our Cairns City Council a hearty vote of thanks for their assistance to our organisation.

What's On

Currently there are 10 confirmed events for the year, but this will grow. Remember to check the Gig Guide on our website regularly to keep up to date.

Contributions to this Newsletter

Is there something you would like to share?

Do you have a funny story or some feedback you would like to give us?

All members are encouraged to contribute to this newsletter. Please forward your submissions to newsletter@cairnsbands.com