We’re short of a few Tenors

With a decent complement of side drummers and our new bass drummer settling in nicely, we’re turning our attention to filling the last spaces in our drums corps – the tenor section.

A good competition tenor drummer tends to play simple patterns that flow around the main bass beat, picking out key melodic lines and augmenting the pipe tune. On top of this they also provide visual flair, with flourishing patterns that help to fill the spaces between the individual tenor parts.

If you’re interested and would like to come to a practice evening then drop us a line via email or you can message us on Facebook.

There’s a lot of crossover with other types of bands, so it doesn’t matter if you don’t have a pipe band background – if you have experience in any kind of marching band, perhaps a samba band, or even a majorette troupe, there are elements that will apply to us.

The key to a great mid-section sound is variety, with multiple tuned drums creating an interweaving melodic line. This basically means that you can never have too many tenor drummers!

For an idea of how some of the very best bands do it, click here. (Unfortunately the tenor sound is quite low and hasn’t been picked up by the mic)

UPDATED: Drums for Sale!

*****NOW SOLD*****

 

Purchased new in 2007, we’re looking to find a new home(s) for our Andante Reactor snares. We now have 4 available.

They’ve served us extremely well over the years, helping the drum corps to several 1st place trophies, and giving us a consistently good sound without having to endlessly re-tune and tweak every time they come out of their cases.

Full listing info is below, please get in touch if you’re interested or spread the word if you know of a band on the lookout for a great set of drums.

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4x Andante Reactor Snare Drums

£1,000 – Essex, UK

Purchased new in 2007. Black woodgrain and silver metalwork.

We’ve been well pleased with our Andantes (we’ve already upgraded to next gen reactors), a doddle to tune and they hold it well when set. All have Andante top (core-tec) and bottom heads.

The usual minor cosmetic scuffs you’d expect but they’ve been well looked after over 12 competition seasons, and helped us to plenty of 1st place drum corps trophies.

Ideally we’ll sell as one lot, but open to selling individually (£250 each).

Sold WITHOUT harnesses and cases.

Buyer to pay for delivery. Depending on location we may be able to help arrange this.

Interested parties please contact andy@essexcaledonian.co.uk

Drums for Sale!

Purchased new in 2007, we’re looking to find a new home(s) for our 8 Andante Reactor snares.

They’ve served us extremely well over the years, helping the drum corps to several 1st place trophies, and giving us a consistently good sound without having to endlessly re-tune and tweak every time they come out of their cases.

Full listing info is below, please get in touch if you’re interested or spread the word if you know of a band on the lookout for a great set of drums.

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8x Andante Reactor Snare Drums

£2,000 – Essex, UK

Purchased new in 2007. Black woodgrain and silver metalwork.

We’ve been well pleased with our Andantes (we’ll be upgrading to next gen reactors), a doddle to tune and they hold it well when set. All have Andante top (core-tec) and bottom heads.

The usual minor cosmetic scuffs you’d expect but they’ve been well looked after over 12 competition seasons, and helped us to plenty of 1st place drum corps trophies.

Ideally we’ll sell as one lot, but open to selling as two lots of 4.

Sold WITHOUT harnesses and cases.

Buyer to pay for delivery. Depending on location we may be able to help arrange this.

Interested parties please contact andy@essexcaledonian.co.uk

We’re Recruiting

As our main summer engagements and competition season draws to a close we’re already looking ahead to next year, and with a few recent departures, we’re after some new blood for the band.

With no major changes planned for our competition sets, this is the ideal time for new players to come on board, as we focus on bringing our existing learner players on, honing our simpler sets and refreshing our repertoire.

Despite our recent victories, we still play for the pleasure of being in a band, and want to keep this an enjoyable hobby for our players, not a weekly chore that has to be dreaded!

If you’re interested in being part of the team, we want to hear from you – whether you’re an experienced player looking for a change of scenery or some more regular playing time, or if you’re a total novice without an idea of how to begin.

All we ask is that you put the hours in (there are no shortcuts to becoming a good player) and in return we’ll get you out with the band in no time.

We practice on Tuesday evenings (8pm-10pm) once a week at Chelmer Valley High School.

For more information contact andy@essexcaledonian.co.uk

Victory! + Big Changes

We rounded off an excellent competition season with a 1st place in both the Grade 4 and Grade 4 MSR at Colchester this weekend, the first time we’ve ever won our home competition!

It was a frantic afternoon of tuning, playing, catching up with old faces and finding time for the odd beer, and despite the changeable weather and short gaps between performances, we pulled together and got not one, but two winning performances.

Winning all 4 outings of our Grade 4 set this year has been a great achievement, and well done to all members of the band for their hard work over the season.

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However, every silver lining has a cloud, as Brian Smith will be leaving us after 3 and half years as Pipe Major.

Since his appointment in 2012 he has constantly encouraged, cajoled and pushed the band members to be the very best that they can be, something reflected in our recent good results. Along with various improvements behind the scenes, Brian leaves us with a strong foundation to keep pushing onwards and upwards, and all the band members would like to thank him for his hard work and leadership.

We’ll be appointing our new P/Maj later in the year, but until then it’s business as usual. As always, we welcome players of all ages and abilities (we’re still on the hunt for a permanent Bass Drummer!), so whether you’re a complete novice, an experienced veteran, or are just looking to take your playing to the next level, we’d love to hear from you.

We’ll be returning to the scene of our victory next month as we take part in the Colchester Carnival on 16th July – we’ll see you there!

Success at Jim McGinn

Following on from two good results at the quartets and mini band competitions, we had a great result at Sunday’s Jim McGinn memorial contest.

Despite missing out on the Marching and Deportment this time around, we took home 1st place in the Grade 4, Grade 4 Drums and Grade 4 MSR, as well as 2nd place in the Grade 3. An excellent result, especially as this was an indoor competition on what was probably the hottest day of the year so far.

Well done to all who attended and fingers crossed we can keep this run going at our home county competition in a month’s time. Special thanks also go to our learner drummer Paul, who not only made the trip up to spectate, but also took some excellent photos throughout the day.

Bass Drummer Wanted!

Recently we were sad to see the departure of our long-standing Bass Drummer John after 20 years with the band. We’ll all miss his steady hand and great ear for rhythm, but the time has now come to find a new beating heart for our sound.

Playing the Bass may not be the most technical or glamorous of pipe band roles, but it is an absolute essential. The bass drummer controls the tempo for both pipers and drummers, dictating the feel and musicality of everything we play. As long as you have a natural feel for rhythm, it doesn’t take long to pick up the bass-ics (sorry!) and there’ll be plenty of support to help newcomers bed in.

Regular and reliable turnout to practices and engagements is ideal, and you’d need to be happy with carrying and looking after the biggest drum in the band – it’s not as heavy as it looks (after all, most of it is empty space) but if you have back trouble then it might be wise to think twice.

Whether you’re an experienced pipe band player, have any kind of marching band background, or are just an eager amateur driving your family crazy with tapping fingers, drop us a line and come down to a practice night.