Thursday 1 December 2011

JAZZ.!!.Banjo...!!!- The Sydney Banjo bands last rehearsal was on Wed.30th November and the next rehearsal is Wed.18th January 2012... a great evening of toe tappin' music....

The Sydney Banjo Bands last rehearsal shows the group is moving on in numbers...despite some regulars being unable to attend, we had a new chap Dave, learning banjo attend, introduced by Bill Maclean.
Currently the band has 20 members getting "The Resonator" as a member band of  Banjos Unlimited, the US banjo group...
"The Resonator" is the magazine of Banjos Unlimited, skilfully edited by Frank Rossi, leader of the Pittsburgh Banjo Club ...it allows us to access contacts and parts, music etc....
The next rehearsals are Wednesday 18th January and Wednesday 22nd February again at Club Ashfield...5 Charlotte Street, Ashfield, beside Ashfield Railway Station on the northern side.
Then we're playing beside the former Sydney harbour Manly ferry, the "South Steyne"....
See further down for details....
Want to hear and see the band playing....?
Log onto this URL...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rw9vPCaRl_g&feature=related&noredirect=1


First up...Seasons Greetings to all of you from DQ.....
I took along my camera for the evening and left the banjo during several numbers to take a few snaps of the band.....
Stroll through them with me....
Left click on the images to enlarge them....
The band readies to practice....


Cliff plays the electric banjo that he built himself.....
Paul Baker, Cliff Parsons and Bill Maclean did most of the lead melody playing....
Makirum and Shardyn....
Tayzin on trombone....
John Bates, tuba...Stephan Simmonds and Ed Condran.....
Ed Condran and John Packham..
Gary McFetridge and Barry Graham, foreground. Gary played some lead and Barry sang several items...
I've arranged for the band to play on the wharf, weather permitting beside the former Sydney Harbour ferry, the "South Steyne"...permanently moored now in Darling Harbour, beside the old Pyrmont Bridge...more timing details later.
The date is Wednesday 22nd February 2012....
As well, we're pleased to have Ted Gerome, prominant player from the Pittsburgh Band Club and who was instrumental in setting up the SBB back in Sydney for three months...he'll be at our next few rehearsals and possibly the Australian Jazz Convention in Bundaberg over Christmas/New Year...
I collected Ted from Sydney airport Thursday morning, by a quirk of fate he missed the rehearsal by half a day....



Saturday 29 October 2011

JAZZ.!!.Banjo...!!!- The Sydney Banjo band had a rehearsal on Wed.26th October and the next rehearsal is Wed.30th November... a great evening of toe tappin' music....

Recently...Wed.26th October the Sydney Band Band held another rehearsal with 13 banjos playing and John Bates on tuba and Jim Morrell on snare drum for some rhythm and timing....
Once again the staff at Club Ashfield assisted...thanks to Amanda O'Grady....with some dates and no charge for the room.
We meet in the first floor Bistro/Function area, many getting there about 6pm to have a light meal and drink with the rehearsal starting around 6.45pm.
We play till 9pm with a short break midway.....
There is usually a small audience and their attendance is welcomed and appreciated..if you've stumbled onto our site and can get to Club Ashfield why not come along for some toe tappin' music...
See further down for details to the Club....
I've posted some photos I took during the evening...by no means complete as I'm playing myself as is obvious by the lone banjo on a seat....
Left click on the images to enlarge them...
Got a banjo, acoustic guitar, ukulele, mandolin?
Come join us...we provide the chord sheets for the songs we play...we have lead melody players and the abilities of those we cater for are from beginners to professional...
Many play in paid jazz bands...something to aspire to...
If you don't try you will always wonder.....
This is the last rehearsal this year and I'll be looking for a date in January...I'll keep you informed....
Some of us will attend the 66th Australian Jazz Convention at Bundaberg, Queensland, playing in various jazz bands and I've entered the Sydney Banjo Band in the convention so we will be playing several sets and some impromptu jam sessions through the week. 
Lance Maguire from Brisbane will be the main melody lead banjo and he and I have prepared some 50 tunes to play from and I'll have chord books available covering these for all to play from....
When..?
26th December to 31st December.....
See...



Main melody leads for the evening were Paul Baker, left and Cliff Parson, RHS.....
David English, foreground and Ed Condran....
Ed, David...Bev Long and John Packham....
Shardyn and Makirum .........


Stephan Simmonds with Ed Condran...
Jim Morrell with John Bates behind his tuba.....
Cliff Parsons with John Wilson down from Newcastle...still recovering from an illness he played several melody leads on the night and brought his trumpet to assist in some numbers....


Hugo Pfandler with his White Swallow tenor.....
White Swallow banjos had a stand at the Merimbula Jazz Festival in June 2000...DQ admires one...proprietor and manufacturer, Alan Funk stands to the left....
Gary McFetridge......
As mentioned in the previous blog....Bill Maclean posted some videos on Youtube....




Club Ashfield....
A bit of banjo information and miscellania....
On eBay some years back was a "banjo playing machine"...the photos tell it all....





Below ...a Gibson "Delta Queen" tenor banjo


Below, a Gibson "Oriental" plectrum banjo...



Monday 26 September 2011

JAZZ.!!.Banjo...!!!- The Sydney Banjo band had a rehearsal on Wed.21st September and the next rehearsals are Wed. 26th October and Wed.30th November... a great evening of toe tappin' music....

I'm a bit late getting this post up...apologies all...
Yes the Sydney Banjo Band rehearsal the other Wed.evening 21st September went off well....
Bill Maclean posted some YouTube footage from the night....
Paul Baker played melody lead with Cliff Parsons and we were pleased to see Bill Maclean up from the Bega area on the far south coast of NSW to come again and he featured on lead several times as well.
The three younger player, Shardyn ( pictured at the front above) with his brother Makirum, centre behind him played banjo and their other brother Tayzin who also is a banjoist played trombone alongside our tuba player John Bates, himself a trombone player in the Bridge City Jazz band and Paul Furniss' San Francisco JB. John Bates is currently tutoring Tayzin on trombone.
I brought along some additional songs than those in our usual repertoire .."Sailing Down the Chesapeake Bay" a rollaking riverboat tune, "Paddlin' Madeline Home" etc that Paul Baker played with relish for us singing accompaniment as well.
Paul Plays as mentioned as a front line player in Paul Furniss' San Francisco JB and they played last Sunday at Cronulla RSL club where I took this photo of him playing his special Vegavox Ultra...
As mentioned the SBB is entered in the 66th Australian Jazz Convention at Bundaberg, Queensland in the week over the Christmas New Year period and if you are looking in to our site, play a banjo and are attending the convention, come find me there and play along with us in the allocated sets for the band. I'll have all the chord charts...we'll be primarily lead by Lance McGuire from Brisbane...
Lance is pictured below, centre with John Packham, standing and DQ sitting to the right at the Adelaide Jazz Convention in 2001.
Left click on the photos to enlarge them...
At the rehearsal Cliff Parson brought along an electric banjo he'd made up from parts and played it for us...an interesting concept...

Paul Baker has a rest, Cliff Parson,centre and Bill Maclean get into it with John Packham,rear right and Ed Condran joining in.
Where are our next rehearsals and where? Wed. 26th October and Wed. 30th November at Club Ashfield where we play in the bistro/function area on the first floor of the Cub...6.45pm to 9pm, but most of us come around 6pm and some eat in the bistro.
The Club is right beside the Ashfield railway station at 5 Charlotte St., Ashfield...see the map at the end of this post...
I've decided to feature some items from banjo catalogues and material in my collection...
The following is from a 1926 Vega Catalogue and features a Vega Professional model banjo...


Want to see a real one in action....?
Photo below shows us at a banjo jam at John Wilson's place in 2008...DQ on a 1960 Vegavox Ultra plectrum, John Wilson, centre, on a 1928 Vega Artist tenor and Ted Gerome from the Pittsburgh Banjo Club, USA, with John's Vega Professional tenor as in the catalogue..



Friday 26 August 2011

The Sydney Banjo Band had a rehearsal on Wed.24th August, with another scheduled for Wed. 21st September..a brief pictorial look at the August rehearsal night....

Last Wednesday the 24th August saw the Sydney Banjo Band meet at Club Ashfield for a rehearsal.
It was pleasing to see John Wilson be able to attend...medical issues have kept him at home for several months. He came with a Vegavox tenor and a trumpet and used both to good effect.
Bev Long came again from down the south coast area as did John Packham and a pleasant surprise with Bill McLean from Merimbula visiting for his first time.
We had a small audience and 15 musicians.....
Paul Baker assisted by Cliff Parsons again took the lead and John Wilson filled in with trumpet for some numbers.
We had john Bates on tuba and with Jim Morrell in the UK, Joel Davis, who plays occasional drums for the Bridge City Jazz Band which I run on a Friday assisted with tasteful snare drumming.
I've scheduled another rehearsal for Wed. 21st September...at the usual time.... 6pm for those intending to have a meal there with practice from 6.45pm to 9pm.
We'd like to see you there even if it is to join the audience....
Gary McFetridge with John Wilson in the background...
John Wilson and Bev Long...John Bates on tuba....
Bill McLean with Paul Baker.....
Joel Davis on drums....
Stefan Simmonds and Bill McLean....
You don't have to be old to play banjo....
Club Ashfield, 5 Charlotte Street, Ashfield...beside Ashfield railway station on the northern side.