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Millennium celebrations.

To: <brass-band@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: Millennium celebrations.
From: "cdlord" <cdlord@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Wed, 5 Jan 2000 22:30:10 +1100
Priority: low
Reply-to: brass-band@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Dandenong and Brunswick combined to make up one big brass band for
Melbourne's  New Year's Eve celebrations.Composer Richard Mills wrote a
superb 15 minute work to accompany the Fireworks, with the State Orchestra,
a two hundred voice choir and numerous pipers all on a C.D. This was played
on the night at Midnight, with the brass bands, the choir and more pipers
live on the main stage at Southgate playing in synch with the C.D. at the
same time, not to mention an army of brass players along the roof of
Flinders st station and a group of fanfare trumpeters on the balcony of
Melbourne Concert Hall across the river. All this in front of over 500,000
people jammed into Southgate like sardines.This as you can appreciate was an
organiser's nightmare and while it went off without a hitch on the night,
the rehearsal on the Wednesday night was a disaster!
	      It was freezing cold, we hung around for nearly an hour
waiting to get started and then when we finally got on the stage ( a large
pontoon on the actual river!) they were having all sorts of trouble
communicating with the C.D. operator ( relaying info through three different
people with headsets) . The fanfare trumpeters and brass players on the
station roof didn't have a clue what was going on but they could hear
Richard talking into his microphone (He was conducting us on the main stage)
so they just played along when they could.  The final straw came when they
brought the choir onto the stage to rehearse the whole thing . Their weight
on the back of the stage was too much and it tipped up at the front , almost
depositing some of the choir into the river and scaring the bejeesus out of
the rest of us. We evacuated the stage with all the speed of a band heading
to the bar after a contest and stood around waiting again while they checked
it out. Finally they decided to put the choir on the riverside walkway and
leave the band only on the stage with the pipers. By this stage it was
nearly 11 o'clock  so we only got one run through and went home hoping it wo
uld be all right on the night, which thankfully it was.
	    Richard's music was great, the fireworks were awesome and it was
fantastic to be part of a community band involved in such a huge event. An
unforgettable experience in more ways than one!
Regards,
Colin Lord,
Musical Director,
City of Greater Dandenong Band
Melbourne, Australia.


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