Band plays at parlour concert in '˜The Braid'

Members of Sir George White Memorial visited the Mayor to thank her and the council for support in purchasing new instruments and to promote their new CD.

Secretary Rab Glenholmes said: “Anyone connected with the running of a marching band will understand the ever rising costs involved. It is acknowledged that the uniform is the major expenditure but a close second is the cost of the instruments, be that the initial purchase or the ongoing maintenance.”

And that cost was brought into sharp fpocus this year as the band purchased a full set of eight Premier Snare Drums and a new 28” Bass Drum along with cymbals to complete the percussion ensemble. Sir George White Memorial had waited almost 18 years before they made the decision to purchase new equipment for the drum section.

That decision was made easier thanks to Mid & East Antrim Council’s Grant Support Scheme for Band Equipment.

Mr. Glenholmes added: “Marching bands are the largest cultural arts sector in Northern Ireland and it is encouraging to see our local Council set aside funds that enable bands to further develop themselves through the purchase of new equipment. “With the new drums we can enhance our concert percussion as well as give us a fresher sound when we take to the road. As the drums weigh less than the old snares we have also been able to kit out two new younger members this year allowing them to parade without the worry about the weight of the drum.”

On Saturday the band took the opportunity to personally thank the Council, and the Mayor in particular, when they visited her parlour in Ballymena and gave the Mayor a short concert performance.

“Our band also released a new CD over the summer and we recorded some of those tracks in the Braid Arts Centre so it was very appropriate that we were back in the building where it all began to thank the Mayor for the equipment grant just a few months after the CD was released,” said Mr. Glenholmes