Darrall Cutting

When we lived in Inverell in the early 1960s, my father became interested in the local brass band after watching a street parade, so he and I joined the band and began learning cornet together. In 1961 my father's search for work led the family to Dubbo and Gilgandra. We joined Dubbo Band and were trained by the legendary Cobber Burnett (who is still going strong). Gilgandra Band was our next stop, conducted by the urbane Dicky Bird. I remember this Band for its friendliness and ultra-suave uniform in chocolate and beige that we helped to design.

In 1964 we moved to Newcastle. After checking out several of the local brass bands, my father and I decided to join the Newcastle Transport Band, which practiced in the city bus depot with Bandmaster, Edgar Huntley, and was supported by the bus drivers who each donated sixpence per week to the Band. Since there were plenty of cornet players already, my father and I both took up the baritone. Since then I've played just about every brass band instrument. Music we played in those early days mainly consisted of arrangements of classical works, and musicals such as Okalahoma.

We stayed with NTB for many years as the Band steadily improved and moved up the grades with a succession of bandmasters, culminating in Michael Golding, a local school music teacher proficient in conducting, singing and the piano. The Band now progressed in leaps and bounds, my father becoming Drum Major and a hard task master on the parade ground! Michael uniquely expanded our repertoire with arrangements of popular music in which he sang, played the piano and conducted the Band simultaneously!

In 1971 after I arranged a few concerts at Kahibah Bowling Club, they were taken with our proposal to sponsor the Band. Thus we left the bus depot and became Kahibah Bowling Club Brass Band, and on to become the premier A-Grade Brass Band in the Hunter region. In 1974 Michael Golding moved to Brisbane and KBCBB appointed a new Musical Director, Richard Anderson. I played a variety of instruments: euphonium, baritone and tenor horn over the next 15 years. I also took over as conductor of the Junior Band for a few years.

In 1986 my family moved to Sydney at the "request" of my employer, AGL. I looked around for a brass band to join, and after a year with Blacktown Band, settled on the Terrey Hills Brass Band, conducted by Jack Saunders. This was a very young band, more enthusiastic than proficient, but very friendly and a lot of fun. Inevitably, I ended up on the Committee, and was lumbered with the thankless job of Treasurer. I am still Treasurer (and still thankless!)

We all progressively improved our standard from the lowest D-Grade up to the exalted A-Grade in 1997. This achievement is due to our steady performance at every band contest we were able to enter: the National Championships at various capital cities every Easter, the NSW State Championships in September, and often the Hunter Contest in Newcastle. After a stint on baritone again, I taught myself the trombone, and found the perfect instrument for my talents; the trom makes a lot of noise and plays very few semiquavers!

In 1997 as Warringah Concert Brass, the Band competed for the first time in A-Grade at the National Championships in Newcastle, and achieved an amazing 4th out of 11 A-Grade bands! Then in 1999 WCB celebrated its 25th Anniversary and the baton was passed to John Saunders, Jack's son, a musician with the NSW Police Band, and oftentimes winner of euphonium championships. We hosted in July 2001 the Orchestre de Cuivre d'Amiens, a French brass band from the Somme, performing joint concerts at the Manly Corso and Dee Why RSL to sellout audiences. It was a great experience billeting the players and experimenting with my schoolboy French, which proved to be unintelligible.

I've notched up 44 years continuous membership with the NSW Band Association, and over 30 years singing tenor in choirs. I guess love of classical and brass band music is central to my life and I can't bear to be without it for too long. Even on our trip to England recently, I managed to have a blow on trombone with one of the top English brass bands, a marvellous yet daunting experience. Most of the players in our band are in their 20s, having played since their early teens, and we are steadily progressing under the baton of John Saunders, on our way to becoming one of the best bands in Sydney, and even Australia. Nothing for me compares with the sheer exhilaration of performing great and challenging music to appreciative audiences, be it a soaring tenor line, or a gutsy trombone riff.