The Southeast Community Concert Band is in the midst of another successful season, bringing together musicians.
The band, now in its third year, is home to approximately 60 members, ranging from all ages and backgrounds.
"It's really cool to see. We've got students sitting beside teachers, sitting beside seniors and parents and business people, you name it," says Kelsey Zimmerman, a member of the board and one of the ensemble’s conductors. "We've even had a band baby present for some of our rehearsals. Our bassoonist, she's one of the band directors in the group, Kiera, she recently had a baby and she's joined us with the baby sometimes, so that's incredibly adorable. I couldn't say it was not a little bit distracting, but extremely adorable."
Zimmerman first joined the band as a baritone saxophone player and has since taken on a leadership role, conducting alongside other experienced directors.
"This past year, I just said, ‘Hey, I'm a band director too, can I join in on the fun?’ And yeah, they've let me take a spot on the podium, so I get to conduct a little bit alongside the other wonderful directors there too."
The group kicked off the season back in September and has been going strong ever since. The joy of playing together every Thursday evening is something Zimmerman looks forward to each week.
"It's such a supportive and uplifting environment to be in when you can just leave everything at the door and make music with like-minded people for an hour and a half every Thursday," she shares. "And it started off literally day one like that in September, and we've been going ever since and it’s such a lovely time."
The band recently had the opportunity to learn from guest clinician Matt Abraham, a well-known band director and percussionist from Winnipeg.
"This past February, we brought in a clinician to work with our ensemble on some fundamentals, but most of all, two of our current pieces of music," says Zimmerman. "It was a really great time. Time always seems to fly in those workshops. We're all eager to learn and improve, and it's just so inspiring and helpful, honestly, to be directed by a fresh mentor and get their musical take and their perspective on things."
As a volunteer-based group, the band members commit their time and energy simply for the joy of making music. Bringing in professionals like Abraham is one way they continue to refine their skills and grow as musicians.
"We have so many wonderful educators and mentors in the music and band world in our province," Zimmerman says. "It's just such a great opportunity to get to learn from them, so we love to learn. We're always eager to improve our sound and our musicianship, and you might as well take advantage of the wonderful talent that we have in the province and get better."
Looking ahead, the band's spring concert is set for April, and Zimmerman encourages anyone interested to come see the group in action.
"I'd say it's probably best at this point to take a bit of time, come check out our concert that's coming up in April. You can always reach out through our website or our social media. But yeah, our season’s kind of partway through now, we finish up after the concert in April. But come September, we'll be starting up a new season and we'd love to have anybody that's interested."
For Zimmerman, the Southeast Community Concert Band is more than just a place to play music, it’s a fulfilling, welcoming space where people come together to create something special.
"Such a wonderful place to be. I look forward to every Thursday evening. It's just a time to leave everything at the door and make music, and you just leave there so fulfilled and satisfied, it's lovely."
To learn more about the Southeast Community Concert Band, their upcoming performances, and how to get involved in future seasons, visit their website or follow them on social media.
With files from Adi Loewen