The Yass Valley Concert Band will be performing an Afternoon of Fine Music at the Yass High School Hall on the 27th of August, from 2-4:30 pm. The performance is in support of the Yass Hospital Auxiliary, with all funds from ticket sales going directly towards projects and equipment for the Hospital Auxiliary.
The afternoon will feature band concert performances, as well as soloist performances from Alice Giles, Gilian Pereira, Julie O’Connor, Rachel McNally and more.
Manager and Secretary of the band Robin Winterflood spoke to the Yass Valley Times about what to expect from the day, as well as what motivated the band to get involved with the Hospital Auxiliary.
She said, “As a band, we just decided we would put this concert on to raise money for something local. We decided on the hospital auxiliary because it’s a good thing to support. We didn’t want to make it a concert for the band, the band can promote itself, but it makes money for something like a charity. We are just a community band and it’s good to do something for the community”, said Robin,
“Every ticket sold goes towards the auxiliary – All proceeds go to the Yass Hospital, we’re not taking any cent of this”.
Starting at 2 pm, the band will first conduct a full band performance, followed by an intermission break for food and socialising, with the remainder of the afternoon featuring soloist performances.
“We’ll be playing a mixture of music that is sometimes classical, with some of the band doing some of its own soloist performances. There’ll be a short intermission, in which they hope to have catering, with the rest of the afternoon featuring soloists”, said Robin.
The band currently consists of 34 members.
Performing soloists featured include Rachel McNally, a vocalist and member of the band In2Deep specialising in Jazz and Funk music, as well as Gillian Pereira, a graduate of ANU School of Music and teacher of 20 years, specialising in cellist performances and performing in groups such as the Canberra Symphony Orchestra, the Canberra Bach Ensemble, Earthly Delights, Camerata Australia, the Young Australian Concert Artists program and also the Australian Youth Orchestra, with recent collaborations including the Riverina Chamber Orchestra.
Other soloists joining include Julie O’Connor from Young, with a background in theatre and nominated for ‘Best Actress’ and ‘Best Supporting Actress’ in the Canberra Area Theatre Awards, as well as a history of performances in ‘The Country Halls Tour’, ‘The Choir of The Southern Cross’ and the ‘Monash’, as well as soloist performances at the Opera At the Dish in Parkes.
Joining them is Alice Giles, who is celebrated as one of the world’s leading harpists. First Prize winner, currently serving as Director of the Seven Harp Ensemble, Artistic Director of the non-profit company Harp Centre Australia and she was Artistic Director of the World Harp Congress Sydney 2014. Alice is currently a Lecturer at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.
“We’re just looking forward to playing well and hopefully bringing people along to support it, we’d love to see as many people as possible, as well as promoting our local musicians and what we do locally within the shire”, said Robin,
“If there’s anybody out there that’s played in any sort of concert band, we’d love to see you rock up for rehearsals after the concert, we’re always looking”.
Tickets are available online through Humanitix, with various ticketing prices including families, concessions and more.
Griffin Palen
