Posted by Steve Marcus on March 04, 2003 at 16:15:35:
In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: Re: Stavanger Brass Band posted by Rick Denney on March 04, 2003 at 15:24:03:
Is it nice to win one of these contests? Sure.
But the more meaningful purpose of the competitions is to serve as a highly structured incentive for amateur bands to perform to their utmost ability...or to surpass their previous quality of musicianship.
Some nay sayers might object: "A true AMATEUR (defined as 'lover of') musician should be self-motivated to improve his/her performance."
Ah, but that is not the case among all such ensembles. In fact, that could be considered the difference between a "community band mentality" where some of the members are satisfied to take the horn out of the case once a week, and a competing band where each member woodsheds his/her part and LISTENS to his/her fellow musicians to perform as a tightly-knit ensemble.
It is true that some brass banders may become fanatic about the whole contesting scene, which probably prompted “Unowho’s” statement. But if the brass band competition is viewed as a constructive way for bands to grow their musicianship without animosity toward each other (camaraderie among bands seems to be prevalent at the NABBA contest, anyway), then its true purpose has been fulfilled.
My allotted time on the soapbox has expired…