Polkas were never a staple of the St. Albert Community Concert Band – until this year.
The 90-piece band is slated to unofficially open their season at the St. Albert Farmers’ Market on Saturday, Sept. 26 with a free public concert.
Inspired by their epic Austrian-German music tour this past July, the musicians will feature several light-on-the-feet polkas among an eclectic roster of marches, light classics, show tunes and movie themes.
Under the leadership of Dr. Angela Schroeder, the band departed July 14 to participate in the 18th edition of the Mid-Europe Music Festival held in Schladming, Austria.
It is one of Europe’s most important international festivals for wind bands. This year it drew thousands of musicians from 15 countries worldwide. The St. Albert Community Band was the only Canadian representative.
The five-day festival offered bands the opportunity to present their skills, exchange ideas with fellow musicians and improve their skills in master classes.
The community band attended workshops, performed several concerts and watched other band concerts including a military “Tattoo” where 500 musicians performed melodies ranging from traditional marches to movie scores.
“There was one group from Asia – an all-girls ensemble. They were incredible. It started to rain during their performance and they just kept going,” said publicity director/trumpeter Colleen Dec.
Many community band musicians such as Donald Heitzman were astonished by the warm reception of the Austrian population.
“I felt like a rock star in Schladming on the street. The locals were so excited about band music; it was a totally different experience from Canada. Hearing all of the amazing music and then having everyone as excited as I was to hear it, well, that was an eye-opener for me,” Heitzman said.
Later, in Vienna, the group took walking tours, sipped wine at many outdoor cafes and visited sumptuous churches and cathedrals.
“Every church we went into had gold leaf and stained glass windows. There’s such a sense of history and preservation over there. Here it’s all about modernization. It’s like night and day,” Dec noted.
One of the most breathtaking sites on tour was Schönbrunn Palace, an old former imperial summer residence with a pedigree that dates back to 1548. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
“We received special permission to play in front of it and have an outdoor concert. We sat down and started playing and people appeared from nowhere. They were standing behind us on a staircase and around the community band. To play in a place where you know empresses and emperors have walked is really something.”
The 50-odd musicians on tour also visited Mirabell Palace where scenes from the Sound of Music were filmed, paid tribute to Mozart’s birthplace and rode a funicular to perform at the mountaintop Hohensalzburg Fortress overlooking Salzburg.
The final stop on the tour was Freiburg where Musikverein Harmonie Niederschopfheim, the town’s community orchestra, hosted and performed with them.
“They treated us like royalty and hopefully in a couple of years we can set up an exchange with them.”
In summing up the tour, Dec said, “It was one of the most positive, breathtaking experiences we ever had. Thinking back about the beautiful, majestic palaces and the audiences who were so different gives me goose bumps.”
At the St. Albert Farmers’ Market on St. Anne Street, the St. Albert Community Concert Band will play two sets between 10 a.m. and 12 noon.
