Brass Band Concerts: A Summer Tradition

As a child, my parents would take us, on a Saturday or Sunday night, to hear a brass band concert at a small concert shell in a community park some few miles from my home town.  And, as a child, I could have cared less.

As a young adult, I would ask my parents if they wanted to join me going to these concerts... What a difference a few years make.

When I moved to Lubbock, I discovered there was a brass band concert here, performed by the Westwinds Brass Band http://westwindsbrassband.org/.  I got away from attending those concerts.  In the mid 1990's, when the Caprock Neighborhood Association (my neighborhood) had concerts, I, of course attended (I helped start the neighborhood association and was involved with it for several years.)

Now, and for some several years, the Westwinds Brass Band has played in the Tech Terrace http://www.techterrace.org/ neighborhood, and the last couple of years, they do one concert at Vintage Township http://www.vintagetownship.com/events.asp .  They also perform at the 4th on Broadway Street Fair http://www.broadwayfestivals.com/bfi/index.php, and they do a patriotic concert in combination with the First Methodist Church Chorale  http://www.fumc.com/ .  I do not usually get to the First Methodist Church concert, because it starts at 6 PM, and the timing is bad.  But, I love brass bands and marches and anything by John Phillip Sousa, so I make it a point to attend as many of the Westwinds Band concerts as I can.

There is a 1996 movie, "Brassed Off" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0115744/ that I have had on my Netflix http://www.netflix.com/WiHome list for a long time, which, apparently is quite unavailable.  

I also understand that there is biographical movie about John Phillip Sousa http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0045187/  which was released in 1952 (the year of my birth.)  For the record, he was born on November 6, 1854, some 98 years before I was born. When I realized this as a child, I had a certain affinity for him... I loved his stirring, patriotic music.  And felt I shared what, as a child I would not think of as a karmic connection, but as an adult, I do...

There is something rousing and stirring about listening to a brass band.  It resonates with my heart beat, and stirs me emotionally...

I am thankful I can attend the brass band concerts