Streetband practice sessions discontinued

At the Streetband practice session last night (10/6/10), it was decided that there was little point in continuing with the regular sessions through the Summer and possibly beyond in view of the reduced numbers now attending.

Over the last few months, strenuous efforts had been made to encourage new musicians to join the band through web marketing here and through the Streetband Twitter account and also advertising had been placed in local shops.

However, no new members have been identified over this time. Instead, unfortunately, the number of active members attending practice sessions has substantially reduced.

It was also felt that the purpose of the Streetband's existence, which had been to raise money through street collections for charity was unlikely now to be achieved because nobody had been identified able and willing to deal with the regulatory red tape which would enable the band to perform and make street collections legally.

It was suggested that perhaps, in the Autumn, there may be some musicians who would like to restart the band but that this should be best left to the individuals concerned to organise any future band sessions.

New Streetband folk music tune downloads of Cork and Bottle pub band rehearsals, Barnstaple High Street, Devon for 3rd June 2010

The new Streetband had another successful rehearsal session last night at the Cork and Bottle pub in Barnstaple High Street, North Devon and recordings of rehearsed traditional folk music tunes are now available for download to help with practicing the tunes at home.

We are still looking for new band members to join our folk music street band and, if you think you could add to our sound and would like to play traditional folk tunes in a relaxed and informal practice session with a view to playing in the streets of Devon for charity at a later date, you would be welcome to join us.

As you can see from the picture of Tim, our didgeridoo player, we welcome all acoustic instruments that add to our traditional folk music session sound and Tim with his wild outlandish whoops certainly does :-)

Rocking pub folk music band practice session Thursday evening 20/5/10 at the Cork and Bottle pub, Barnstaple, North Devon with landlady joining in

Another brilliant pub folk music band practice session last night at the Cork and Bottle, Barnstaple, North Devon! Even friendly landlady Ruth was joining in and waving her ribbons about in a really welcoming and pleasant atmosphere.

Tunes played included LNB Polka, Salmon Tails, Horses Bransle, Keel Row, the Bear Dance, Harpers Frolic, Bonny Kate, Soldiers Joy, Speed the Plough, Maguire and Pattersons, Dingle Regatta, the Nautical Medley (Portsmouth, Princess Royal and Drunken Sailor) plus several of the old Streetband tunes we used to play last year.

Additional new tunes to be practiced next week include English Country Garden, King of the Fairies, Dark Girl Dressed in Blue and Elsey's Waltz.

If you are an acoustic musician or would just like to listen to some traditional Irish and English tunes being played and practiced in a relaxed and informal pub atmosphere, you are welcome to join in our weekly band practices at the back of the Cork and Bottle, Barnstaple, North Devon. However, please check with the Cork and Bottle pub to ensure we will be there as our schedule may vary.

Our next pub folk music band practice session is on Thursday evening 28th May 2010 at the Cork and Bottle pub, Barnstaple, North Devon. Perhaps you may even see Ruth, the landlady joining in with a spot of ribbon dancing :-)

Barnstaple, Devon Streetband welcomes new band members to join in Thursday practice rehearsal folk pub music sessions at Cork & Bottle Inn, Barnstaple, Devon

If you enjoy playing traditional English, Irish, French, Swedish or whatever tunes in a friendly relaxed atmosphere you may like to join our amateur Streetband which meets most Thursdays at about 8pm for a practice / rehearsal pub session at the Cork & Bottle pub, Barnstaple, Devon.

Current instruments include acoustic guitars, a soprano sax, several djembes, a melodeon, a mandolin, a didgeridoo and a tin whistle but all instruments that fit in sympathetically will be welcomed.

So if you play accordion, dulcimer, autoharp, bagpipe, balalaika, banjo, bodhran, bouzouki, concertina, didgeridoo, djembe, drum, fiddle, violin, guitar, harmonica, harmonium, hammer dulcimer, hurdy gurdy, jew's harp, lute, mandola, mandocello, mandolin, marimbula, melodeon, smallpipes, tin whistle, oud, ukulele, washboard, flute, cello, viola, double bass or any other acoustic folk tune sympathetic instrument and are local to us we would like to hear from you.

If you would like to get an idea of the tunes we play, a good place to start is by looking at The Greene Tunebook which can be downloaded from the bottom left hand corner of Sheffield University Ceilidh Society web site (to which we are not related or affiliated). The Green Tunebook has lots of traditional tunes with chords and is a great place to start.

Our meet ups are on most Thursdays at the Cork and Bottle pub, Barnstaple High Street, from 8pm and are a cross between a rehearsal and a normal pub session. Sometimes we might spend ten minutes or more repeatedly going over a particular bit of a tune to try to get it right. At other times, we will whizz through several tunes we already know well. (Everything is done democratically and by mutual agreement.) Our practice spot is right at the back of the pub where nobody is bothered if we make the odd mistake but people can stop and listen if they want to :-)

As a band, last year, we performed at various places, including the streets of Barnstaple, collecting for the North Devon Children's Hospice but this year we have been somewhat defeated by the Local Authority red tape and so are currently in practice and rehearsal mode which we are all quite happy with at present. If somebody joins us who likes dealing with red tape and is willing to do it for us, we may be tempted to venture out again for good causes, although at the moment, following a major reorganisation, we are working quite hard to increase our tune repertoire and may still want to wait until our new tune list has settled down.

So if you are an acoustic musician seeking to join a band or a pub music session from Abbotsham, Appledore, Barnstaple, Bideford, Braunton, Bucks Mills, Clovelly, Combe Martin, Croyde, Great Torrington, Hartland, Ilfracombe, Lynmouth, Lynton, Mortehoe, Parracombe, Saunton, Simonsbath, South Molton, Westward Ho!, Woolacombe, George Nympton, Georgeham, Goodleigh, Heanton Punchardon, Horwood, Lovacott, Newton Tracy, Instow, Kentisbury, Kings Nympton, Knowstone, Landkey, Marwood, Meshaw, Molland, North Molton, Pilton, Queens Nympton, Rackenford, Rose Ash, Satterleigh, Warkleigh, Shirwell, Swimbridge, Tawstock, Trentishoe, West Down, Westleigh, Witheridge, Bittadon, Challacombe, East Anstey, Loxhore, Mariansleigh, Martinhoe, Romansleigh, Stoke Rivers, Twitchen, West Anstey, Barbrook, Chittlehampton, Chivenor, Lee, Northam, West Lynn, Yelland, Bickleton, Bradiford, Cadbury Barton, Chapleton, Clapworthy, Countisbury, Creacombe, East Ilkerton, Elstone, Ensis, Fishleigh Barton, Gunn, Halsinger, Heddon Mill, Hiscott, Lee, Lutworthy, Lydacott, Middle Marwood, Muddiford, Newton Tracy, North Buckland, Northcote, Pickwell, Spreacombe, St Johns Chapel, Trimstone, Umberleigh, Warkleigh, Watermouth, Watersmeet, Arlington, Ashford, Atherington, Berrynarbor, Bishops Nympton, Bishops Tawton, Bratton Fleming, Brayford, Brendon, Countisbury, Burrington, Chittlehamholt, Chulmleigh, Buckland, East Down, East Worlington, Filleigh, Fremington or any other place local to North Devon, why not come along to the Cork and Bottle pub, Barnstaple on a Thursday after 8pm and see if you would like to join our folk band? (If you are travelling far, it would be better to check with the Cork and Bottle first in case of a change of plans or check us out on Twitter/DevonStreetband).

Bye for now

Rob

Barnstaple based Steetband welcomes new members to join band at new practice venue in Cork and Bottle pub, Barnstaple, North Devon Thursdays after 8pm

After losing their previous band practice venue at the Reform Inn, Pilton, Barnstaple, the new North Devon based Streetband seems to have found a replacement spiritual home in the Cork and Bottle pub, Barnstaple High Street, North Devon.

Located at the back of the Cork and Bottle pub by the sitting out area, when the band met Thursday 22nd April after 8pm, the practice venue seemed ideal. It was far enough away from the main part of the pub for other customers not to be involved if they didn't want to be but accessible enough for those of the public who enjoyed listening to the Streetband practicing their blend of traditional folk tunes with bounce and verve ... and the occasional mistake :-)

Whilst it takes time for a new practice venue to settle in, it looks as if the Cork and Bottle pub, Barnstaple, North Devon will be a very satisfactory practice venue for the new Streetband band practices after 8pm Thursdays.

New members of the band who play acoustic instruments are welcome. Just come along after 8pm to the Cork and Bottle with your musical instrument, introduce yourself and join in. (Please confirm with Cork and Bottle by telephone beforehand if travelling, any distance, in case of any change to our schedule.)

Alternatively, feel free to leave a comment below and we will get back to you.

Barnstaple Streetband urgently seeks a new pub session band practice venue Thursday evenings in North Devon

In a shock announcement by the Reform Inn, Pilton, Barnstaple, the recently reconstituted new Streetband discovered with sadness that the Reform Inn's skittle alley will no longer be available for its pub session band practice on Thursday evenings for the next three months.

Well known locally for its outstanding efforts to raise money playing at street gigs for the North Devon Children's Hospice, the Streetband is now urgently looking for a pub session venue locally in the Barnstaple area to meet up and practice its repertoire of rocking traditional tunes from around the world.

So, if there is a pub or other meeting place, preferably where up to twenty band members can buy a drink while we play, and which would like to provide a practice venue for the Streetband on Thursday evenings, we would certainly like to hear from you. Just leave a message in the comments section below and we will get back to you.

Welcome to our new Streetband Rehearsals blog and an invitation to join our North Devon street band

Welcome to our new Streetband rehearsals web site and blog. Here we will be putting information about tunes we are practicing and rehearsing at our main meeting centre which is the Reform Inn Skittle Alley, Pilton, Barnstaple, North Devon and inviting musicians to join our street band.

We meet every Thursday in the skittle alley at 8pm except when it is booked for other purposes and welcome instrumentalists of all kinds who would like to join in and play with our street band.

If you play an instrument and are interested in playing simple tunes in the local streets of North Devon (wearing fancy dress), why not just come along and see us during our practice sessions and see if you would enjoy playing with us. (Please check first tel: 01271 329994 with the Reform Inn, Pilton, Barnstaple, North Devon that we are meeting the particular Thursday you are interested in to avoid a possibly wasted journey!)

At the moment we have quite a lot of drums, a few guitars, a melodeon, a whistle, possibly a cello and a soprano saxophone. To counterbalance the drums, melodic instruments are particularly welcome. Since we play in public in the streets, it is probably necessary for you to play an acoustic instrument.

The purpose of the Streetband is to fund raise for the North Devon Children's Hospice and, in it's previous form before a recent reorganisation, we were able to collect up to several hundred pounds on each midday Saturday outing. So, if you join the band, you will be helping a worthy cause.

However, a large part of the purpose of the Streetband, which is quite light-hearted, is to have fun playing simple tunes together and hopefully entertaining the general public in the process.

If you would like to introduce yourself to us, before coming along, you are welcome to leave a comment below. Just click 'Comments' below and leave your message.

By for now

Rob