|
These
Flash buttons do work. They just need to be clicked twice!
|
||
The
News of the Victory
Barn
dance and ceilidh band
Electric ceilidh for the mind and body
(Henry,
Steve, John, Derek, Mark, Ivan)
The News of the Victory is a ceilidh, or barn dance band. When we were at school we called it "country dancing". The News of the Victory plays old and unaccredited tunes, rock classics and original music. English traditional social dance supports a variety of musical styles. The majority of the musicians who have performed with The News of the Victory since its earliest days have been drawn from a background in classical, rock or jazz although one or two of them rightly claim to be more experienced in playing traditional folk. Current membership of the band draws musicians from across Norfolk, Cambridgeshire and Suffolk and often France via Switzerland. Former members of the band now live in places as far afield as Germany, Ireland Australia, the USA and ... Reading.
Derek Paice, who began and still leads the band, composes or arranges the music. A proud feature of the sound of The News of the Victory is the outstanding musicianship. The structured improvisations in live performance often produce exciting new readings of the material. In that way the band makes a vital contribution to the live arrangements. We play for ceilidhs or barn dances, including public functions and festivals as well as private celebrations (lots of weddings, birthdays and anniversaries). We play for fund-raising events such as school p.t.a. functions and cluster country dance events with hoards of school pupils. Of course, we love playing for more experienced dancers too. We've played for ceilidhs at folk festivals and morris dance weekends. However, to save us all time, please note that we don't play Irish music and we don't do Scottish country dances or reeling. Other bands specialise in those traditions. We have often been told that our music is as enjoyable for listeners as it is for those who get out on the dance floor. We're too polite to contradict. Our music is rocky, jazzy, trancey, melodic, folky, occasionally funky and sexy, always fun. Should such an overdose of epithets render description meaningless we like the wonderful poster mis-spelling we once attracted - "English Collider Band"! If none of this makes any sense there's plenty to listen to here. Enjoy!