Rehearsal Camps
For over twenty years, Westgate Concert Band held their annual band camp at DOXA in Malmsbury.
Roy scoped out the venue back in 1978 for Braybrook High School’s first music camp, and it was soon to become home to Westgate as well. Roy recalled several attributes that made holding a music camp at DOXA appealing: the magical setting, the large rehearsal areas, the reasonable cost, and camp personnel.
Westgate Concert Band’s music camp was traditionally held in winter to allow for a concentrated rehearsal period in the lead up to the competition or, later, festival seasons. Band members would travel to the camp on a Friday evening (often packed into a minibus) and utilise all possible opportunities to play until we departed on Sunday afternoon. The jam-packed rehearsal schedule not only allowed the band to practice together as a whole, but time was also allotted to sectional rehearsals where trouble spots could be worked on in smaller groups.
“Finally, let me share this personal story about my colleague and friend, the amazing musical talents of whom I have enjoyed on many of the camps. He has perfected the art of waking the camp on trombone. His choice of music is always humorous. His presentation is downright comical, unless you are being rudely awakened… The reactions to his thoughtful renditions are often complaining, sometimes threatening! But its all part of the fun of having a bush camp experience at Malmsbury.”
Intense musical preparation was only half of the DOXA equation. Rehearsal camps also provided a unique opportunity for band members to socialise and bond as a group. Saturday nights were given over to organised social activities including balloon popping, flour-faced food eating, ‘what happens in a dark tunnel’ and limbo, which always led to plenty of laughter.
Westgate Youth Band was also to perform for the Opening of the extensions to the camp in December 1981 and at Fun Runs during the late 70s/early 80s, while the Westgate Saxophone Ensemble provided music for the Christmas in July event at the DOXA Social Club in 1998.
In 2006, DOXA was undergoing refurbishment and Westgate Concert Band was finally forced to find an alternative venue, leading us to Anglesea Recreation Camp. This YMCA facility contained several large rooms to accommodate our rehearsals and sectional breakouts. We continued holding camps in the middle of winter, however as the ‘Festival of the Bands’ came to a close, and our ‘Broadway and Beyond’ spectacular gained momentum, camp was shifted to the end of May and our splendid vocalists invited to join us.
The social elements remained a core feature of rehearsal camp at Anglesea and the Saturday night entertainment was also upgraded with the times. Year after year, Westgate campers would now battle it out in a ‘Spicks and Specks’ themed evening, showing off their music trivia knowledge and prowess in other assorted music-associated skills and puzzles, all for a glorious trophy and year-long bragging rights.