Australian Army Band Kapooka on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
The Australian Army Band Kapooka (AAB-K) is a full time
The unit has 22 musicians in its ranks who serve on various on the brass and/or woodwind sections. Being primarily a
The band performs on national and historically significant holidays in the state of
military band
A military band is a group of personnel that performs musical duties for military functions, usually for the armed forces. A typical military band consists mostly of wind and percussion instruments. The conductor of a band commonly bears the tit ...
in the Australian Army
The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...
. Being a band, it is a sub-unit of the Australian Army Band , the army's official music branch. It is one of eleven military bands of the army and as the official band of the 1st Recruit Training battalion (1RTB). It performs regularly in its area of operations In U.S. armed forces parlance, an area of operations (AO) is an operational area defined by the force commander for land, air, and naval forces conduct of combat and non-combat activities. Areas of operations do not typically encompass the entire op ...
that includes Kapooka
Kapooka is a suburb in the south-west of Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia.
Kapooka is home to the Department of Defence's Blamey Barracks from where the Army Recruit Training Centre conducts its operations.
It is located on the Olympic ...
, Riverina
The Riverina
is an agricultural region of south-western New South Wales, Australia. The Riverina is distinguished from other Australian regions by the combination of flat plains, warm to hot climate and an ample supply of water for irrigation ...
, and Wagga Wagga
Wagga Wagga (; informally called Wagga) is a major regional city in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. Straddling the Murrumbidgee River, with an urban population of more than 56,000 as of June 2018, Wagga Wagga is the state's la ...
. The current director of music is Major Michael De Jonge.
In 1952, the Army Recruit Training Centre began to be been served by a full time military brass band with a composition of 12 members. It would later be known as the Royal Australian Engineers
The Royal Australian Engineers (RAE) is the military engineering corps of the Australian Army (although the word corps does not appear in their name or on their badge). The RAE is ranked fourth in seniority of the corps of the Australian Army, be ...
Band, the Royal Australian Corps of Signals
The Royal Australian Corps of Signals (RASigs) is one of the 'arms' (combat support corps) of the Australian Army. It is responsible for installing, maintaining, and operating all types of telecommunications equipment and information systems. The m ...
Band and the 1st Recruit Training Battalion Band before being given its current name.
Role
The unit has 22 musicians in its ranks who serve on various on the brass and/or woodwind sections. Being primarily a marching band
A marching band is a group of instrumental musicians who perform while marching, often for entertainment or competition. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. Most marching bands wear a uniform, ofte ...
, the AAB-K also boasts a stage band, rock band, and a jazz ensemble. The AAB-K's primary role is to support the ARTC and therefore support all recruit activities within the Kapooka Military Area.
Events
The band performs on national and historically significant holidays in the state of New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
, including Remembrance Day
Remembrance Day (also known as Poppy Day owing to the tradition of wearing a remembrance poppy) is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth member states since the end of the First World War to honour armed forces members who have died in t ...
and ANZAC Day
, image = Dawn service gnangarra 03.jpg
, caption = Anzac Day Dawn Service at Kings Park, Western Australia, 25 April 2009, 94th anniversary.
, observedby = Australia Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Cook Islands New ...
.
In 2009, the AAB-K was granted the privilege of the Freedom of the City
The Freedom of the City (or Borough in some parts of the UK) is an honour bestowed by a municipality upon a valued member of the community, or upon a visiting celebrity or dignitary. Arising from the medieval practice of granting respected ...
to Wagga Wagga
Wagga Wagga (; informally called Wagga) is a major regional city in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. Straddling the Murrumbidgee River, with an urban population of more than 56,000 as of June 2018, Wagga Wagga is the state's la ...
to commemorate its 56 years of service.
The band has also represented Australia overseas during world tours and military deployment Military deployment is the movement of armed forces and their Military logistics, logistical support infrastructure around the world.
Notable deployments and deployment forces include:
* Egyptian Rapid deployment forces
* Pakistan Armed Forces depl ...
s, really beginning with a visit to Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...
in 1990 as well as East Timor
East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-weste ...
in 2000 and 2001. As per military festivals, the band had the privilege to perform at the Basel Tattoo
Basel Tattoo is an annual military tattoo show performed by International military bands, display teams, popular musicians, and tattoo formations in Basel, Switzerland.
Since 2006, Basel Tattoo has had annual stage-arena performances within the B ...
in Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
on one occasion and the honor of performing in Tonga
Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...
as part of a combined International band for the birthday celebrations of the king. In August 2019 AAB-K premiered an original show ''Around the World in 80 minutes'' at the Dubbo Regional Theatre and Convention Centre. The show saw band members performing songs from around the world and vocalists singing songs in English as well as foreign languages.
Discography
The band bas released the following CD's: *''Un po' di tutto'' (1996) *''Stand Easy'' (2002) *''A Celebration'' (2001)See also
* The Lancer Band * Royal Australian Navy Band *Royal Australian Air Force Band
The Royal Australian Air Force Band (abbreviated as Air Force Band within Australia) is the Royal Australian Air Force's official music branch. The current commanding officer is Squadron Leader Daniel Phillips. The Director of Music is Flight Lie ...
References
{{reflist Military units and formations established in 1952 Australian military bands Musical groups established in 1952 1952 establishments in Australia