Nipissing hits the right note with 22 Wing Band
By Leah Misener, student writer
Nipissing University has always fostered a deep connection with its community. The university is also home to some serious musical talent. With that in mind, the connection between the university and one of the region’s finest bands, the CFB 22 Wing Band, is a match made in music heaven.
Since its beginnings as a small concert band launched by Warrant Officer Chip Kean in 1989, the 22 Wing Band has grown to include over 65 members, putting on 35 performances each year as a full concert band and/or special ensembles. Composed of brass, woodwind and percussion instruments, the band is an outlet for musicians from all walks of life. Students, staff, and faculty at Nipissing readily volunteer their time to practice and perform.
Many of the students in the band are also a part of the applied music program at Nipissing, like Natasha Strachan. “I love playing in the band,” she says. “Not only do I get university credit for my experience, but I also get the chance to practice and improve my skills.”
Students in the applied music program audition for the band and are chosen based on skill and ability; only the best musicians in the music program are chosen.
Mary Thornton, instructor in Nipissing’s applied music program, plays bass clarinet and B-flat clarinet with the 22 Wing. After teaching for 34 years at a high school in the area, she joined the band in 2001 as a full-time member. “Students are being exposed to a high-calibre band experience," she states. "There are many seasoned performers in the band who can pass on their expertise.”
The 22 Wing Band is the incubator for the next generation of musicians in the community, and in the age of digital music recording, is still an art form unsurpassed by technological advances.
“The live performance is the end result, but the work that goes into that performance is months and months long,” says Thornton, “The responsibility and dedication to preparing live music is a valuable experience that translates to every facet of a musician’s life. Playing live music- there’s just nothing like it.”
The 22 Wing Band gives performances frequently in the North Bay community. There is a yearly concert at the Capital Centre, as well as military tattoos, Remembrance Day celebrations, and performances in collaboration with concert bands from the various high schools in the area.