Sandvikens Ungdomskorps :no:Sandvikens Ungdomskorps is an ''elite division'' amateur

wind band A concert band, also called a wind band, wind ensemble, wind symphony, wind orchestra, symphonic band, the symphonic winds, or symphonic wind ensemble, is a performing ensemble consisting of members of the woodwind, brass, and percussion famil ...

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. The band was constituted on 1 July 1923 by a group of boys too old to play in the

school band A school band is a group of student musicians who rehearse and perform instrumental music together. A concert band is usually under the direction of one or more conducting, conductors (band directors). A school band consists of woodwind instrum ...

Sandviken Sandviken is a locality and the seat of Sandviken Municipality in Gävleborg County, Sweden with 26,438 inhabitants in 2023. It is situated about 25 km west of Gävle and lies approximately 190 km north of Stockholm. The rail journey t ...

, Bergen. The school band is now gone, but Sandvikens Ungdomskorps has grown to be one of the leading wind bands in Norway. The band is a member of Norges Musikkorps Forbund (the Norwegian band association, NMF), and participates each year in the Norwegian championships for wind bands in

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...

. In 2011 the band won gold in the Norwegian championships for the first time, conducted by :no:Tormod Flaten, marginally better than

Dragefjellets Musikkorps Dragefjellets Musikkorps, also known as the Bergen Symphonic Band is an ''elite division'' amateur wind band in Bergen, Norway. It traces its beginnings from 1909 as the band at the Dragefjellet School. On 1 September 1914 it was formed as Norway ...

. Read

NRK The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (), commonly known by its initialism NRK, is a Norwegian state-run, government-influenced radio and television public broadcasting company. The NRK broadcasts three national TV channels and thirteen nat ...

's winner article here, NMF's winner article here, and BT's winner article here. The band also won 1st place in Jan-Am 2011 in

Stavanger Stavanger, officially the Stavanger Municipality, is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the third largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the ...

, in addition to the price for best soloist to Asbjørn Haukeland on

marimba The marimba ( ) is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars that are struck by mallets. Below each bar is a resonator pipe that amplifies particular harmonics of its sound. Compared to the xylophone, the mari ...

, and the audience reward the same year. Sandvikens Ungdomskorps has a wide profile, is an active member of the community in Sandviken, marching the streets on 17 May ( Norway's constitution day), participates each year in the national championship, holds a

flea market A flea market (or swap meet) is a type of street market that provides space for vendors to sell previously owned (secondhand) goods. This type of market is often seasonal. However, in recent years there has been the development of 'formal' ...

each year, and holds social activities with its members. The members come from all of Bergen, and ages range from youth's in school to ripe adults. The band usually show off their own soloists on

concert A concert, often known informally as a gig or show, is a live performance of music in front of an audience. The performance may be carried by a single musician, in which case it is sometimes called a recital, or by a musical ensemble such as an ...

s, but also have a history of playing with different musical legends in Norway. Sandvikens Ungdomskorps has close ties to the Bow Corps in Bergen, especially to :no:Dræggens Buekorps, and participates on celebrations of their foundation day and other events held by the Bow Corps. Sandvikens Ungdomskorps has also published a cd with the only complete collection of Bow Corps marches from Bergen, named ''Buekorpsmarsjene''. In many years the band has held concerts in

Grieghallen Grieg Hall () is a 1,500 seat concert hall located on Edvard Griegs' square in Bergen, Norway, Bergen, Norway. Grieghallen was named in honor of Bergen-born composer Edvard Grieg, who served as music director of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra ...

in the autumn, and is active in the cultural life in Bergen playing music and marching the streets. The Grieghallen concert in 2009 was about the best Bergen song, the winner was Utsikt fra Fløyen. Two very popular groups in the band is ''Nikkersgjengen'' ( Knickerbockersgang) and the bottle orchestra ''Bunnen er nådd'' (We've reached the bottom). ''Nikkersgjengen'' received in 1998 the prestigious "Jonnemannprisen" award. ''Nikkersgjengen'' still exists, and the bottle orchestra comes together when needed. The band is always recruiting new players, and weighs the professionalism and commitment of their players before admission.

Conductors

Most recently Thorgeir Thunestvedt has been conducting Sandvikens Ungdomskorps, with Ray Farr stepping in during the Norwegian Championships. The band uses various conductors during different projects, and the list of conductors is getting extensive: :no:Tormod Flaten, :no:Bjørn Breistein, Helge Haukås, Bengt Florvåg, Ray Farr, Karl Ole Midtbø and Reid Gilje. The last years, the band has cooperated with the

Grieg Academy The Grieg Academy () is a disputed historical term used to refer to the higher education music programs in Bergen, Norway (birthplace of composer Edvard Grieg), as well as various collaborations across music institutions in Bergen. However, since 2 ...

, letting the conductor students conduct Sandvikens Ungdomskorps as part of their final exams.

Repertoire

Sandvikens ungdomskorps varies the repertoire from year to year. Lately new music has been in focus but also the traditional and march pieces is played. On the national day and special occasions, the band always plays their own march piece Sandviksgutten where the band on occasions sing a verse:
''Hør trompetsignaler klinge, Sandviksgutter i Giv Akt!''
''Vi musikken frem vil bringe og om korpset vårt stå vakt!''
''Stadig fremad vil vi vinne for de nye mål og nå, og i glans vår sak skal skinne.''
''Frem for S.U.K!'' Translation
''Hear the trumpet signals sound, Sandviken Boys at attention!''
''We will bring the music forward and stand guard over the band!''
''Ever forward, we will win and reach new goals, and proudly our cause will shine.''
''Forwards S.U.K!''

Merits

* 2022 - 9th place in 2nd division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands * 2019 - 12th place in the 1st division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands * 2018 - 9th place in the 1st division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands * 2017 - 9th place in the elite division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands * 12 March 2016 - 6th place in the elite division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands * 21 November 2015 - 2nd place in Jan-Am * 21 March 2015 - 3rd place in the elite division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands * 22 November 2014 - 1st place in Jan-Am - Winner! * 5 April 2014 - 3rd place in the elite division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands * 16 March 2013 - 4th place in the elite division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands * 10 November 2012 - 1st place in Jan-Am - Winner! * 23 March 2012 - 3rd place in the elite division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands * 12 November 2011 - 1st place in Jan-Am - Winner! * 9 April 2011 - 1st place in the elite division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands - Winner! * 20 March 2010 - 8th place in the elite division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands * 28 March 2009 - 8th place in the elite division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands * 8 March 2008 - 7th place in the elite division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands * 24 March 2007 - 5th place in the elite division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands * 1 April 2006 - 9th place in the elite division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands * 12 March 2005 - 7th place in the elite division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands * 27 March 2004 - 8th place in the elite division in the Norwegian championships for wind bands

Publishings

* CD - ''Ka e’ det mot Bergen'' * CD - ''Buekorpsmarsjene'', 1988 * CD - ''Hilsen fra Bergen'', 1991 * Paper - ''Sandvikens skolekorps 25-årsberetning : <1908-1933> og Sandvikens ungdomskorps 10-årsberetning <1923-1933>'' / ''Sandvikens skolekorps'' - Handelstrykkeriet, 1933 * Article - ''Litt om Sandvikens ungdomskorps'' (In: ''Sandvikens dag'' Sunday 23 May 1948, page. 9-10) * Book - Gjerstad, J.: ''Hør trompetsignaler klinge : Sandvikens ungdomskorps 1923-1998.'' - Sandvikens ungdomskorps, 2001 * Performance - ''Norwegian championships 2008'' * Performance - ''Norwegian championships 2009''NRK Nett-TV
"Sandvikens Ungdomskorps"
''NRK'', 2009-06-25

References

External links

Official website (norwegian)

History of official results in the norwegian championships for wind bands (norwegian)

Official score sheets norwegian championships for wind bands 2011 (norwegian)
{{Authority control Wind bands Concert bands Musical groups from Bergen Musical groups from Hordaland Organisations based in Bergen