The

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 ...

has been known as the City of Sydney Youth Concert Band, City of Sydney Bicentennial Concert Band, The City of Sydney Concert Band, City of Sydney Wind Ensemble and is now known as Sydney Wind Symphony, one of the leading amateur wind ensembles in the Sydney metropolitan region.

History

In 1984, Victor Grieve approached the

Sydney City Council The City of Sydney is the local government area covering the Sydney central business district and surrounding inner city suburbs of the greater metropolitan area of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Established by Act of Parliament in 1842 ...

with a view to forming a Youth Band to celebrate the International Year of Youth, under the patronage and sponsorship of the City Council. The City of Sydney Youth Concert Band was formed in February of that year, 65 players being selected from the Sydney Metropolitan area. During 1984 the band performed with great distinction performing at the

Sydney Town Hall The Sydney Town Hall is a late 19th-century heritage-listed town hall building in the city of Sydney, the capital city of New South Wales, Australia, housing the chambers of the Lord Mayor of Sydney, council offices, and venues for meetings a ...

and the

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Sydney. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive buildings and a masterpiece of 20th-century archit ...

. With the support of the Sydney Council it was agreed that the band should continue on at the end of International Year of Youth as the "City of Sydney Bicentennial Concert Band". New auditions were held, and from 350 applicants, 70 players were selected. The group have given many concerts, including Sydney Town Hall, the Sydney Opera House,

Darling Harbour Darling Harbour is a harbour adjacent to the city centre of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia that is made up of a large recreational and pedestrian precinct that is situated on western outskirts of the Sydney central business district. Orig ...

and all over 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 ...

. The objectives or aim of the band were to give public performances in the months leading up to and during Bicentennial Year (1988). The band was proud to visit the sister city of

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city status in the United Kingdom, city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is admi ...

, England in 1987 and to take part in the British Celebrations commemorating the sailing of the First Fleet to Australia in 1787 and performed with distinction in the presence of Her Majesty the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, as part of a hectic two week tour of the United Kingdom and France. The Band also travelled to sister city

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

(USA),

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, maki ...

(Canada) and

Nagoya is the largest city in the Chūbu region, the fourth-most populous city and third most populous urban area in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020. Located on the Pacific coast in central Honshu, it is the capital and the most p ...

(Japan). From 1989 the ensemble, described in 1992 as "the musical voice of our city" by Alderman

Frank Sartor Francesco Ernest "Frank" Sartor AO (born 9 November 1951) is a former Australian politician who served as New South Wales Minister for Climate Change and the Environment and Minister Assisting the Minister for Health (Cancer) between 2009 and ...

Lord Mayor of Sydney The Right Honourable the Lord Mayor of Sydney is the head of the Council of the City of Sydney, which is the local government area covering the central business district of Sydney in the State of New South Wales, Australia. The Lord Mayor has be ...

, was known as The City of Sydney Concert Band and represented the city at a number of civic functions, including the Lord Mayor's charity concert, the arrival and departure of the

Queen Elizabeth 2 ''Queen Elizabeth 2'' (''QE2'') is a retired British ocean liner converted into a floating hotel. Originally built for the Cunard Line, the ship, named as the second ship named ''Queen Elizabeth'', was operated by Cunard as both a transatlanti ...

, the arrival of Her Majesty

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

and

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 1921 – 9 April 2021) was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he served as the consort of the British monarch from El ...

at Sydney Town Hall and the 60th Anniversary of the

Sydney Harbour Bridge The Sydney Harbour Bridge is a steel through arch bridge in Sydney, spanning Sydney Harbour from the central business district (CBD) to the North Shore. The view of the bridge, the harbour, and the nearby Sydney Opera House is widely regarded ...

. In 1992 it undertook a three-week European tour which included an appearance at World Expo '92 in Seville. In 1999, the concert band changed its name to the City of Sydney Wind Ensemble and continued, this time, without the sponsorship of the Council of the City of Sydney. Since 2008 the ensemble has been known as Sydney Wind Symphony.

Competitions

Sydney Wind Symphony has competed regularly in the A Grade Open Concert Band Competition and was declared National Champion in 2000 and 2004, New South Wales State Champion in 2003 and 2005 and was placed second in both the National and State competitions in 2009.

Notable performances

Performances of note include: * World Expo '92 Seville * Australia National Day celebrations in 1992 * Visit of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh * Host City announcement for the

2000 Olympic Games The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

* Centenary of Federation Parade * Lord Mayor's Charity Concert * 60th Anniversary of the

* Various Australia Day Celebrations, World Cup ticket matches and many more.

Concert tours

* UK & France, 1987 * Japan * Canada * USA *

, Japan, 1990 *

Ayers Rock Uluru (; pjt, Uluṟu ), also known as Ayers Rock ( ) and officially gazetted as UluruAyers Rock, is a large sandstone formation in the centre of Australia. It is in the southern part of the Northern Territory, southwest of Alice Spring ...

, Northern Territory, Australia, 1991 * Europe, 1992 * Eastern Europe, 1997

Musical directors

* Victor Grieve, City of Sydney Youth Concert Band * Victor Grieve, City of Sydney Bicentennial Band * Harold Pollard, Assistant Conductor, City of Sydney Bicentennial Band * Michael Butcher, City of Sydney Concert Band, 1989–1999 * John Buckley, The City of Sydney Wind Ensemble, 2000 * Steve Hillinger, The City of Sydney Wind Ensemble, 2001–2006 * John Buckley, Sydney Wind Symphony, 2007–2012 * Lloyd Edge, Sydney Wind Symphony, (Guest Musical Director) 2012 * Mark Brown, Sydney Wind Symphony, (Guest Musical Director) 2012 * Mark Brown, Sydney Wind Symphony, 2013–present

References

External links

City of Sydney Youth Festival Concert Band Concert Advertisement, The Sydney Morning Herald, 28 April 1985

Sydney Wind Symphony, Mosman Council Photograph 26 October 2008

Sydney Wind Symphony Official WebsiteBand Association of New South Wales, State Concert Championships 2010
{{authority control Australian orchestras Music in Sydney