Join the Band

The British Columbia Regiment Band is an unauditioned band. Feel free to drop by a rehearsal to have a listen, or sit in with your instrument.

As a civilian volunteer in a voluntary band assisting the Canadian Forces, you should expect:

not to be paid for playing or rehearsing;
to pay no fees for belonging to the Band;
to provide your own instrument;
to wear the provided uniform, when required, in a militarily-acceptable fashion;
to wear your hair above the collar (either with an appropriate haircut, or by tying it up);
to march and drill while playing in street parades or in military ceremonies (you may choose to do only "sit-down" concerts if you are prevented from marching for medical reasons); and
to find band practices to be casual and good-natured, though hard-working.

Band rehearsals take place every Monday evening, 1930-2130 (7:30PM-9:30PM) at the historic Beatty Street Drill Hall, 620 Beatty Street, Vancouver. The "Stadium/Chinatown" SkyTrain station is across the street from the Drill Hall.

From a musical perspective:

instrumentation is similar to that of a concert band - brass, woodwind and percussion, but no strings;
the band plays a wide variety of music, from marches to classical transcriptions to movie music and popular songs; and
the music is at a "medium easy" to "medium" level of difficulty.

Contact Brian Smith at 604-526-1887 if you have questions.