Kitsilano Boys' Band

Kitsilano Boys' Band

Kitsilano Boys' Band. Vancouver concert band founded in 1928 and conducted solely by Arthur W. Delamont for some 50 years. It held its first rehearsals at General Gordon School and made its debut in 1928 playing 'O Canada' to welcome the Olympic gold medallist Percy Williams to Vancouver. Members ranged in age from about 13 to 18 and numbered from 40 to 70 brass, reeds, and percussion. The repertoire encompassed a wide variety of material, from symphonic overtures arranged for concert band to medleys from Broadway musicals. The band performed in Great Britain, Holland, Germany, and the USA. On several trips to England it was billed as the Vancouver Boys' Band. In 1962 it performed in the USSR. The band gave freely of its time to many causes, especially during World War II, when it raised funds for the Victory Loan campaign and for the Red Cross. It enjoyed considerable critical acclaim and received over 200 awards in competition. In the mid-1930s the band recorded Sousa marches and other music in England for the Bluebird and Regal Zonophone labels. By the late 1970s its activities were reduced to an occasional rehearsal, though concerts in which current members were joined by past members were organized in 1975 and 1978. At the latter over 300 musicians participated. Delamont was responsible for the training of the boys and gave many the grounding for a professional career. Among the KBB alumni are Robert Buckley, Don Clark (Pacific Salt), Arnie Chycoski, Ron Collier, Gordon Delamont, Bobby Gimby, Ted Lazenby (Vancouver Symphony Orchestra), Marek Norman, Dal Richards, Bernard Temoin (TS), and Bill Trussell. The Arthur W. Delamont Concert Band, formed in 1976 and active until his death in 1982, included many former KBB musicians.