Early Start For Scout House Field Show

Preston Scout House Alumni Band, of Cambridge, Ontario, will resume its regular summer schedule of outdoor field show practices at Cambridge Centre Mall on Thursday, May 24 with half the show already learned.

In order to prepare for its first-ever performance in West Virginia, a parade and field show on Saturday, May 19 during the Buckhannon Strawberry Festival, Scout House scheduled two practices in the Cambridge soccer dome and used the afternoon before an evening concert appearance in Simcoe on Saturday, May 12 for a third field show practice session.

Many Cambridge area residents treat the Scout House evening practices at the mall as summer concerts, arriving before practice begins, placing their folding lawn chairs in the same sideline position each week, applauding and tapping their toes as practice proceeds. The practices at the mall continue through the summer until late August. Local residents will have to wait until mid-August though to see Scout House on the performance field.

The Scout House performance schedule has been exceptionally busy this spring, with the first performance in March.

The Band’s annual Spring Opening arena show on Sunday, April 29 attracted a capacity crowd of spectators who enjoyed performances by the entire marching band playing the field show music, the Silver Leaves brass ensemble, drill team, colour guard and a special drum ensemble. The highlight of the two hour performance came at the closing as former Scout House Band members were invited to come down from the seating area to join the Band on the arena floor to sing the Band’s theme song, with lyrics sung to the tune of Men of Harlech.

More than 30 former members, including some who marched as long ago as the early 1950s, sang with about 70 Band members. Everyone sang the first verse, the Band played Men of Harlech, and everyone then sang the final verse. Band members remained on the floor to chat with friends and renew old acquaintances.

Local residents will have several more opportunities to enjoy Scout House performances over the summer. The Band will participate in the Cambridge Mayor’s Celebration of the Arts in downtown Cambridge on the evening of Friday, June 15. The next day, Scout House will march in the Burlington Sound of Music Festival grand parade. The Burlington appearance will feature about 175 members of Scout House and the Burlington Teen Tour Band performing If My Friends Could See Me Now. Scout House will also perform Band of Brothers with Les Diplomates of Quebec during the Burlington festival.

On July 1 Scout House will again march the entire length of Preston’s main street during the annual Canada Day parade, the largest in the country.

The 3rd annual Scout House Invitational Tattoo is scheduled for Saturday, August 18 at University Stadium in Waterloo. The first Tattoo in 2010 took place despite steady day-long rain. Last year, the Tattoo was cancelled just a few minutes after the scheduled starting time when a major storm, including hurricane force winds in some areas of southern Ontario, blew into Kitchener/Waterloo.

More information about the 3rd annual tattoo is available at: http://www.scouthousetattoo.com/

Scout House Alumni Band has performed in more than 360 parades, field shows and concerts i communities across Ontario and Quebec, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Florida since its first stage show in the spring of 1999. About 50 of the current alumni band membership of about 100 marched with Preston Scout House in the 1950s and 1960s. Originally, Scout House was an all male organization, but today’s marching unit includes more than 20 females.

For more information about Preston Scout House Alumni Band, contact Activities Director Nancy Weiler at telephone (519) 653-3376, email prestonscouthouseband [dot] adm [at] sympatico [dot] ca or visit the Web site at http://www.scouthouseband.com/