The London Music Archives - 1969

THE CATHOLIC CENTRAL BAND

Presents....

CATHOLIC CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL BAND
London, Ontario, Canada

The success story of the Catholic Central High School Band began in the spring of 1954, when forty enthusiastic youngsters formed a musical group under the direction of Martin Boundy.

Within a year they captured top honours in musical competition in musical competition in the city.

Today the band has doubled in size and is still winning awards. It has won first honours at the Canadian National Exhibition and Waterloo Music Festivals. The band has never been topped in local competition in the Kiwanis Festival. As ambassadors of band music, these high school musicians toured Western Canada in 1961 playing at the Calgary Stampede and as far West as Victoria, B.C.

In 1962 they toured the Maritime Provinces at the invitation of the Canadian Bandmasters Association, to promote instrumental music in Eastern Canada. Their concerts on these tours resulted in renewed interest in instrumental music in many centres visited and in the forming of many bands and orchestras.

By this time, they had played in nine out of the ten Canadian provinces and did not want to stop their travels. After two years of hard work and long practices the Band toured Europe in the summer of 1964. It visited Scotland, England, Holland, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and France. The outstanding day in this trip came on Sunday, August 2, 1964, when, as a complete surprise a private audience was granted by Pope Paul VI and a private concert was played for him in the courtyard of Castel Gandolfo.

In the spring of 1967 the Band played its way through Virginia, North and South Carolina to Myrtle Beach to enjoy the sunshine and a lazy relaxation of those few United States.

The warm kiss of the Southern sun did not quite wear off, and in March of 1968, Barbados and Trinidad spread the red carpet. In Barbados, as guests of the Royal Barbados Police Band and the Barbados Regiment and in Trinidad as guests of the Trinidad Government, these young musicians were thrilled by the sights, sound and sand of the Caribbean Islands. It is now March 1969 and an era comes to an end. As Martin Boundy leaves Catholic Central - the Band will carry the sound of his last practices to Kentucky, Indiana and Illinois on a goodwill tour to our friends south of the border and in salute to a man whom Catholic Central calls Mr. Music.



Martin Boundy organized the Catholic Central High School Band in 1954. Because of his gifted leadership and enthusiasm this Band has developed into an internationally famous group of musicians.

At the present time Martin is choirmaster at St. Peter's Cathedral Basilica in London. He is completing his twentieth year as conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra and Director of Instrumental Music for the London Catholic Schools. He is also serving his fourth term as a city alderman.

The recipient of numerous awards, he has been honoured on many occasions as guest conductor and adjudicator of Music Clinics and Festivals throughout Canada and the United States. In 1950 he was elected President of the Canadian Bandmasters Association. In 1962 His Holiness Pope John XXIII awarded him the "Bene Mereti Medal" for distinguished service to the Catholic Community of London, an honour seldom accorded a non-Catholic layman.

Fanshawe College in London will see a new music department come to life under the baton of Martin Boundy and Catholic Central wishes him every success as it says thanks for 15 great musical years with the Crusaders.

CREDITS:
RECORDING ENGINEER: DONALD SCOTLAND
RECORDED IN CENTENNIAL HALL, LONDON, ONTARIO
PHOTOGRAPHY BY VICTOR AZIZ
PRODUCER: IVAN L. SUTTON, CANADIAN AUDIO CINE PRODUCTIONS, LONDON, ONTARIO, CAN.