Its November already and the band are already bashing out the Christmas numbers at rehearsals on a Tuesday and Wednesday night. Where did the summer go?

There were so many highlights of the NTSB summer 2011 but here are a few to share with you all.

On Saturday 23 July the band took a 10 piece down to London to play at the 60th Anniversary of TASPO playing at the Southbank at the Festival of Britain. It was such an honour to be asked to perform alongside 4 other top youth steelband ensembles to mark the occasion. The band performed an excellent set in front of an enthusiastic crowd outside of Royal Festival Hall and joined in with a mass play to close the afternoons celebrations. A great day for steelbands across the UK with lots to celebrate. Just prior to this the performance band played an excellent set at the Music For Youth National Festival in Birmingham consisting of Take 5 and Bohemium Rhapsody in addition to an energetic outdoor performance with brought a huge smile to the faces of the crowd watching them. It was a fantastic achievment for them especially given the technical skills required to play the pieces they chose and showed that they continue to progress putting North Tyneside firmly on the map!

Other notable performances have to be the three local gigs that the band played for the family members of Emily, Jenny and Alice. It's always special to play for people you know and these gigs were no exception, especially the memories of the crew who were in Whitley Bay who nearly got swamped by the incoming tide!

On 3 August the band played for Seb4CHUF a charity raising money for the Childrens Heart Unit Fund at the Freeman Hospital. After a gruelling coast to coast and back again the runners and riders all finished with a celebratory welcome on the beach at Tynemouth Longsands. It was a scorching day and the band added to the atmosphere of the occasion and the fantastic achievements of all those who took part including TV presenter Ben Shephard who was very complimentary of the NTSB massive on the day.

The summer was rounded off with a drenching at the BUPA Great North Run. As the band supported members Lauren and Simon in running for their respective charities the heavens opened and the band got more than a little wet! It was great fun though, hard to believe its our 12th year in a row playing at this gig!

Plenty more memories to make and fun to be had in the run up to Christmas including some local town centre performances and a big busk in York on Thursday 22 December. Why don't you come and join us to dance your way into 2012?

Many thanks for everyones support!

NTSB

x 8 November 2011

The band have just returned from Littlehampton on the south coast where they were invited to perform at The Littlehampton Academy Steelband Festival. The festival was a fantastic experience and saw NTSB play alongside several other bands such as Reigate Pilgrim Steelband (led by Rachel Hayward), CSI Steelband (led by Brent Holder) and of course TLA Steelband (led by Lee Nelson). Their set went down a storm and it was great to be invited to play alongside some of the countries top steel pan musicians. Thank you TLA for a fantastic festival and for your hospitality!

Still on a high this morning from the trip to Sussex we received news that we have been invited to perform at the National Festival of Music for Youth in Birmingham on 7 July. This is a fantastic achievement and is recognition of all of the bands hard work over the past year which culminated in a clean professional performance at the regional rounds of the festival in Blaydon in March.

A massive congratualtions to all of the band for your achievements this weekend, roll on Birmingham in July!

Thank you to everyone for your continued support, especially the drivers and roadie crew who came down to Littlehampton with us!

NTSB

x 2 May 2011

It's been quite a while since we posted some news on the website but believe me it's not that we haven't been busy in the last year!

We have kicked off 2011 in style with appearances at the Ryton Music Festival and the Wansbeck Music Festival. The band came 1st in both age groups at the Ryton Music Festival and came 2nd in the under 13 and 1st in the under 18 categories at Wansbeck. These were fantastic achievements for the band and have set us up nicely to enjoy our performance at the Music For Youth regional event in Blaydon tomorrow afternoon. The performance band have been working really hard towards this in the hope that they will be invited to the National Festival in Birmingham in July to perform alongside 12,000 other young people in a celebration of their musical achievements.

Precious Metal, the adult band of NTSB have recorded and released their debut cd in the New Year and this is now available to buy online - click on music to the left!

Gigs this year are coming in thick and fast and we are all looking forward to a fantastic summer. Our bookings secretary Karina is taking a well earned break over the next two weeks so if you are looking to book us over the next few months she will respond to your enquiry on her return.

On a final note the band and committee would like to say some very special Happy 21st Birthdays to Michael Darling (tomorrow!), Jenny Cockton and Emma Higginbottom.


A massive thank you to everyone for your continued support!

NTSB

x 18 March 2011

North Tyneside Steelband are pleased to announce the release of their new cd, Once More, From the Top, With Feeling.

After much deliberation over the title Once More, From the Top, With Feeling was chosen and felt that it not only keeps to the bands character but is more than appropriate given it showcases some of their major highlights and musical achievements over the past 20 years.

The cd also recognises how far the band has come over their 20 years with some of their most challenging arrangements written by four of their band members.

You can order the CD directly through the website by clicking here to go to the Music page.

The band will also be busking on Northumberland Street in Newcastle on Saturday 8 May where you will also be able to get your hands on a copy.

All bands have been rehearsing extremely hard for the gig at The Playhouse, Whitley Bay tomorrow and there are some very excited band members about!

If you are coming down then please arrive early to get your seat and don't forget that if you have any tickets spare to let us know so that we can reallocate them as the wait list is ever increasing!

As always, thank you very much for your continued support, lets enjoy the party tomorrow night!

NTSB

x 14 April 2010

Unfortunately, tickets for this event have now sold out. To add yourself to the waiting list, please give us your details by clicking on the link at the bottom of the page.

For the lucky few who have managed to get your hands on one of the tickets they will be sent out one month prior to the gig. If you are no longer able to attend then please can you send any unused tickets back to us so that someone on our waiting list is able to enjoy the night. Details of how to do this will be mailed with your tickets.

The band have been busy in the recording studio over the past few weeks putting down tracks for their new CD to be released on the night of the 20th anniversary celebration. Watch this space for the title! The tracks chosen for the CD mark major landmarks in the bands 20 year history, including new arrangements of band favourites and some special arrangements of new material which showcase how far they have come.

Thank you for your support, we are overwhelmed by the sell out!

NTSB 3 March 2010

A very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all from North Tyneside Steelband.

The band look forward to seeing you next year at one of our many performances as we celebrate our 20th Anniversary in style.

Make sure you order your free tickets online for our special anniversary concert at the new Whitley Bay Playhouse on Thursday 15 April 2010 by following the link at the foot of the page! It promises to be a fantastic night with some very special guests.

Best wishes to you all!

NTSB 24 December 2009

The busy summer, autumn season may be over for North Tyneside Steelband but the work has not stopped.

They are currently preparing for an exceptionally busy run up to Christmas including a trip to London to pick up an Award for their 20th Anniversary at The British Association of Steelbands Awards, a residential weekend in Whitby and rehearsals for the recording of their new cd in January. Not to mention their own celebrations to mark their 20th year which will kick of in style in January when all members of all four NTSB bands will be partying the night away (without the instruments!)

Watch this space for other events to mark the year including some very special performances over Easter. 15 November 2009

Together with other youth ensembles NTSB will be playing at the opening community concert at Whitley Bay Playhouse on the evening of Sept 24.
The Playhouse has been redeveloped over 18 months as a state-of-the-art facility and is keen to involve local organisations such as NTSB.

Tickets are available from ian.colthart@northtyneside.gov.uk 8 July 2009

On Friday 3 July 2009 the third NT Festival of Steelbands was hosted by NTSB at Wallsend Memorial Hall.

Everyone agreed that this was a big improvement on last years festival.

Twelve bands took part this year -
NTSB (Training and Intermediate bands)
Chilli Rd School
Monkseaton Community High School
KEVI High School (Morpeth)
St Cuthberts Primary School (Hartlepool) (2 bands)
Monkseaton Middle School (2 bands)
Kingsmeadow School (Gatehead) (2 bands)
Rocket Pannerrs from Stephenson Memorial Primary School

87 panners played 'Israelites' together, the biggest steelband ever to play in the north east. This tune was arranged by Holly Connon for the evnt and taught to individual bands beforehand by SN young leader tutors.

It was clear that all the bands which played at last years festival had made significant progress and the overall standard was very high. Kingsmeadow were voted 'the band which made the best contribution to the festival' by all players. Each band recieved a special BAS trophy and an individual medal for the best player, these were presented by Ian Colthart from NT Music Service.

Thanks to Wallsend Festival, North Tyneside Council, Community Foundation and British Association of Steelbands for their support.

Watch this space for pics....... 8 July 2009

An 11 piece NTSB band opened and closed Cudrefin Steelband Festival on Sat 25 July. They went down really well with the crowd who were well versed in the art of steelpan - most of the best bands in the world have played at the festival over recent years.

This was the bands first time abroad and all the players agreed that it was well worth the trip. They have made many new friends from other steelbands there, and a great many friends generally in Switzerland due to their street performances in city centres.

The trip saw them sell nearly 150 cds (very easily) helping to cover the costs of the trip.

See/hear NTSB at Cudrefin on YouTube.
Picture/reviews soon................... 8 July 2009

NTSB's AGM last week was quite something with up to 30 players all panning together at the informal concert for family and friends afterwards.
We now have a new chair - David Beasley, 20, who is very keen to initiate up to date training for all trustees and maximise the efficiency of the trustee committee. David helps to manage the family direct mail business.
We also have a new Secretary, Claire Falcus, 18, who brings some useful legal expertise to the committee as she is a law student at Newcastle University.
Both Claire and David are accomplished panners with several years experience with NTSB. Claire is teaching pan in three local schools and has played at Notting Hill Carnival Panorama for the last few years. Their new posts should keep them out of mischief in their spare time!Sadly we see the tenure of three trustees come to an end, Ex chair Lesley Darling, ex secretary Debra Betham, and Carol Brown have given sterling service to the band and will continue to be involved as parent volunteers. Thanks girls.Continuing in post are trustees Karina Atkinson, Mandy Watters, Sue Higginbottom, Jenny Gilberg, Lauren Stead, Ewan Mood and treasurer Mike Gilberg.
8 July 2009

This year was definitely one of our best years yet with around 70 performances and many major achievements throughout the year.
In April we recorded a our 3rd CD, "Bring a Smile to Your Ears", which can be bought from here. One of our members, Jenny Gilberg, became the UK Solo Pan Champion at the BAS Pan Explosion in May, the first time anyone from outside London has won!
We attended the National Festival of Music for Youth in July and won the award for "Outstanding Performance". We also held a launch party for our new CD in Wallsend.
The highlight of the year though was in November with a performance at the Royal Albert Hall for the Schools' Proms.
Other notable gigs from the year include The Peoples Palace Glasgow, Great North Run, Great Yorkshire Run, Great North Walk, Sheffield City Centre.
At least 8 of our young players now teach in 20 different steelbands in local schools and NTSB now manages 4 outreach bands (8 piece) for Steelbands North which have been on placements throughout the north east (Seaham, Newcastle, Middlesbrough, Redcar, Whitley Bay, Stockton) and are in great demand and many are taught by our members.
There has been a steady increase in all four of our weekly bands, adult, training, intermediate and performance, with several players making excellent progress. Even though several players have left the area to attend universities elsewhere, they still return to NTSB during vacations and our numbers are still up.
2009 will be our 20th Anniversary year and we plan to be just as successful. In the pipeline for this year we have a band tour to Switzerland and an anniversary celeberation later in the year. If you are an ex member, a supporter or a customer, or just interested, please contact us and we'll make sure you get an invite! 8 July 2009

Welcome to our new website. After many years of the old website we decided it was time for a refreshing new look and here it is... make sure to check out some of our latest tracks in our music section. 8 July 2009