Musician helps add polish to instruments revealing band's past

Ruapehu i-Site team leader Allison Jones, and i-Site visitor consultant Bradley Peffer, with the silver band instruments at the Taumarunui i-Site. Photo/Supplied

An important slice of Ruapehu's musical heritage can be viewed at the Taumarunui i-Site information centre where historic photos and original instruments from the "silver band" era are on display.

The display was put together by i-Site consultant and brass band member Bradley Peffer, who rescued and cleaned-up the instruments that had been in storage at Ruapehu council for many years.

Taumarunui's first brass band was formed about 1906 or 1907 and was initially reported to have had a "chequered career", including outstanding debts over instruments that took many years to pay off.

From 1910, when Frank Woodmass took over the baton, things rapidly improved and the band flourished up until the early 1920s when it went into recess due to lack of bandsmen.

The Taumarunui Boys Band was formed in 1927 and was renamed the Taumarunui Silver Band in 1938 as the boys band name was keeping older and more experienced players from joining.

Mr Peffer said the instruments were a little "worse for wear" having been neglected in storage for many years.

"It took a bit of work to restore the instruments' silver-plated shine and repair what I could," he said.

Out of the three instruments - an e-flat bass, b-flat bass and a flugel (b-flat alto horn) - only the e-flat bass can still produce a sound.

Mr Peffer said the instruments were of the highest quality, bearing the trademark of Boosey & Co (now Boosey & Hawke) who are the "Rolls Royce" of brass instrument makers.

Despite their condition they were still beautiful instruments with amazing scroll work on some of them, Mr Peffer said.

"To buy a new e-flat bass today would cost around $20,000. Back in the early 1900s these would have been top-end expensive instruments."

Mr Peffer added that he plays the e-flat bass for the Hastings Citizens Brass Band and it had been a joy for him to be able to bring the instruments out of storage, clean them up, and put them on display.

"The photos on display of local band members at various times through history are courtesy of local historian Ron Cooke and Carol Woodmass.

"Not all of the people in the photos have been identified and so Ron would like people coming down to check out the display to let us know if they recognise anyone to help complete the historic record."

The Silver Band display can be viewed during normal opening hours at the Taumarunui i-Site.