The Prairie Red Coats Band is a tradition that has carried on now for a number of decades, and it continues to attract a solid core of devoted community musicians.
It fills a void for people who learned early on to play an instrument but perhaps have no other means to continue on with it.
“There’s so many people locally who have played all these instruments,” said Tom Neufeld, who is known as part of the duo LuLu and the TomCat and is involved in the Prairie Red Coats Band, which has a couple upcoming performances.
“The school music programs are great … but there’s no vision put out there for the kids to continue on after,” he said. “There’s community bands right across Manitoba, right across Canada.”
The formation of the Prairie Red Coats Band goes back to the 1970s when the then Tiger Hills School Division music program came to an end.
“So a community band started up to kind of fill the hole, and it’s kind of evolved over time,” Neufeld said.
As for the name, it is based on PTH 2 being named the Prairie Red Coats trail.
“There’s been members from all across southern Manitoba, and it has met in various places,” said Neufeld, noting they have previously met regularly in Holland, Somerset, and Miami but now gather in Roland. “Some have been there for many years. Some have just joined now and are really enjoying it.
“It involves members from all across southern Manitoba … all the way from Altona in the east to Carman and Holland and to St. Alphonse and Winkler.”
The number of band participants varies from one performance to the next.
“It all depends on the event and the season,” Neufeld observed. “Typically it’s somewhere between 15 and 20 to 22 people, and for special concerts, we actually have a number of friends of the Prairie Red Coats who join us.”
Otherwise, band members meet weekly every Tuesday from September to June, and they have a variety of performances, including usually playing somewhere (last year it was Roseisle) on Canada Day.
“We all kind of dress accordingly on Canada Day,” Neufeld noted. “We’re all wearing red tops and black bottoms. Christmas concerts of course are a little more formal.
“There’s so many in the community who have played and want to play and enjoy playing, so the Prairie Red Coats meets that need,” he continued. “There’s a wide variety of music—it’s not just classical music … there’s a wide variety of levels of music put forward by our director.”
The band recently played at the Buhler Active Living Centre in Winkler and it will be performing again Saturday, Dec. 13 at the New Leaf Garden Centre in Winkler followed by a Christmas concert Tuesday, Dec. 16 at 7 p.m. at the Roland United Church. Admission for the Christmas concert is free, though a free will offering will be accepted.
“I am one happy person”
The opportunity to share her love of music with like-minded fellows and the community at large is a blessing for band member Annette Verniest.
“As a member of the band, I am one very happy person that got the gift of music in my life that was once my dream and has been a reality still today,” she said, sharing it was actually her children’s involvement in their band program that got her into it.
“Since I had to run with them for evening band on Tuesday, I finally got to have a lifelong dream of being in the band. So off I go and take the six lessons and jumped right into the band,” she recalled. “At first, it was really tough, but I was not letting go of my dream. I grew up always loving the band my Dad was part of, the Bruxelles band. Years later, I am still here, but now I play percussion section, not the B flat cornet. I still love it.”
Verniest said they are fortunate to have Bernard and Carole Helfter at the helm of the Red Coats. Bernard was the band teacher for the kids and adults who were able to take part in the Tuesday evening band at the Holland Elementary School.
“He is extremely knowledgable of music and what all of the instruments can do when played well. He can hear if we miss one eight rest while the entire band is playing. His knowledge is something we are all in awe of,” Verniest said. “[Carole] can find the music in our band library, which has grown a lot over the years.
“We do have some band instruments folks can borrow when they join us. We play a wide variety of music, and for myself, that is how my horizons in what I like has grown a lot over the years, thanks to the exposure to the different songs and music.”
It is also a very social group, she added.
“We used to have coffee time at half time, but because we got to be too social, that got cut out, and we have a five-minute break so we can have more music time, which is what we are all there for.”
Verniest noted the band has been able to perform in many concerts and events across the province over the years.
“One very special one in my mind was when we got to play as one of the community bands with the Tattoo band in Winnipeg. We also played in Kenora as opening band before the RCMP musical ride,” she said. “Festival of Nations was a wonderful event for a number of years, as well as the musicians for some musicals.”
She is thankful to have had these opportunities available to her.
“I am very grateful that I got the chance to realize that dream.”
