Prairie Brass Band
Founded in 1997 under the direction of Dallas Niermeyer, the Prairie Brass Band is a performing arts organization aspiring to the highest musical standards and dedicated to the growth of the brass band movement in the Chicago area and throughout North America. Our 35 volunteer members travel from all over Chicago and its suburbs to attend rehearsals and performances. We perform, on average, 15 concerts per year in the Chicago area. In addition, PBB hosts and competes in the U.S. Open Brass Band Championships held the first weekend of November in St. Charles, Illinois. In the spring of 2017 and 2018, Prairie Brass Band participated in the new Dublin Festival of Brass, in Dublin, Ohio (suburb of Columbus.)
Band Instrumentation
The Prairie Brass Band uses traditional British brass band instrumentation: cornets instead of trumpets, tenor horns instead of french horns, a flugelhorn, tenor trombones, a bass trombone, euphoniums and baritones, and E-flat and B-flat tubas, as well as percussion. The music for every instrument in the band is written in treble clef, except for the bass trombone (which is a story in itself). Since the band competes in a national contest every year, there is a great incentive to continually improve. Most players, however, are attracted to the band simply because the music is challenging, widely varied, and fun to play. Unlike an orchestra or wind band, brass bands have no string or reed instruments and the percussion section is smaller, which increases the musical demand on the musicians to fill all the voices of the orchestra. In a brass band all of the musicians are more active and get to play throughout the pieces, making greater use of their skills.
Based in Arlington Heights, Illinois
Since 1999, the Prairie Brass Band has made its official home in Arlington Heights, Illinois - a northwest suburb of Chicago. In honor of the Prairie Brass Band's move, May 21, 1999 was declared Prairie Brass Band Day in Arlington Heights.
Rehearsals
Come check us out! Rehearsals are open to visitors. The Prairie Brass Band rehearses every Thursday night from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. in the Band Room at The Christian Liberty Academy, 502 West Euclid Avenue, Arlington Heights, Illinois. You should park your car on North Ridge Ave (the west side of the building) and enter through the gymnasium doors at the top of the steps. The Band Room is upstairs, above the gymnasium lobby.
