Inappropriate (yet funny) music?

[Gorgie boy]

I've just come back from a concert we were doing tonight. It was in a Roman Catholic Church and we were sharing the bill with a choir. We (being an SA Band) had chosen a mixture of sacred and lighter music which included 'I will follow Him' from Sister Act. Imagine our surprise and embarrassment when about a dozen nuns turned up for the concert, because the church was also a convent. Fortunately they took it in good part and enjoyed the music, but it set me thinking: What's the most inappropriate music you've played in a concert? The funnier the better.

Paul Drury
Edinburgh Gorgie SA Band

 

[BFN]

When we went to Germany four years ago (I was but a child...), we opened two of our concerts with "Aces High"! Went down very well actually!

 

[Cantonian]

We went to a local hospital to play to a retired BM who had just had surgery. Our (at that time) new BM took along the Songs of Faith tune books and we played several 'different' tunes including ' keep in step all the time'. It was only after we had played that it was pointed out that the retired BM had just had his leg amputated :!:

 

[Roger13]

When we went to Germany four years ago (I was but a child...), we opened two of our concerts with "Aces High"! Went down very well actually!

Been there, done that! Our MD was warned in advance about the possible effect of playing this piece to a German audience, but he stubbornly refused to reconsider. We were convinced his body would be found floating in the Rhine, but as it happened the audience did have a sense of humour after all.......!

 

[Euph-Bari]

We (being an SA Band) had chosen a mixture of sacred and lighter music which included 'I will follow Him' from Sister Act. Imagine our surprise and embarrassment when about a dozen nuns turned up for the concert, because the church was also a convent. Fortunately they took it in good part and enjoyed the music, but it set me thinking:

When We Went To Germany we played at some sort of institute for sick people - and there nuns there - we played I will follow him , but we had our trom sections with nuns head were on - they didn't seem overly pleased - but we got on with it :lol:

 

[Razor]

Apparently some years ago an SA band was in attendance at a funeral service. They were invited to the gallery of the " crematorium" to play some suitable music as everybody filed in below. Very inappropriately one of the tunes the Bandmaster chose was tha SA's 'Burning Burning'!!

 

[Aidan]

We played the marches "Colonel Bogey" and "Arnhem" doing a joint gig with a german army band in germany, and finished the set with "the great escape" .. and then legged it!!!!

 

[BigHorn]

Apparently some years ago an SA band was in attendance at a funeral service. They were invited to the gallery of the " crematorium" to play some suitable music as everybody filed in below. Very inappropriately one of the tunes the Bandmaster chose was 'Burning Burning'!!

Not a piece of music, but on the same theme. When I went to the funeral directors to organise my father-in-laws cremation the funeral director's name was Mr Ashman. :shock:

 

[Keppler]

Played "The Magificent Seven" for a posse of garda (policemen) entering the hall for an award ceremony...

 

[IanHeard]

We played the "Dambusters" whilst on tour in Germany with Crystal Palace Band in the late Eighties.....Ouch!
Ian Heard
Soundhouse Brass
Plymouth

 

[Andy_Euph]

Aces High again... Ellington played a gig at Boumler RAF Station for a special dinner, the guest of honour was a Spitfire piolt in the war :?

But we "shot it down" later with Battle of Britain

 

[Nigel Hall]

Just a thought on Aces High - I remember helping out a band many years ago and after playing the piece the conductor looked at the band and said "I can't understand why Ron Goodwin, an English composer, wrote a march for the Luftwaffe"!!! Hmmm... the worrying thing was that he wasn't joking!!

 

[tim]

we played 'the stripper' in a church once... we all thought it was quite inapropriate but also pretty comical

 

[Space Cowboy]

We [Haslingden and Helmshore] have been playing I will follow him recently including in a catholic church with the 3 trombonists [inc me] dressed as nuns. It has always gone down well.

I play in a six piece group for wedding functions [soul/blues/pop etc] and we were once asked to play We Don't talk Anymore by Cliff Richard for the couples first dance - embarrasing I know but we're musical prostitutes so we did it anyway

 

[NAS]

I was once asked to take a local community band to an elderly persons home to play a few hymn tunes... I made the mistake of playing 'Nearer My God To Thee' :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: .

 

[iggmeister]

Seems every band and his dog has played in Germany. Not a piece of mucis, but when we did a tour back in the early 90's, our then Chairman was interviewed on German Radio and was asked if he had visited Germany before. He said he had but it was a long time ago. He was then asked whether it was as he remembered it to which he (inappropriately) quipped, "Can't really say. The last time I only saw it at night out of the back of a Lancaster!" Funnily enough the interview didn't go much further

Igg

 

[Moy]

If any of you have played Derek Broadbents arrangement of It Came Upon a Midnight Clear you will know it starts with Jingles and a gentle sop part.
Well our tuba player wasn't listening, this was a church service at Xmas time. heard the Jingles and launched into Jingle Bells .........If you have played both these arrangements you will understand how easy that is to do.
Conductor was livid and the tuba player was We all creased ourselves laughing. :lol:

 

[Moy]

Oh and another time playing in a cemetary for a deceased bandsman we had some spare time and the MD decided to play some hymns as they were getting ready............Yes you have guessed it......"RISE UP O MEN OF GOD"......was really scared didn't laugh that time.
By the way these were both with my past band incase our MD comes on to deny it. OK pal :wink:

 

[Crazysop]

Once we played at a St Georges night do. We were in the middle of a 'Brassed Off' Selection and really had not considered the Irish nature of Danny Boy. The Olds were not impressed. They invited us back though the following year. :shock:

 

[trombelle]

for reasons known only to himself our MD had us play Viva Espagne at a St Georges Day job....in a church :shock: