It’s a big Bravo order for an Austrian band

Black Cat  Music recently supplied a large number of music stands to a leading brass band in Austria.

Based in Villach in the Austrian province of Carinthia, Austria the KELAG Blasorchester took delivery of  40 Bravo Music Stands supplied in a smart chrome and black version along with a Preface Conductor’s stand. The band was formed  over 60 years ago and in the tradition of many such bands has a strong connection with local industry with employees of Carinthian electricity AG being members. They  talk of themselves as “musical ambassadors of Kelag” which is a major energy company. Their repertoire includes traditional brass band music, symphonic music and music from films and musicals. The traditional concert in November is an integral part and musical highlight in the team of the year Kelag brass band.

Wenger Bravo Music Stands are already recognised as a premium design and thanks to a recent engineering upgrade the late versions incorporate a new friction slider making a great product even better..

The Bravo Music Stand is designed and engineered to high quality standards to provide a long, trouble-free life. Wenger explained that as the Bravo desk is heavier than in other music stand models, the desk must be held to a higher level of force expectation. In other words the latest upgrade enables the force to be increased. But the even better news is that this is achieved without any price increase!

Bravo’s polypropelene desk will not chip, bend or scratch and includes a useful accessory shelf, handy for keeping pencils or reeds to hand. Height is adjustable in just a single smooth motion, from 61 cm to 116 cm. 

Good words from Goodwood for Black Cat Music

Photo : 1 Sir Patrick & Lady Cable-Alexander, The Duke & Duchess of Richmond

 and Gordon, Kathy Gore and Andrew Bernardi

The team at Black Cat Music just love to hear news of how our musical equipment has contributed to the success of a music event, particularly when it is from such a distinguished event as the Bernadi Music Group’s performance at Goodwood House opening the Shipley Arts Festival.

Andrew Bernardi, Director Bernardi Music Group and Member of Professorial Staff, Trinity Laban Conservatoire , told Black Cat Music’s Carla Croft, “I wanted to say ‘ Thank you for providing such high quality stands folders and lights - our players have expressed their great appreciation.  Black Cat’s high quality stands add the confidence of maintaining the practical elements of supporting the sheet music whilst adding the finish touch to our appearance - thank you for your invaluable advice and care to our Ensemble.”

Bernardi Music Group at Goodwood House opened the Shipley Arts Festival on the 10th April 2016. Led by violinist Andrew Bernardi, who played on his priceless Stradivarius violin, dated 1696, with Voirin bow formerly owned by Yehudi Menuhin. The popular classical programme celebrated the first night of the Shipley Arts Festival and also featured baritone and composer, Roderick Williams, soloist at the 2014 ‘Last Night of the Proms’. The programme included the world première of ‘Goodwood Variations’ composed by Roderick Williams, and featured concert pianist Maria Marchant and flautist Bruce Martin.

Cathedral Choral Folders Cassocks Colour match

Choral Folders are always a popular choice and the capability to customise  with gold-blocking creates a great sense of identity for the choir members. At Black Cat Music we are used to requests to add a crest, name or individual detail, but the requirement from Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral  was also to match the choir’s red cassocks. 

Sarah O’Keeffe,  Music Department Administrator at Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral, initially  asked Myke Millward at Black Cat Music to send samples of various red folders to match the red of the choristers’ cassocks. Myke was delighted to later receive some photographs from Sarah with members of the choir complete with their brand new folders. Myke told us, “The folders look fantastic and match the cassocks perfectly. I’m really, really pleased, it's so nice to see 'the end result' for us here.”

Red choral folders are available in two options – with strings, or with expanding pockets to retain sheet music – and the hard-wearing covers benefit from brass bound corners and include such detail as hand-stitching, resulting in the traditional high quality product expected from Black Cat Music. There is a minimum order of five folders and the option, at a modest extra charge, to customise with gold-blocking the name and crest of the choir. Black Cat Music offer a custom gold blocking srviceon all of our choral and orchestral folders, so you can add your logo or choir crest to the front of the folder.

New Instrument Storage Solution for Tonbridge Grammar School

During the recent Easter break, Black Cat Music successfully installed a number of Instrument Storage products at Tonbridge Grammar School. It seems the school is delighted with the result, tweeting ‘Lovely new instrument storage units from @blackcatmusic finally in over Easter.”

Musical instruments vary considerably in size, but Black Cat Music has a comprehensive range of standard product solutions, or alternatively can provide custom built storage to suit the available space and needs.

Instruments require storage facilities that offer protection against damage and loss. Some instruments are frail, demanding suitable storage that protects against physical damage. As with any expensive asset it also makes sense to provide safe and secure storage to guard against accidental damage, vandalism and theft.

Other factors to keep in mind are space, ease of access and keeping a consistent temperature all year round. Storage can take up a great deal of floor space and Black Cat Music can provide guidance in using available space sensibly without causing congestion at busy times.   At class change times, where many students are storing or retrieving instruments, careful consideration of planning layouts so everyone have access without getting in each others’ way and damaging the instruments will help things go smoothly. It is important to avoid areas of high temperature and humidity, which can be detrimental to some instruments and a cause of problems such as cracking, loosening of joints and corrosion.

Put your conductor on a Podium this month

Conductor's Podium

Black Cat Music is offering a 10 per cent discount on their popular Double Conductor’s Podium, during April.

This offer is a great opportunity to add this useful accessory to your store of essential music equipment. Sturdy and manoeuvrable, the Conductor’s Podium can be easily moved from rehearsal room to the stage. The upper stage is detachable and locks securely into the base unit. The detachable safety back rail is removable for storage. The construction is built around a robust single piece steel chassis, tough epoxy powder coated black paint blends with the black laminate sides and the step surfaces are covered with a durable grey carpet which all adds up to a high quality and elegant product. Furthermore, the Conductor’s Double Podium comes with a 5- year warranty. 

Visit the Black Cat Music web site to get the complete story.

Black Cat Music - helping schools to purchase music education equipment

Watch the video

At Black Cat Music we know that budgets are under pressure, but compromising on quality by opting for the cheapest option can prove to be a false economy in the longer term. That’s why we have two schemes to help education establishments make purchasing music education more affordable.

 The Black Cat Music Education Discount Programme   is free to join and you can  save 5% on all standard products purchased for schools, colleges and universities – in fact any education establishment located in the United Kingdom. Just log on to the Black Cat Music web site to complete the online application form. We will then send you a confirmation email and your  discount code to use each time you make a purchase of standard priced products.

When setting up a new music facility, spreading the costs of equipment over the following years can now be a welcome benefit thanks to the StructuredPayment Options system operated by Black Cat Music. So we have come up with a scheme to spread payments over a period of up to five years.  We use a government compliant operating lease, ensuring the purchase is within government guidelines which offers benefits for government funded schools and organisations. The scheme smooths out budgets and cash flow while allowing investment in music performance equipment that doesn’t compromise on quality. The scheme also applies to independent schools and other non-government funded organisations. What’s more, at the end of the Agreement, for one extra payment the equipment becomes fully owned. Terms and Conditions apply, these and further details can be read online.

Risers improve choral sound for University choir

Not only are the singers delighted with their new Wenger Risers supplied by Black Cat Music to Umeå Universitet, Sweden, but thanks to the elevation and space to spread out, the received performance sounds better too.

Liv Meidell told Black Cat Music, “We are very content with our new risers and the nice distance we achieved when spreading out means the sound is now even better!”

Black Cat Music can supply a range of 3- or 4-step Wenger choral risers that fold and roll easily for transporting and all come with a full 5-year warranty. Wenger Signature risers with their classic black styling are safe to use, simple to setup, lightweight for ease of handling, stable and strong, are quiet in a performance and include an integrated back-rail with safety crossbar. Riser arrangements can be reconfigured, quickly and securely. Optional side-rails can be attached without the need for tools. And when the show is over they are easy to move to the next venue or to storage.

For touring Wenger Tourmaster choral risers are exceptionally portable and robust. No other risers fold, roll, set up or travel so smoothly. The Tourmaster sets up in seconds and is easy to take up stairs, around tight corners, across the parking lot, and into a bus or a van.

Today at Musikmesse

Dateline: Today: Frankfurt, Germany 

Alice Dagger at the Musikmesse today

 Black Cat Music's Managing Director, Alice Dagger reporting from Musikmesse currently taking place in Frankfurt reports from the show.

"I was interested to learn about new product innovations at Musikmesse, and look forward to bringing these innovations to our customers."Alice tells us.

Alice continues, "It was a pleasure to meet our counterparts at Wenger Corporation at the Messe. Wenger are world-renowned for the quality and longevity of their products and we are proud to Master Distributor for Wenger in Europe and Russia."

The show this year was staged with another event as Alice explains, "It was good to catch up with our friends on the Harlequin Floors stand at the ProLight & Sound exhibition, which was running concurrently with the Musikmesse."

The show runs until Sunday. Using the strap line, this year “It’s my tune” Musikmesse, staged in conjunction with Prolight & Sound claims to offer a completely new concept for music businesses, entertainment and musicians. Musikmesse is described by the organisers as the international trade fair for musical instruments, sheet music, music production and marketing.

Attending Musikmesse - the international music industry’s big event

This week leading lights of the music industry are heading for Frankfurt am Main to attend Musikmesse, which runs from 7 – 10 April.

Present will be Alice Dagger, Managing Director of Black Cat Music who says, “'I'm very much looking forward to visiting Musikmesse and catching up with the latest product innovations from the international music equipment scene.  Black Cat Music & Acoustics prides itself on being innovative and offering the highest quality music equipment to our customers, both in the UK and abroad.”

Using the strap line “It’s my tune” Musikmesse, staged in conjunction with Prolight & Sound claims to offer a completely new concept for music businesses, entertainment and musicians. Musikmesse is described by the organisers as the international trade fair for musical instruments, sheet music, music production and marketing.

For those who cannot attend the event, we will be reporting next week on some of the highlights at Musikmesse, so watch our newsfeeds. Meanwhile you can view here the exhibition video.

Sound Isolating rooms for Preparatory School

Installation by Black Cat Music is scheduled to commence this month on the construction of two Sound Isolating Music Practice Rooms at Belmont Preparatory School, Dorking.

There are already many opportunities at Belmont Preparatory School for children to perform in dance, drama and music in the Theatre and Music School.The school which caters for pupils from 2 to 13 years can already claim excellent facilities including sports hall and theatre which are additionally available for hire by external groups, subject to availabilty. Located at Feldmore on a 65 acre site, the school is close to Guidford, Dorking, Horsham and London.

The two new wet build Sound Isolating Music Practice Rooms are being constructed in the Lower School Area and when complete will provide excellent acoustic spaces where pupils can learn and practice instruments in ideal conditions. Each room’s high level of sound isolation prevents their music disturbing children working close by in the Music School, or for the occupants of the room being disturbed by noise from outside. It means that completely different music can be played in the two new rooms, each isolated from the other and indeed elsewhere in the school.

The practice rooms are designed to overall achieve an insulation performance of 38dB (rw) thanks in no small part to walls and ceiling constructed of triple-layered Sound-bloc board with a 40mm insulation gap, full floating floors, acoustic doors (38dB rated) and internal absorption panels - up to six in each room.  The Sound Isolating Rooms create an ideal rehearsal space with climate controlled interior environment for the comfort of musicians and singers in which they can practice without their music causing disturbance to other classes in the school. The balanced acoustics within the room also provide a high quality space suitable for recording purposes.