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www.insideHALTON.com · OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, January 18, 2012 · 22 Artscene Battle of the bands competition is back By Catherine O'Hara METROLAND WEST MEDIA GROUP Metroland's Best of the West is amped up to launch the fourth instalment of the annual battle of the bands competition. That means bands better get jamming if they want a chance to win a coveted time slot at the Burlington Sound of Music Festival. The contest is brought to you by the Flamborough Review, Burlington Post, Milton Canadian Champion and Oakville Beaver community newspapers with the aim of introducing local, talented musicians to our readership. Starting on Monday, Jan. 23, bands are encouraged to register to take part in the sound off. If you are between the ages of 15 and 25, are in a band, and want to share your amazing tunes with the community, then Metroland's Best of the West battle of the bands is the competition for you. At least one band member from each local entry must be a permanent resident of Oakville in order to be eligible for the contest. To enter Metroland's Best of the West challenge, music groups must record a one- to three-minute video and post it to YouTube. Remember to keep your video short, the music in good taste and the material totally original. Bands must then visit www. oakvillebeaver.com and click on the Metroland's Best of the West logo and fill out the required information. A band bio, including the name of the band, a list of its members, the title of the song performed in the video, the video's YouTube link and contact information, must be included in the entry. The contest is open to bands of all music genres. submitted photo the brass: The Intrada Brass of Oakville recently released a new CD, titled The Stardust Ballroom. Brass band is swingin' in new album By Dominik Kurek OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Intrada Brass of Oakville has released a new CD with an aim to boldly go where no other brass band has gone before. The CD, titled The Stardust Ballroom, is a swing and jazz album. The band recruited Oakville's Jason Logue, who arranged several pieces on the CD in the style of Miles Davis, while local trumpet player Kevin Turcotte performed. "That was a new venture for a brass band to be honest. I don't know of any brass band that has done anything quite like that," said the group's music director and founder, Bram Gregson. "I just wanted to do something different. And I wanted the band to be associated with great brass jazz players." Another well-known performer, Alistair Kay, plays the trombone on the album. "He's the foremost jazz trombone player in Canada, in my opinion," Gregson said. The CD was released recently. The idea for a swing album came up several years ago when Turcotte played with the band in concert. "It was just a lot of fun to play with a great jazz trumpet player and have some special arrangements that we were able to do with him," Gregson said. So the conductor began asking the musicians to come on board to record a CD and the idea for a swing album was born. Though the music is something new for the band, Gregson said it is not necessarily new for the players. "Many of the guys in the band do play jazz with other ensembles so it's not a foreign genre to the band at all," he said. The CD features instrumental versions of such music as New York, New York, Duke Ellington's Sophisticated Lady and Satin Doll, a number of pieces by George Gershwin and more. The CD is available at the band's website, www.intradabrass.org, and it is listed at a cost of $20. After registering for the contest, bands are encouraged to call the Beaver's editor, Angela Blackburn, at 905-845-3824 to confirm their entry was received. Each community newspaper will publish the names of local entrants the week of Feb. 6. Then, readers will be invited to check out each video and vote for their favourite band online. The band with the most votes in each region will be featured in the print edition of its hometown paper. The regional finalists will also move on to the contest's championship round to battle it out for the Best of the West title and a chance to perform at the 2012 Burlington Sound of Music Festival, set to take place June 14-17. Metroland will crown the Best of the West champion the week of March 12. The winner will be featured in an article that will be published in all four of the participating community newspapers. For more information, check out www.oakvillebeaver.com. ­ No purchase necessary. The contest is open to bands that have at least one or more band members permanently residing in one of the four following Ontario communities: Burlington, Flamborough, Milton or Oakville. All members must be between the ages 15 and 25 at the time of entry in the contest. Odds of winning depend on the number of eligible entries received. One grand prize will be awarded. Approximate retail value of the grand prize is $0. Entrants must correctly answer, unaided, a mathematical skill-testing question to be declared a winner. Contest closes March 9, 2012 at 5 p.m. EST. To enter and for complete rules visit www. oakvillebeaver.com. Funny people put on a sporting good time It promises to be a knockout funny show when the Oakvillebased, not-for-profit Bad Dog Theatre Company hits the stage with an improv battle show. The group is hosting its Theatresports event Friday (Jan. 20) at Central Baptist Church, located at 340 Rebecca St. The show will feature several teams duking it out for comedic supremacy. Tickets cost $5. The show starts at 8 p.m.