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AUSTRALIAN AIR FORCE CADETS
3WG BAND
Good morning all,
Welcome to the first communication regarding the 3WG Band! The formation of a band is a
project that has been underway for several years now and it is exciting to see it come to
fruition!
Who am I?
I thought I would take a few seconds to introduce myself. I am Flying Officer (AAFC) Ben
Simon, from 312 Squadron in Kempsey. I started playing cornet / trumpet when I was 8
years old, and continue to play trumpet. I played lead trumpet for over 10 years with the Port
Macquarie Hastings Municipal Senior Concert Band, who are a contest winning C Grade
band. I have also been the Musical Director of the Senior Concert Band for over 6 months,
and am currently the Deputy Musical Director of the band. I also play percussion, including
drum kit, timpani, and auxiliary percussion.
I have been in the AAFC since mid-2010, starting at 333 Squadron Port Macquarie. I
transferred to 312 Squadron in January 2010 as an LAC, and became a PLTOFF(AAFC) in
September 2012, and FLGOFF(AAFC) in October 2014
I look forward to working with you all at our inaugural Musician Course soon!!
Music in the AAFC
Did you know that music is already quite strong in the AAFC? There are several wing level
groups, such as the 2WG Band and the 7WG Drum Corps, but several units have their own
drum corps as well (such as 315SQN). Now we can add the 3WG Band to this list!
Interest from 3WG Cadets
As you know we have been recruiting members for the band. This has been via emails and
social media and has been remarkably successful! So far we have had expressions of
interest from over 25 cadets!! This is a brilliant start to the band! The instruments we have an
interest from are:
Flute x 4
Oboe x 1
Clarinet x 3
Alto Sax x 3
Tenor Sax x 1
Trumpet x 5
Trombone x 3
Percussion x 6
As you can see this is a fantastic start!! So far, this is a great balance of instrumentation;
however we certainly have room for more members! If there are any musically inclined
cadets that you know, please let them know about the band!
Instruments needed
There are a few gaps in the instrumentation of the band that we would love to fill! If you know
any cadets that play French Horn, Euphonium or Bass (tuba or bass guitar) please let them
know about the band! We would love to hear from them! We know that there are more
musicians out there! Let’s see how many we can find!
Why the Register of Interest forms?
These forms allow the 3WG Band staff to gauge the level of the musicians in the 3WG Band,
so we can determine what difficulty of music to purchase for the band, a nd also help
determine what equipment will be required on the musician’s course. If you haven’t returned
your ROI form to FLGOFF(AAFC) Simon, please do so ASAP
Musician’s Course
We am working towards scheduling a Musician’s Course in the near future! The course will
be one week long in the school holidays, culminating in several public performances. We
won't mention dates etc. yet until we get the activity loaded on CadetOne. This course will
ideally be based in the metro area, but we will be sure to let you all know ASAP when details
are available!
What will we play?
The Air Training Corps Association was kind enough to purchase a number of arrangements
for the band. A big thank you to the Air TC Association for this!! We have chosen a mix of
popular medleys as well as some more 'serious' music. We will also have some military
marches to practice so we have something to practice while we march.
Some of the charts that have been purchased for the band are:
 Abba on Broadway
 Selections from Ray Charles
 Air from County Derry
 Afterburn
 Highlights from Jersey Boys
 Instant Swing Concert
 Lion King Selections
You can have a listen to these charts if you search for them on
http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/
We also have several marches, such as Glorious Victory, Waltzing Matilda and Army of the
Nile.
These are just some of the charts that we will play. We have to keep some surprises!
Marching
Yes – the 3WG Band will also be a marching band! Marching is a key component of the
AAFC, and will also be a key component of the 3WG Band. Marching as a band is very
different to marching as a flight, and the key difference is that there are no words of
command used apart from “Band Fall-In”! How do we know what to do you ask? Simple! The
Drum Major of the band will have a Drum Majors staff. There are a number of different
signals given, and each will indicate a different movement. We will spend a significant
amount of time on the Musician’s Course learning how to march as a band .
Next steps
Stay tuned for further information. We will endeavour to send out information regularly
regarding the 3WG Band.
If you have any questions, thoughts, ideas or suggestions, please feel free to contact
FLGOFF(AAFC) Simon on 0408 486 859 or benjamin.simon@aafc.org.au
Kind Regards,
Ben Simon
FLGOFF(AAFC)
3WG Band
312 SQN
0408 486 859
benjamin.simon@aafc.org.au