Band History

A musical tradition continues ...

The Brockville Concert Band arises from a long tradition of community and military bands in Brockville. Civic bands provided entertainment at public venues such as community picnics and outdoor skating rinks. The Brockville Rifles Reserve Band entertained "on the green" in the 1930s and 40s.

Military band members returning from WWII formed the Brockville Civic Band. Re-organized as the Brockville Concert Band in 1974, the BCB inherited a musical tradition (and actual sheet music) from Civic and military bands dating back to the turn of the 20th century.

The Brockville Concert Band performs for various civic functions and entertains at charitable fundraising events. One of the recent BCB projects was purchasing a trailer to move equipment for concerts.

Musical Director

Since 1995, the Band's Musical Director / Conductor has been trumpeter and music teacher Lance Besharah. Lance Besharah is a high school music and technology teacher currently residing and teaching in Brockville, Ontario. He holds a B.A. in Music Education from St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, NS and an Honours Tech Specialist qualification from Queens University in Kingston, ON.

After graduating and teaching music in Nova Scotia, Lance returned to Ontario (Brockville) to work with the Alexander family business – Sam the Record Man. Here he taught private music lessons and repaired musical instruments. This was also when Lance joined the Brockville Concert Band as a trumpet player for the first time. Finding no teaching jobs available in music, he started a custom cabinet making business in 1980 which he successfully operated for many years. When his lifelong friend, Howard Alexander was offered a job opportunity in Newfoundland, Lance took over as director of the Brockville Concert Band for the first time and taught a music history and appreciation course at St. Lawrence College. This course ran for 3 more sessions. As fate would have it, in 1995 his cabinet shop burned down and an opening for a construction tech teacher became available at the high school. Within a few years, the music teacher position also became vacant and Lance now had the opportunity to marry all of his loves in one place at the same time. It was also in 1995 that Lance once again became the conductor of the Brockville Concert Band.

Lance has directed numerous musicals for the Brockville Operatic Society, Thousand Islands Secondary School and jointly with Brockville Collegiate Institute. He has shared the stage with many other fine Brockville musicians and ensembles performing in the Hardy Park summer concerts, various churches and the New Year’s Eve concerts. Since 2007 he has played trumpet and French horn for productions of the St. Lawrence College Music Theatre Program.

Lance was inducted into the Brockville Performing Arts Hall of Fame in 2009 as a member (Director) of the Brockville Concert Band and again in 2010 as an individual musician.