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1st. Notre Dame Bugle Band
By
Mr. Anthony Dyer

The acquisition of the Bugle Band resulted from our quest for independence and the natural sequence of completing the whole picture. During the first ten (10) years of our existence, joint church parades were held with the First Precentation Sea Scouts which started and ended at Presentation College. Both troops marched to the music of the Presentation Scout Band. We shared the music just as we were allowed to use their scout house.

As we moved into the seventies, and with Noel Penco's enlistment into the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard, there was an emphasis on the military drill. Our famous drill master was "guerilla" or was it "gorilla" (he was proud of the name), who had us bare back for hours in the hot 2:00pm sun every Saturday.

Notre Dame became proud of its skills in military drill, peaking with the "march and halt" in the presence of an international audience at the 4th Caribbean Jamboree in Barbados in 1972, the applause was tremendous.

In spite of all this, we were not a stand alone group. Marching music had to be provided by another group. To complete the picture, tha age-old dream of obtaining a band concretized with a plan and our architect was Noel Penco. He obtained information from the Regiment Band personnel for instrument selection, and a decision was made that we would form a bugle band, since Bugles were more user friendly that the Trumpet, Trombone, and saxaphone. He wrote to Boosley and Hawkes of England, obtained qoutes and ordered.

The next thing we knew was that the instruments had landed in Trinidad. However, there was a minor hurdle, funding. We were not financially ready to pay the cost of the instruments. The San Fernando District Scout Council was approached for a loan, without success. Necessity being the mother of invention, fund raising became the order of the day as one thing we knew, was that the instruments were not returning to England. We promoted a �major fete" with Joey Lewis at Naparima Bowl but this was financially unsuccessful.

The Chairman of the Parents Committee, Mr. Errol Shand, Secretary, Ms. Dorothy Spears, and Scout Leader Anthony Dyer negotiated a loan from the then Royal Bank of Cananda, for the purchase of the instruments. With blood, sweat, and tears, the loan was repaid by the hard work of the parents committee from:
* Cake Sales on High Street, San Fernando.
* Private Cake Sales.
* Jumble Sales at Penal Market spearheaded by Mrs. Penco, Mrs. Dyer, and Ms. Spears.

In spit of the struggle for funds, band practice was in full swing. The drummers had some natural ability reproducing roles and beats. The Buglers however, had to be taught how to play. That task was bestowed upon Mr. Bilking Thomas, trumpeter, and Tire Shop operator at Vistabella. He taught us the basics of how to properly blow through the mouth piece, and use the range of scales. We then started a repertoire of tunes including Valerie and BRQ (as we called "it").

Although Noel Penco as a Coast guards man spent a major part of his time in Chaguaramas, he always found time to be with the Troop and the band. He set up the resource personnel and gave guidelines.

Band Leader Noel Penco (Founder) with drummers at a training session.- 1974

The Formation of the 1st. NDSS Bugle Band - May 1974
Gabriel Woods, Audie Sue, Robert Osbourne, Andre, Big Woods, Anthony Dyer with other members going through the hectic paces

The Band members - 1974

Continue to read about the History of NDSS Bugle Band