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4BR Review of the Year
The First Section.
Our man John James gives us his retrospective look back at
the First Section in 2002. Lots of fine playing and a late night
or two.
Look back on the year gone by and pick out your highlights. Even
if you were only vaguely aware of bands that were making a statement
you’d have to have ignored all our contest reports to be unaware
of the impact of The Staffordshire Band. Of how everything came
together at Torquay when they were certainly treading the red carpet
of banding, more in the review that follows.
With that we had better start this review in the Midlands were
Staffordshire, City of Coventry and Derwent Brass took the three
places on offer from the areas. Winners at Burton Town Hall in the
Midlands Regionals Staffordshire figured in the frame from May onwards
- 3rd at Delph on Whit Friday and also at Blackpool in the Senior
Trophy where they also came 3rd. They became 2002 First Section
National Champions of Great Britain, and all of us who were there
on that very long Sunday night in Torquay can testify to the quality
of that performance. A week later they won the Wychavon Entertainment
Contest before rounding out the year with runners-up place at the
WMBBA Contest – Leamington Spa. Playing in the Championship
Section at Pontins they approached the contest on a high note but
didn’t make the impression they perhaps hoped for under conductor
David Maplestone. They will be playing in the Championship Section
for 2003 in the Midlands, and on the form displayed both on the
stage and on the CD just released could be be a force to be reckoned
with in the Region. The City of Coventry year in the contesting
arena brought not only 2nd in the areas but they also took the 3rd
place trophy at Buxton in May and a very creditable 6th place in
Torquay. Derwent Brass surely celebrated 10 years of banding with
a champagne toast. Conducted by Keith Leonard they took second in
the Belvoir Castle Entertainment Contest, 3rd in the Areas and took
4th place in the National Finals – belting results in a celebration
year. The Midlands produced a number of bands of note Riddings and
Coop-Crewe took individual awards with Towcester Studio and Kibworth
also deserving of a mention. One of the real star bands of last
year Towcester Studio and their skillful MD Adele Sellers continued
their upward progress. They came 4th at the Midlands Regional Championship
in March and followed this with a 2nd at the Buxton Contest. Kibworth
played very well in the Regionals without figuring in the prizes
before they visited the Whit Friday event and at Micklehurst came
4th in a field of 39 Bands. Runners-up at the Wychavon Entertainment
Contest they won the Leicester Contest and then endorsed their class
by winning the Leamington Spa WMBBA Contest. One of the prominent
stories this year revolved around a decision by the Midlands Regional
committee to downgrade three bands from the Championship Section
and to promote only two. This prompted Kibworth to apply for Championship
status based on their past two years consistent record of achievement,
a request which was rejected at local level but an appeal direct
to the British Federation of Brass Bands granted them the Championship
Section status they desired. This was not the end of the affair
and the Kibworth Band still find themselves in the 1st Section in
2003 when sadly for the movement, legal advice (and no doubt stiff
legal fees) was again sought by both the Regional Committee and
the BFBB.
The Yorkshire Region was reletively quiet on the 1st section front.
Wakefield Metropolitan and Kippax made the National Finals but left
the English Riviera without a trophy. Holme Silver had a good showing
this year and started a consistent run on Whit Friday in Saddleworth.
They took the honours at Easingwold March and Deportment Contesta
and then gained the prize for the best band on the march at the
Brighouse March and Hymn Tune Contest in July. Ian Scott's band
took the Old Silkstone March Contest honours a week later and so
had a good spring and summer run. Barnsley Building Society won
the £875 and the CISWO Challenge Trophy at the Mineworkers
Contest and also took a prize at the new Silkstone contest.
Whilst not taking a National Finals trophy home Broxburn Public
produced consistent contest performances all year with a win at
the Carnegie Contest, runners-up in the Northern Charities Entertainment
Contest and a 3rd place trophy at the Whitburn Contest. Livingston
Brass were third at the Forfar Entertainment Contest behind Broxburn
but then reversed the order at Whitburn and they too travelled to
the National Finals making these two bands consistently the 1st
Section achievers in the Scottish region.
Pemberton Old and Ashton–under-Lyne represented the North
West in Torquay and pretty much flew the flag for the area in 2002.
Pemberton Old were the winners of the Regional title in the North
West and then won the Senior Trophy in Blackpool with a top performance.
Pemberton were a classy outfit early doors but September saw a surprising
waver in their form with a Wychavon Entertainment Contest 5th place,
a performance at Torquay that could only get them 9th place. They
had a disappointng Pontins result but you can be sure they will
be determined to bounce back with a vengance in 2003. Ashton–under-Lyne
won on home soil in taking the Tameside contest and were consisently
the best local band at the Whit Friday spectacular. They played
very well in the massive brass extravaganza of the Great Northern
Brass Arts Festival at the Bridgewater Hall in September and endorsed
their status with a little cracker of a performance under John Maines
in the Championship Section to take 4th place at Pontins. Tyldesley
celebrated their 125th anniversary with a SRO concert and took the
2nd prize in the Brass at the Guildhall contest in February.
A third region on the run with two bands quite heavily featured
- the Northern region - Gateshead Brass and Harrogate. Gateshead
Brass rose from the ashes of the former Northumbria Police Band
after the Force withdrew their financial support and all literally
overnight. It was a devastating blow for the Championship Band but
with help from many quarters; friends, family, supporters and the
members of the Band a committee was formed and they ‘worked
their socks off’ launching Gateshead Brass. They won the areas
and gained a good top-ten place in the National Finals. Harrogate
had a decent year. They took a good 4th place at Buxton in May after
finishing runners up in the Areas. They were runners-up in Class
A for bands registered 2nd, 1st and Championship at the Malton Brass
Band Contest but came away diasppointed in Torquay when they performed
well without reward.
London & Southern Counties saw Matthews Norfolk Brass take
the Regionals but they withdrew from the National finals to be replaced
by Alder Valley Brass who came 4th. They won the SCABA Spring Contest
in Hove and achieved a fourth in the Crawley Contest before their
representative trip to Torquay. They rounded out the year with a
mid table result in the SCABA Autumn Contest at Folkestone. Welwyn
Garden City move into the Championship Section for 2003 and were
not slow to acknowledge conductor David Stokes’ part in their
progression from 2nd Section to the Championship Section. They completed
their contest year with good result in the upper half placement
at the Pontins Contest. Chichester City played in Torquay in buoyant
mood having also taken 3rd prize at the Swindon Entertainment Contest
in the spring. Conductor John Williams took over the baton 5 years
ago when the band were in the 3rd section were rightly proud of
their achievements this year. Friary Guildford took the Crawley
Contest in a region were the bands, including Brighton and Broseley,
all played impressively and took the awards in 2002.
Abergavenny Borough and Thomas Coaches Mid Rhondda represented
Wales at the Nationals. Abergavenny Borough won the Areas and were
then third South East Wales contest at Ebbw Vale in April. They
announced the retirement of their long standing Musical Director,
Eric Powell after 38 years at the helm in September and Philip Harper
took them at Torquay. A runners-up prize at the WWBBA Ammanford
Contest in October wasn’t quite matched when they competed
at Treorchy but overall a most interesting 2002. Thomas Coaches
Mid Rhondda waited late into the night to play at Torquay and produced
a most distinguished performance to take the runners-up prize. They
gained a third place at the West Wales Ammanford Contest and another
good result in the Treorchy contest. Treherbert and District, Rogerstone,
Abergavenny and Ammanford Town all figured in contests in the province
of Wales and Tylorstown played consistently in the contests that
make up the Welsh Triple.
St.Austell and Ocean Brass (Portsmouth) had belting results in
Torquay finishing 3rd and 7th respectively. St.Austell under Melvyn
White played really well at the Nationals and then had a good result
at Pontins finishing in 6th place whilst Ocean Brass, after a creditable
Nationals result, ended the year with the disappointing news that
their MD Pete Curtis reluctantly had to step down due to unforeseen
military commitments. St Keverne took the Truro and Bugle titles
and Sherborne Town finished the year on a optimistic note in taking
the Annual Championships of the South West Brass Band Association
in November.
© 4BarsRest
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