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2003 Scottish Open Championship
Glasgow Royal Concert Hall
Sunday 30th November
The Competing Bands: 4BR casts it beady eye over the 15
bands hoping to become the inaugural Scottish Open Champions this
year.... and then we give our usual dodgy prediction.
Although there is no past form to go on at this contest, all the
bands taking part have had busy years and so bring some semblance
of good or bad form to the contest. All the bands will be more than
capable of putting up a quality show on the test piece, although
none should underestimate its technical or musical difficulties.
The competing bands this year are:
Besses o’ th’ Barn (Steve Sykes)
Bo’ness and Carriden (Iain Davey)
Broxburn Public (Bruce Wallace)
BTM (David Stowell)
Fishburn (Graham O’Connor)
Freckleton (Paul Dalton)
Hepworth (Mark Bentham)
Kingdom Brass (Archie Hutchison)
Kirkintilloch (Frank Renton)
Newtongrange (David Hirst)
Scottish Co-op (Russell Gray)
Sellers International (Philip McCann)
Tredegar (Richard Evans)
Unison Kinneil (Allan Ramsey)
Whitburn (Andrew Duncan)
Besses o’ th’ Barn (4BR Ranking - 23)
has had an up and down 2003. The down was certainly the demotion
from the British Open, although they did play very well in coming
12th there under Steve Sykes, whilst the ups have been a series
of good solid performances under the new MD since he took over the
helm. They didn’t qualify for London this year as they couldn’t
repeat the result at Blackpool of 2002 and had to be content with
a slightly disappointing 8th place. That was the last time they
appeared under Lynda Nicholson, but they showed a glimpse of their
quality when they put in a fine account of “Chivalry”
at Cambridge where they came 11th and were placed as high as 5th
by John Berryman, one of the three judges there on the day. The
Open also showed that they have the foundations in the right place,
so they should come to Glasgow in confident mood. Plenty of good
young players around the stand as well, so they will be keen to
round the year off in some style.
Bo’ness and Carriden (4BR Ranking - 70) started
the year off in fine style when they came 4th at the Scottish Regional
Championships under Iain Davey, their best result there since 1998,
and they followed that up with a real solid 5th place at the Senior
Trophy – again solid stuff. They were also placed 6th at the
Carnegie Contest in May, but since that time they have been a bit
quiet on the contesting front. It will be interesting to see how
they do against a strong field here.
Broxburn Public (4BR Ranking - 72) started off
the year gaining a fine 5th place at the Scottish Regionals, a fine
result in their first year back in the top section after winning
the First Section in 2002. They didn’t compete in the Grand
Shield contests, or Pontins but came 7th at the Carnegie Contest
in May and 3rd at the NCBBA Contest in as well. That was a few months
ago now, so immediate form is a little unclear, but under Bruce
Wallace they have shown they can more than hold their own against
strong contenders.
BTM (4BR Ranking - 26) will surely be looking
forward to this contest after a year under David Stowell which has
seen them push themselves forward once more. Wins at Ebbw Vale and
Porthcawl Miners Eisteddfodd against fellow Welsh rivals Tredegar
showed that on their day they can really play superbly, and although
they could only manage 7th at the Senior Cup and 11th at Pontins
recently they only missed out on a trip to London for the Nationals
by a point earlier in the year. A very busy and talented young band,
they have shown they can rise to the occasion and could well make
a serious mark here.
Fishburn (4BR Ranking - 31) will be directed by
that man of many talents, Graham O’Connor who just has that
happy knack of knowing what it takes to win contests at just about
every level, anywhere in the UK. They started the year off in fine
style winning one of the local North East contests against their
rivals, but missed out on the trip to London after coming third
behind both Ever Ready and EYMS at the North of England Regional
Championships. After that though they showed super form in just
missing out on a trip to Birmingham when they came 4th at the Grand
Shield, whilst at the recent Pontins Championships they again showed
plenty of class in coming 3rd. Confidence is high then for that
form to continue north of the Border this weekend.
Freckleton (4BR Ranking - 41) come to the contest
after winning the Feetwood contest in early October but then coming
a disappointing 21st and last at Pontins just a few weeks ago. Under
Paul Dalton they have continued to make good solid progress in the
Championship Section, but just lack that consistency it seems at
the moment. They started the year by coming 7th at the difficult
North West Regional Championships, but fell away somewhat in the
Grand Shield where they could only manage 19th place, so as you
can see it has been something of an up and down year to say the
least. They will however be looking to repeat the form of Fleetwood
again and will be on the look out to come in the prizes.
Hepworth (4BR Ranking - 49) are in very good form
at the moment after just missing out on claiming the top prize at
Pontins under Mark Bentham. That really was a super show that had
the judges scratching their heads before just deciding against them.
They have plenty of fine players around the stand who could really
shine on this test piece, and so they could well prove to be a good
bet to do really well. Earlier this year they came 11th at the Yorkshire
Regional Championships, before moving on to claim 3rd place at the
Senior Cup and gain further promotion to the Grand Shield for 2004.
It could be that they are hitting their best form just at the right
time.
Kingdom Brass (4BR Ranking - 45) has travelled
far and wide for contests this year. Under Archie Hucthison they
came 7th at the European Open Championships in Switzerland, whilst
earlier in the year they came 7th once more at the Regional Championships,
a fall of three places on the previous two years there. They also
travelled south to Blackpool for the Senior Cup where they came
13th and also came 3rd at the Carnegie Contest. A busy contesting
band then and one that will be looking for another solid outing
here.
Kirkintilloch (4BR Ranking - 12) and Frank Renton
will surely come to the Scottish Open as one of the favourites to
take the title. 2003 has been a good year indeed with further evidence
that they are now fast approaching consistent top ten levels at
the major contests. Earlier this year they came runners up at the
Scottish Regional Championships behind Scottish Co-op, whilst they
went onto the European Championships where they played very well
indeed in coming 8th (it could have been higher). The Open saw them
come 11th with another fine account whilst at the Nationals they
could count themselves a tad unlucky not to be placed higher than
8th. On both occasions they gave thrillingly musical performances,
just troubled by a few too many slips, and after another enjoyable
days work at the recent Spennymoor Brass in Concert Contest, they
will be more than confident of doing well here and possibly lifting
the inaugural title. With Frank Renton at the helm, and with his
knowledge of this particular score, do not bet against them.
Newtongrange (4BR Ranking - 51) will be conducted
here by the experienced David Hirst after making the decision not
to take the long journey South to Skegness and the Mineworkers Championships
(who can blame them?). They started the year disappointedly by losing
their Championship status for 2004 when they came 9th at the Scottish
Regional Championships, but under Anthony Swainson they showed a
lot of character when they travelled to Blackpool and came 9th at
the Senior Cup. They also showed further good form when coming second
to Unison Kinneil at the Carnegie Contest in May, so even though
they may be ranked below many of the others here they could well
spring a surprise or two.
Scottish Co-op (4BR Ranking - 14) are a band on
the up, and 2003 has shown that the once all conquering Scottish
Champions are fast approaching that form once more. They took the
Scottish Regional Championship in some considerable style (and by
four clear points), whilst they bounced straight back to the British
Open under Nicholas Childs when they came runners up at the Grand
Shield behind Carlton Main. The British Open saw the band turn to
the services of James Scott and they produced a solid showing in
coming 13th, whilst under the same direction they gave an excellent
account of themselves at London and could count themselves a touch
unlucky to have only come 9th. They didn’t quite so as well
as expected at Spennymoor, but they did showcase some exceptional
solo talent in the form of Alexandra Kerwin on soprano. With plenty
more talented players around the stand, this could be a piece that
suites them well and a very strong challenge for the title under
Russell Gray musical direction is very much on the cards.
Sellers International (4BR Ranking - 13) are another
band that make the journey north of the border with high expectations
of doing very well here – especially as it is on home ground
for the MD Phillip McCann. Just a couple of weeks ago they produced
a stunning bit of playing in coming runners up at the Spennymoor
Brass in Concert Contest against a very strong field. All year at
the big events they have been playing well with perhaps lady luck
not being too kind on them. They were 3rd at the Yorkshire Regional
Championships and 6th at the All England Masters, but fell away
to 10th at the Grand Shield just when they needed that bit of extra
good fortune. Still, Spennymoor showed their true talent, and with
fine players around the stands and a very determined MD they could
well feature highly here as well.
Tredegar (4BR Ranking - 7) are directed here by
Richard Evans, and come to the contest on the back of a superb runners
up spot at the National Championships in London when many people
in audience had them down to be the winners. On that day Steve Bastable
took them, but for this contest they return to Richard Evans to
direct their assault. Earlier in the year they were comfortable
runners up to BAYV Cory at the Welsh Regional Championships, but
suffered some poor local results at both Ebbw Vale and Porthcawl
which may have dented the confidence. The Open saw them come under
the direction of Russell Gray where they came a very solid 9th place
before the heroics of the Albert Hall and their second runners up
placing at the contest in the past ten years. They have lost their
top man back to Hepworth since then, but they should have enough
confidence about them to put up a very strong challenge here and
end their year on another high note.
Unison Kinneil (4BR Ranking - 29) have been quietly
going about their impressive business in recent contests under the
fine direction of the talented Allan Ramsey, and the rumour mill
has it that they could be a band to listen out for here as well,
what with a couple of “guests” with impressive CV’S
helping out from Black Dyke. They came third at the Scottish Regional
Championships, the best result since 2000 at the contest, whilst
they fell away somewhat when they came 10th at the Senior Trophy.
They were impressive winners at the Carnegie Contest, so they have
the taste of victory on home soil this year. Although both Ben Rapp
and David Thornton will help, they still have enough quality to
more than make a mark. Well worth listening out for.
Finally, Whitburn (4BR Ranking - 8) will be very
keen to show that their magnificent runners up spot at the British
Open this year was not a fantastic “one off”. Under
Andy Duncan they have really gelled into a very fine band, with
super solo players such as Gordon Jenkins, the British Open “Best
Instrumentalist” on soprano and other fine players dotted
around the stands. The MD is a class act as well, so they will be
one of the bands to beat for sure. 2003 started off very disappointingly
with 6th place at the Scottish Regional Championships before they
regrouped under their new MD to deliver a superb performance in
Birmingham. Apart from a local entertainment contest win over Kirkintilloch
later in the year they have been quietly preparing for this contest
it seems and the chance to lay down their marker as the best band
in Scotland – and beyond. Their 4BR ranking is an accurate
reflection its seems of how good they are. They will be going out
to prove it on Sunday.
4BR Prediction:
So who is it going to be then? On form it could well be any one
of four or five bands – quite a few of these contenders have
had a very good last few months, and on their day just about any
one of the 15 bands could produce an outstanding performance to
leave the others in their wake.
The test piece is a generous work – it rewards both technical
and musical proficiency, and although it has been used at many contests
since it first appeared a decade ago, to be honest only the very
best bands can really produce a truly thrilling account of it. Many
of the bands here have the talent to do it justice, but don’t
be surprised if the test piece takes more than a few casualties
on the way.
We think there are a group of six bands that just have the edge
on the rest, both in terms of experience and quality around and
in front of the stand and so we see it as a good old scrap between
some quality outfits in the shape of Scottish Co-op, Sellers International,
Tredegar, Whitburn, Kirkintilloch and Hepworth. It could well come
down to personal preference from the three men in the box –
all have strong views on what they like and dislike, but we think
the eventual winners should come from this group if they play to
form.
We will stick our necks out though and go for Kirkintilloch for
the title – Frank Renton and this band are playing very well
of late, and if it all clicks the they could very well put up a
stunner to take the title. Whitburn are another very solid outfit
and with Andy Duncan they are sure to put up an impressive performance
and we think they will push Kirky very close indeed. Sellers International
too can really shine on this piece whilst Tredegar are on a high
at the moment and with Richard Evans at the helm they too should
be up and around there come results time. Scottish Co-op have the
soloists to make the most of the piece and an MD who can wring just
about every drop of emotion out of the score whilst Hepworth are
a band on the up under Mark Bentham and could be serious contenders.
Any one of the top six could win and win well, so don’t be
surprised to see any permutation of them featuring. Dark horses
for us could well be BTM and David Stowell. Don’t discount
the any of the others though – this could well prove a very
interesting contest indeed.
4BR Results Prediction:
1. Kirkintilloch
2. Whitburn
3. Sellers International
4. Tredegar
5. Scottish Co-op
6. Hepworth
Dark Horse: BTM
© 4BarsRest
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