Editorial ~ 2006: May

This month we have a European feel to our views with our opinions on the success of Belfast; the role of the BFBB and the possible beginning of European dominance.

The success of Belfast

You have to hand it to EBBA. Given that Groningen was close to an unmitigated disaster they have certainly learnt the lessons they experienced there and have come back with a cracking event in Belfast.

Where Groningen was shabby, disorganised and badly thought out, Belfast was slick, precise and extremely well executed, from the first note to the last. EBBA took a more active supervisory role this year and worked in close association with the North of Ireland Brass Band Association and their superb team headed by the excellent Joe Cassells. They too, should take the plaudits for the way in which they quietly but very effectively promoted the event, gained support and cooperation from local government, utilized the fabulous Waterfront Hall venue to its maximum potential and impressed everyone concerned with their professional approach to the complex problems that needed to be overcome for the whole series of related events to come off as successfully as they did.

There are still some concerns that do need to be addressed if Birmingham 2007 is to be as successful though. The appointment of Martin Ellerby to write the championship test piece should ensure a more user friendly set work, whilst there does need to be a review of the judges especially in respect of the own choice section of the contest. Experience and understanding of brass band repertoire should be an essential requirement here. Finally, a later start time for the Championship Section on the Friday night would ensure a fuller hall than that experienced by the 5.00pm start here. Rush hour in Birmingham is not a time to try and get to Symphony Hall to listen to a band contest.

These though are small points. EBBA has shown that it now has the organisational infrastructure in place to help national associations run a top class event. Some of the scheduling in Belfast was detailed down to the minute whilst everyone involved knew what role they had to play to make sure it ran like clockwork. It was very impressive.

EBBA too has a very open policy when it comes to scrutiny, and both at its Forum and Press Conference it welcomed lively debate and analysis of its aims and objectives, as well as its rules. It is now a mature organisation which takes on board both good ideas and valid criticism.

All in all, Belfast was a triumph. EBBA and the North of Ireland Brass Band Association can be very proud of their efforts, and deservedly so.  

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The role of the BFBB

Whereas EBBA came away from Belfast with their reputation enhanced, the British Federation of Brass Bands may well have found theirs to have been tarnished somewhat.

In a few weeks time, the BFBB will organise the first English National Championships. In a year's time they will host the European Championships. It is genuinely hoped that both will be a success, as if the European weekend is anything to go by, they seem to be an organisation in desperate need of proactive leadership. In Belfast, they seemed totally ill prepared to host any sort of contest let alone two of the most major banding events in the calendar.   

Their participation at the EBBA Forum should have given them the opportunity to inform everyone of how the ongoing organisation of both events was developing, whilst the event itself should have been the ideal PR occasion to promote the contests to a large potential audience. To say they missed the boat was an understatement.

There was no presentation made at the EBBA Forum, whilst their representative, the BFBB Development Officer Philip Watson seemed totally under prepared to field any questions about both contests and the role of the BFBB in particular.

There was no high profile marketing of either event in the traders area, whilst the production of a small, badly designed A5 handout flyer was simply an embarrassment. Even at the EBBA press conference, it was clear no thought had be given to work out possible strategies resulting from Willebroek's win, which meant the real possibility of just the one English band taking part in the 2007 contest. No one understood EBBA policy concerning the ‘invitation' of non qualifying bands.

The BFBB does a great deal of good work for the banding movement and has any number of hard working professional people in its ranks. In Belfast some of those worked in partnership with the event organisers to make Belfast the success it was.

The BFBB though lacks any dynamic, proactive leadership. How much promotion of the English Championships have you seen in the press, and how much do we know about what exciting developments for Euro 2007 have been put in place? The Norwegians have already put in place any number of initiatives for 2008 and were keen to make sure everyone knew about it.

The BFBB purports to represent the best interests of British banding, yet it has next to no Scottish or Welsh members. At Belfast it even had a problem representing itself. The English National Championships will see if they are truly an organisation that can promote British banding in the way it deserves.

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1953 all over again?

On the 15th June 1953, the Hungarian National football team, the so called ‘Magnificent Magyars', annihilated the cream of English footballing talent at Wembley Stadium, and revolutionised the game as it was known with such far reaching consequences that it would another 13 years before England could claim to have reclaimed its position as the best in the world.

Willebroek's win may not quite have the same international impact as the likes of Puskas, Czibor, Kocsis and Hidegkuti did all those years ago, but Frans Violet and his team of talented players such as Bert Van Thienen, Walter Hoecks, Raf Van Looveren and Stef Pillaert have given the British, and the English in particular something to think about for sure.

During the years of Anglo domination of this event, little or no thought had really gone into believing that the Europeans could just more than occasionally mount a lasting challenge to their traditional dominance. Eikanger's wins of 1988 and 1989 were masterminded by a missionary Howard Snell, whilst Willebroek's Plymouth win of 1993 was more a result of others throwing the title away, than claiming it for themselves. 

How wrong they could be now.

With no Dyke or Grimethorpe able to qualify for Birmingham or beyond it seems, where will the English challenge now come from?

The English Nationals will provide the answer, but Willebroek won't be shaking in their boots too much if Fodens, Fairey, YBS, Brighouse or Leyland win through, let alone Hepworth, PolySteel, Sellers or even Bournemouth Concert or Sovereign Brass. Fine bands all, but the evidence of Belfast is that Willebroek is playing at a different level to them at present.

No, the likelihood is that for the foreseeable future, English domination of the Europeans is at an end. It is more likely that Wales and Norway will now pose the greatest threat to extended Belgian accession to the European throne.

An era has possibly passed in Belfast this year; an era has possibly begun too. The English can only hope they don't have to wait as long for another Ramsey and his lads to come along before they can claim to be the best in the world again.

WDYT? 

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