There were smiles just about all round at the conclusion of the 2009 Great Northern Brass Arts Festival this weekend.

Cheshire Cat

Festival organiser Philip Biggs was smiling like the proverbial Cheshire Cat as the event drew in a record number of listeners to Bridgewater Hall – with the evening concert featuring Brighouse & Rastrick, Foden’s and Black Dyke being a near sell 2,200 sell out.

Fans of Brighouse however will surely have been trying to lay a few quid at the Birmingham bookies after David King led the lads from West Riding through a thrill a minute performance4BR

Happy four

Meanwhile, the four main bands on the day will have also left happy ahead of the British Open next weekend.

Leyland produced an extended workout in the afternoon with a demanding programme that concluded with a spirited performance of the Open test piece ‘Titan’s Progress’.

MD, Jason Katsikaris will have been happy with the current state of the preparation ahead of Symphony Hall, and with his band’s current levels of stamina.

Meanwhile, Foden’s stretched their legs with a classy performance to conclude the first half of the evening concert, whilst Black Dyke shook off the last vestiges of any Australian jet lag with an equally polished performance to round off the night.

Thrill a minute

Fans of Brighouse however will surely have been trying to lay a few quid at the Birmingham bookies after David King led the lads from West Riding through a thrill a minute performance to open the evening concert.

The announcement that there will be a Great Northern Spring Brass Arts Festival next year was greeted with enthusiasm too.

Now comes Symphony Hall.

Coverage

4BR will be reviewing the whole day plus giving concert reviews of the major bands that took part.