One of the banding calendars most popular summer festivals will once again take place at the world famous Ironbridge World Heritage site in Shropshire in July.

July 9th/10th

The Ironbridge Gorge Brass Band Festival is now in its 15th year, growing steadily. This year it will feature a record 27 bands appearing over the weekend of the 9th and 10th of July.

The registered charity organising the event is run entirely by volunteers who donate their time free of charge. All the bands pay their own expenses and perform for nothing — and that means that entry for the event is absolutely free.

Invaluable support from the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust and local businesses like Southwater Events and Stagecraft means that the venue at The Museum of Iron (one of the Trust's ten award-winning sites in the historic gorge) and staging for the event are highly professional.

Reputation

The reputation of the Festival has also spread far and wide with this year's event featuring a band from Germany (the fifth country to be represented), while the Festivals' Young Composer Competition has received an entry from New Zealand.

The Festival also holds popular youth workshops, whilst about a quarter of the 600 or so musicians appearing at this years' event will be under the age of 25.

So if you want a few surprises, pack a picnic, make your way to Ironbridge on the 9th and 10th of July and grab 16 hours of fabulous live entertainment without having to put your hands in your pockets4BR

Pack a picnic

So if you want a few surprises, pack a picnic, make your way to Ironbridge on the 9th and 10th of July and grab 16 hours of fabulous live entertainment without having to put your hands in your pockets.