The 'long list' of 2016 nominations for the various categories of the annual 4BR Awards have been released.

11 expert judges will now cast their eyes over them to come up with their various personal choices, with the winners revealed on Christmas morning.

Band of the Year:

Black Dyke
Brighouse & Rastrick
Cory
Eikanger Bjorsvik
Fairey
Fountain City
Paris Brass Band
Stavanger
Valaisia
Wellington Brass Band

The 10 bands have been chosen not just for their contest achievements during the past year, but also for their artistic ones — from concert performances and tours to recordings and projects.

Conductor of the Year:

David Bremner
Nicholas Childs
Garry Cutt
Arsene Duc
James Gourlay
Philip Harper
Erik Janssen
Chris Jeans
David King
Joe Parisi

The 10 conductors have been chosen not just for their impressive contest records during the past year, but also for their inspirational leadership qualities and progressive artistic outlooks.

Player of the Year:

David Childs (freelance euphonium)
Tom Hutchinson (Cornet — Cory)
Dominic Longhurst (Cornet — Brighouse & Rastrick)
Peter Moore (freelance trombone)
Marielle Rey (Soprano cornet — Valaisia Brass Band)
Daniel Thomas (Euphonium — Black Dyke)
Philip Johnstone (Tuba — Woolston Brass)
Robbert Voss (Euphonium — Brass Band Schoonhoven)
Helen Williams (Flugel — Cory)
Glyn Williams (Euphonium — Cory)

These are 10 players who made the most significant impact on audiences with their performances, both on and off the contest stages during the past year.

Test Piece of the Year:

As a glow… (Ludovic Neurohr): (Second Section: Swiss National Championship)
Ballet for Band (Joseph Horovitz): (First Section: National Championship of Great Britain)
Essay (Edward Gregson): (First Section: Regional Championships of Great Britain)
Fraternity (Thierry Deleruyelle): (European Championship)
Journey of the Lone Wolf (Simon Dobson): (National Championship of Great Britain)
Raveling Unraveling (Philip Sparke): (European/Belgian Championship)
Searching for Light (Stig Nordhagen): (Norwegian National Championship)
The Graces of Love (Oliver Waespi): (Third Section: Swiss National Championship)
The Mansions of Glory (Jonathan Bates): (National Youth Championships of Great Britain)
The Triumph of Time (Peter Graham): (British Open/Dutch National Championship)

The 10 test pieces that made the greatest musical impact on critics, players, conductors and audiences alike.

Lower Section Band of the Year:

Brass Band Sachsen (Germany)
De Spijkerpakkenband (Netherlands)
European Youth Band
Fountain City Youth Band (USA)
Morawa District High School Brass Band (Australia)
St Dennis (England)
Tertnes Skoles Musikkorps (Norway)
Wardle Junior Blast (England)
Youth Brass 2000 (England)
Young Brass Band Willebroek (Belgium)

As with the Band of the Year category, these are the 10 bands have been chosen not just for their contest achievements during the past year, but also for their artistic ones — from concert performances and tours to recordings, projects, and even simply being an inspiration to others.

Contest Performance of the Year:

Brass Band Buizingen (Belgian National Championship — 'Raveling, Unraveling')
Brass Band Schoonhoven (Dutch National Championship — 'The Triumph of Time')
Cory (European Championship — 'Fraternity')
Cory (British Open — 'The Triumph of Time')
Cory (Brass in Concert)
Eikanger Bjorsvik (Norwegian National Championship — 'Searching for Light')
St Dennis (West of England Regional Championship — 'Essay')
Tredegar (Welsh Regional Championship — 'Cambridge Variations')
Valaisia (Swiss National Championship — 'Goldberg 2012')
Valaisia (European Championship Own Choice — 'Trance')

The 10 'stand out' contest performances of the year — the ones that set the bench mark.

Newcomer of the Year:

A4 Brass Quartet
Black Dyke Heritage Project
Brass Band Podcast
Childs Play Project
David Childs (Editor of Brass Band World magazine)
Italian National Championships
Shri Sriram and Hammonds Saltaire: 'Just a Vibration' Project
Super Slow Way: A Rhapsody to the Leeds & Liverpool Canal Project
Thierry Deleruyelle
Tubular Brass Project

10 people, bands, innovations or projects that made the most impact in terms of popularity, as well as critically and artistically during the past year.

CD of the Year:

Arabian Nights (Black Dyke)
Black Dyke Gold: Volume 5 (Black Dyke)
Celebration — An 80th Birthday Tribute to Howard Snell (Desford & Foden's)
Elemental (Cory)
European Brass Band Championships 2016 (Various)
Of Gods and Kings (Foden's)
Music for Brass Septet: Volume 4 (Septura Brass Septet)
Quintessence (Fairey)
Raveling, Unraveling (Cory)
War Memorials (Cory & Tredegar)

The 10 CDs which have made the most impact not just on the brass band world with its overall quality, musical outlook and artistic importance.

Solo CD of the Year:

Affinity (Les Neish)
Colours: The French Tenor Horn (Anthony Galinier)
Dreamtimes (Steven Mead)
Fantasy (Philip Cobb)
Forte (Derick Kane)
Homeland (Matthew Van Emmerick)
Lyrical Virtuoso (Steven Mead)
Myths & Legends (Brett Baker)
Now & Then (Brett Baker)
Romance (Bastien Baumet)

The 10 solo CDs which have made the most impact not just on the brass band world with its overall quality, musical outlook and artistic importance.