Brass bands and brass ensembles haven't been completely forgotten by the national media it seems, with photographer Lorne Campbell once again doing a fantastic job in getting images into two leading newspaper publications.

An image of conductor and tuba player Sarah Billard was the 'Picture of the Day' in The Telegraph yesterday (Monday 24th August) and in The Times.

Sarah has ensured she has kept busy during the performance lockdown period, building a successful social media presence for herself and for Dronfield & Lowedges Community Band, where she is the Musical Director.

Open winner

She recently took the time to be part of the virtual Brass Band Summer School, where she was awarded the 'Open' prize in its solo showcase event, claiming £100 cash prize, which will be put towards the purchase of her own Eb tuba.

The performance, along with pianist Matthew McCombie, can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFuaIwa9OKU&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR0gMWg0inyoVH06ifaAG_7ivB8O_FsSS7nPLqf6s--LaTZMQhAmANpUETk

During lockdown Sarah has also recorded several of her own multi-track arrangements, which have so far been viewed close to 30,000 times on Facebook.

During lockdown Sarah has also recorded several of her own multi-track arrangements, which have so far been viewed close to 30,000 times on Facebook4BR

New members

All this and Dronfield & Lowedges Community Band has gained several new members after players saw their socially distanced performance of the march 'Slaidburn' on social media.

The band are currently unregistered but are aiming to continue to build and hopefully compete at the Yorkshire Regional Championships in the future.

The performance of Slaidburn can be found at: https://www.facebook.com/DronfieldDLCB/videos/314371573243541

Image courtesy and copyright of Lorne Campbell/Guzelian