Ebbw Valley Brass maintained their stranglehold on the Welsh Open title as they claimed the Welsh Miners' Challenge Cup for a third year in a row at Newport's Riverfront Theatre.
Led by Matt Rowe, their 'Golden Night at the Opera' programme gained inspiration from the rock group Queen, The Beatles and Puccini as they secured a clear two-point margin of victory from West Wales rivals Goodwick Brass, with Parc & Dare in third. Wantage headed the cross-border English challenge in fourth ahead of City of Cardiff (M1) and Brunel Brass.
Very enjoyable
"A very enjoyable show," wrote music adjudicator Dr Brett Baker in his summing up of the champions. "This was a well thought out programme with an array of fine soloist and sensible accompaniments."
Ebbw Valley opened with 'Overture on God Save the Queen', before 'Seaside Rendezvous' provided a light-hearted segue to the cornet solo 'Nessun Dorma' played by Andrew Smith, 'With a little help from my Friends', a lyrical excerpt of part of 'Bohemian Rhapsody' and 'I Want to Break Free' rounded of their polished set.
In addition to the first prize cheque of £1,000, the band also made the short journey back up the valley with prizes for 'Best Cornet', 'Best Trombone Section' and 'Best Tuba Section'.
It also gave Ebbw Valley a huge boost of collective confidence ahead of the upcoming Welsh Regional Championships in Swansea in March, whilst their guest conductor also offered his praise to them.
All stepped up
"It's been great working with the band for this event," Matt Rowe told 4BR. "The programme had been given a great deal of thought, and the commitment of the players was brilliant. My congratulations go to them — they all stepped up and performed so well — soloists and ensemble alike."
There was certainly a packed day of entertainment for a large audience and supportive to enjoy, with few in disagreement with Dr Brett Baker's thoughts on the "great standard of playing"heard from the 13 competitors and on which he said that the conductors who "had showed off their band's best bits — balance, tuning and ensemble were the ones that did well".
Goodwick delight
Entertainment judge Tommy Tynan also added that good music choices, audience engagement and presentation had informed his decision making as second placed Goodwick Band took home the 'Most Entertaining Stage Presentation' prize as well as securing their invitation place at the 2025 British Open Spring Festival.
Their 'Murder in the Night' set led by Joshua Ruck also featured the outstanding talents of 16-year-old soprano cornet player Carys Wood, who not only took the 4BR 'Best Soprano' award but also made it a double with the 'Best Soloist' accolade.
A delighted band also headed back across the M4 with the 'Best Horn Section' award and a prize pot of £800 to start spending on celebratory drinks.
Colourful Parc
Parc & Dare claimed a third consecutive podium finish at the event as Dewi Griffiths led the First Section band through a Jacob Larsen inspired 'Colourama Suite' to deservedly pick up the £300 third prize and trophy.
Elsewhere there was plenty to enjoy with Wantage's 'A Night at the Theatre', which saw Imogen Fewster become the first recipient of the 'Best Baritone' award in memory of Tredegar's Jonathan Bound and presented by his family on the day.
City of Cardiff (M1)'s '…and now the weather' set saw their 'Best Percussion' team provide the colourful foundation for their programme, whilst Chris McMullin of Brunel was the 'Best Euphonium' focal point of Brunel's 'Starlight Odyssey — A Journey Home'.
Tylorstown resilience
On a day that mixed many emotions there was also a remarkable show of communal love and resilience by Tylorstown Band as they took to the stage just days after the death of their much loved solo euphonium player Angela Westacott. Led by her brother and with family members and her partner in the ranks they gave a wonderful performance with her daughter Cari playing the main solo feature.
Elsewhere there was music inspired by The Beatles to 'The Lion King', 80th anniversary VE Day celebrations to Elvis Presley and even Jaws, Dragons and bumblebees.
Uplifting start
Once again, a very well-run day by contest controller Dean Evans was aided by a fine team of volunteers and the polished compere skills of David Hayward. Even with additional rugby attractions nearby and commitments of some players to also perform at the UniBrass Championships in Cardiff, the event progressed without a hitch to kick-start the Welsh contesting season in uplifting fashion.
Iwan Fox
This was a well thought out programme with an array of fine soloist and sensible accompanimentsDr Brett Baker on Ebbw Valley's winning set
Result:
Adjudicators: Dr Brett Baker (music); Tommy Tynan (entertainment)
1. Ebbw Valley (Matt Rowe): 194
2. Goodwick Brass (Joshua Ruck): 192
3. Parc & Dare (Dewi Griffiths): 190
4. Wantage (Chris King): 188
5. City of Cardiff (M1) (David Hamilton): 186
6. Brunel Brass (Daniel Hall): 184
7. Tylorstown (Robert Westacott): 183.5
8. Jackfield (Ryan Richards): 183
9. Pontardulais Town (Paul Jenkins): 182
10. Forest of Dean Brass (Martyn Patterson): 181
11. BTM (Jeff Hutcherson): 180
12. Lewis Merthyr (Craig Roberts): 178
13. City of Bristol (Craig Roberts): 177
2025 Spring Festival Qualifier: Goodwick
Most Entertaining Band: Goodwick
Highest First Section Band not in main prizes: Tylorstown
Best Soloist: Carys Wood (Goodwick)
Best Soprano Cornet: Carys Wood (Goodwick)
Best Cornet Player: Andrew Smith (Ebbw Valley)
Best Baritone Player: Imogen Fewster (Wantage)
Best Euphonium Player: Chris McMullin (Brunel Brass)
Best Horn Section: Goodwick
Best Trombone Section: Ebbw Valley
Best Tuba Section: Ebbw Valley
Best Percussion Section: City of Cardiff (M1)
Youngest Player: Morgan Rees (14) — Tylorstown
