Parc & Dare continued their fine run of contesting form as they claimed the joint Championship/First Section honours at the West Wales BBA Festival.

Led by Chris Turner, as MD Dewi Griffiths was playing with Tredegar in a concert, their reprise of the recent First Section National Final test-piece, 'Beyond the Falls — The Smoke that Thunders' gave them victory over rivals Tylorstown who performed 'Paganini Variations'.

Victory also came with individual awards for soprano player Sol Maghur and solo euphonium Chris Smith, with the band later taking to their Facebook page to congratulate them on their 'brilliant achievement" and thank Chris Turner, "for taking the helm and leading us through such a fantastic performance".

Markham win

Markham & District also carried on their fine domestic form as they took the Second Section title under MD Gary Davies. The National Eisteddfod champion also reprised their National Finals work, 'Song of Courage' to secure the honours ahead of Crosskeys Silver, with Ammanford Town in third.

A delighted band later spoke of their delight on their Facebook page, congratulating not only their MD who picked up the Melville Jones Trophy as winning conductor, but also solo euphonium, Matt Rowe in winning the 'Best Instrumentalist' award. "We're incredibly proud of all our members," they said. "A fantastic result and a brilliant day of banding!".

Cwmtawe victory

Another band that has been riding the wave of success this year also secured yet more silverware, as Cwmtawe took the Third Section honours under Wayne Pedrick. Second place went to Ynyshir, with Mid-Rhondda in third.

It saw them gain a "clean sweep", as they called it on their Facebook page of the prizes on offer with their reprise of 'Snow Island' which gained them a top-10 finish at the recent York National Final. Here they also added the awards as winning conductor and 'Best Instrumentalist' that was picked up by principal cornet Gareth Thomas.

GCG success

There was no doubting the quality of the success of Gwaun Cae Gurwen in the Fourth Section as they also reprised their National Final work, (which saw them come 4th in York) to secure the title under MD, Alex Parker.

He added yet more personal silverware to his name as winning conductor whilst soprano player Andrew Keegan took the 'Best Instrumentalist' prize. Second place went to the rapidly improving Brass@Bont.

Debutants and returnees

At was a very well-run day at Ysgol Maes y Gwendreath supported by Ev-entz Percussion and a raft of local sponsors, there was encouraging signs for grass roots banding with Llanharan & Bryncare Brass led by Alex McGee making a Gold Award impression in the Community Section.

They later stated: "We are incredibly proud to have represented our community in our very first brass band competition, and we still can't quite believe that, in less than a year, we have built a band that is not only capable of competing, but of bringing home a winning performance!"

In addition, there was the welcome return of Ystradgynlais Public for what was the band's first contest performance since 2015, whilst Milford Haven Junior Town Band gave a Gold Award performance in the Youth Section.

Milford Haven pride

Some of their players have only taken up instrument in the last few weeks, so litlte wonder they enjoyed themselves, later stating on their Facebook page that they had, "a fantastic day"and that they were "very proud of our Gold Award!".

They added: "It was lovely to hear the adjudicator say that "we made his day", and to hear him speak about just how important Junior Bands are in keeping the future of brass banding alive. That really meant a lot to us! "

Congratulations

Looking back on the event, the West Wales BBA stated: "What a fantastic day celebrating brass banding! Huge congratulations to all the bands that competed and contributed to such a brilliant contest. The standard was fantastic, and it's been wonderful to see so much talent and passion on display."

What a fantastic day celebrating brass banding! Huge congratulations to all the bands that competed and contributed to such a brilliant contestOrganisers

Results:
Championship/First Section:

Adjudicator: Dr Brett Baker

1. Parc & Dare (Chris Turner)
2. Tylorstown (Andrew Jones)

Winning Conductor: Chris Turner (Parc & Dare)
Best Percussion: Tylorstown
Best Soprano: Sol Maghur (Parc & Dare)
Best Instrumentalist: Chris Smith (Parc & Dare)

Second Section:

Adjudicator: Christopher Bond

1. Markham & District (Gary Davies)
2. Crosskeys Silver (Dave Collins)
3. Ammanford Town (Glyn Rhys Davies)
4. Crwbin (not known)

Winning Conductor: Gary Davies (Markham & District)
Best Soloist: Matt Rowe (euphonium) — Markham & District

Third Section:

Adjudicator: Dr Brett Baker

1. Cwmtawe (Wayne Pedrick)
2. Ynyshir (Robert Burnett)
3. Mid-Rhondda (Lee Blankley)
4. Penclawdd Brass (Eddie Kervin)

Winning Conductor: Wayne Pedrick (Cwmtawe)
Best Instrumentalist: Gareth Thomas (cornet) — Cwmtawe

Fourth Section:

Adjudicator: Christopher Bond

1. Gwaun-Cae-Gurwen (Alex Parker)
2. Brass@Bont (Alison Gent)

Winning Conductor: Alex Parker (Gwaun-Cae-Gurwen)
Best Instrumentalist: Andrew Keegan (soprano) — Gwaun-Cae-Gurwen

Youth Section:

Milford Haven Junior Town Band — Gold Award

Community Section:

Adjudicator: Dr Brett Baker

1. Llanharan & Bryncae Brass (Alex McGee) — Gold Award
2. Ystradgynlais Public (N/K) — Silver Award