The line-up of competing bands for the popular Rochdale Contest has been confirmed by the organisers.

Prizes and invitation

The event takes place on Saturday 24th October at Wardle Academy in Wardle, Rochdale with the first band taking to the stage at 10.00am. There is a generous prize fund with multiple awards and an invitation to the 2027 Spring Festival.

Refreshments (including a bar) are available all day.

The results will be given at the end of each section. Entry on the day (card or cash) £10 with under 16s free.

Fourth Section:

Adjudicator: Marianne Garbutt
Start: 10.00am
Hall One

Greenfield Brass Band (Paul Towie)
Mereside Brass (Kieran Joy)
Queensbury Music Centre (Alan Hobbins)
St. John's (Mossley) (Ben Hill-Wilson)
Tewit Community (Andy Williams)

Third Section:

Adjudicator: Marianne Garbutt
Start: 1.00pm
Hall Two

Littleborough (Max Stannard)
North Lakes (Denis Hadfield)
Thornton Cleveleys (John Wood)

Second Section:

Adjudicator: Marianne Garbutt
Start: Follows after Third Section
Hall Two

Delph (Philip Goodwin)
Dobcross Silver (Jason M Smith)
Old Hall Brass (Trevor Halliwell)

Combined Championship & First Section:

Adjudicator: Danny Brooks
Start: 1.00pm
Hall One

BD1 (TBC)
Besses Boys (James Holt)
Boarshurst Silver (Martyn Evans)
City of Bradford (Lee Skipsey)
Cockerton Prize Silver (Duncan Wilson)
Horbury Victoria (Dean Jones)
Kidlington Concert (Jonathan Pippen)
Longridge (Mark Peacock)
Tewit Silver (Martin Hall)
Unite the Union (Jonathan Beatty)
Wardle Anderson (Jamie Cooper)
Whitworth Vale and Healey (Mike Golding)

Music

The own choices of the bands on the day (just one piece duplicated)

Blitz (Derek Bourgeois)
Celtic Suite (Phillip Sparke)
Corpus Christi (Robert Redhead)
Dances and Arias (Edward Gregson)
English Heritage (George Lloyd)
Four Cities Symphony (Rodney Newton)
Fragile Oasis (Peter Meechan)
Heroes of the North (Peter Graham)
I, Daedalus (Andrea Price)
Images for Brass (Stephen Bulla)
The Journal of Phileas Fogg (Peter Graham)
Kaleidoscope (Philip Sparke)
Metamorphosis on Finlandia (Andrew Wainwright)
Neverland (Christopher Bond)
Of Distant Memories (Edward Gregson)
On the Shoulders of Giants (Peter Graham)
Paganini Variations (Philip Wilby)
Purcell Variations (Kenneth Downie)
Rhapsody in Brass — Dean Goffin
Snow Island (Thierry Deleruyelle)
Sounds (John Golland)
Tallis Variations (Phillip Sparke)