Foresters Brass 2000 were grateful to be able to thank some good Samaritans at Butlins on the weekend.

With about half an hour to go until the band’s performance, bass trombonist Dan Baker got his trusty Edwards instrument out and blew a few notes. The sound that came out was, to say the least, worrying -even more so than usual!

Every players nightmare

Dan told 4BR that it was every player’s nightmare come true: "My first reaction was one of the other players had removed a tube or something to wind me up. However it quickly became obvious I had a fairly serious mechanical problem. We soon worked out that a tiny screw had dropped out of the double trigger mechanism, and as a result, both triggers were completely broken. Apparently, I went as white as a sheet!"

I’ve still got absolutely no idea how he managed to get such a tiny screw into such an awkward place under such pressure – fantastic work and a true gentlemanDan Baker

Quick search

After a quick and thorough search of the area, rather like looking for a needle in a haystack, the tiny screw was, amazingly, found under a chair.

Having witnessed this frantic activity, Good Samaritan number one stepped forward — the bass trombonist with Ipswich & Norwich Co-op band, who were literally just going on stage, came to see if he could help.

Edwards help

He also had an Edwards and was able to see exactly where the screw had come from. Typically, it was from right in the middle of the trigger system, and was virtually impossible to repair. The player agreed that, if necessary, Dan could borrow his trombone for the Foresters performance.

This incredibly kind offer took the panic out of the situation and Dan, accompanied by the band’s percussionist Neil Keer who is a classroom teacher and therefore able to cope with any amount of pressure and stress, raced across to the trade stand area.

Samaritan number 2

Here, Good Samaritan number two appeared and, with surgeon-like precision and complete calm, Malcolm from the Trevada Music trade stand managed to get the screw back in place. He even lent Dan a screwdriver to take on stage – just in case!

Great bunch

Dan said the whole experience really did make him realise what a great bunch brass banders are:

He told 4BR: "The bass trombonist from the Co-op band, as soon as he came off stage, came to find me to see if I was OK and whether I needed to borrow his instrument – I’m so grateful to him and was really pleased to see they got such a good result. As for Malcolm from Trevada Music – he was just brilliant.

Little shakey

He went on to add: "Perhaps seeing I was looking a little shaky, left a customer who he was demonstrating a flugel to, to come and help me straight away. I’ve still got absolutely no idea how he managed to get such a tiny screw into such an awkward place under such pressure – fantastic work and a true gentleman. I hope both these guys realise how much their actions meant to me."

Foresters went on to get a top-ten place and that’s in no small measure thanks to the generous gestures of the two Good Samaritans of Butlins!