Jubilee Brass

Highlights of the 2002 Nationals Gala Concert
Black Dyke, ISB, Don Lusher Big Band, Williams Fairey
Conductors: Nicholas Childs, Stephen Cobb, Allan Withington
Soloists: Roger Webster, Tony Fisher
SP&S Recordings: 165 CD
Total Playing Time: 73.02

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The 2002 Nationals Gala Concert was entitled, Jubilee Brass. Not for any 50th year celebration of the banding movement however, but due to the fact that the Patron of the National Brass Band Championships of Great Britain herself was celebrating five decades of being our Queen.

That was the link, and a pretty tenuous one it was too, as there was no real "Royal" theme to the occasion, and in fact, Her Majesty as far as we know it, has never actually attended a Nationals contest or a Gala Concert. That grumble aside, the second of the revived concerts that were once such a feature of any Nationals weekend has become the premier brass band concert in the calendar and once more a packed Albert Hall (full to the brim this year) was royally entertained by the Black Dyke Band and the International Staff Band of the Salvation Army, plus guests.

There were a few dissenting voices aired after this years line up was announced as both these two bands were to feature once more at the concert, but truth be told, no other two brass bands could in any way ensure that the "sold out" signs could be posted outside the Albert Hall. The vast majority of people who attend this event, and who make it such a commercial success come from a Salvationist background, whilst a substantial minority are those who are not, are not traditional brass band contest attendees, but brass band lovers, who live in the London area. They are people who know what they want, and they want to hear the best band in the Salvation Army and the most famous brass band on the world. It is a simple fact, that if either of these two bands are not on the bill, then the people will not turn up in such numbers.

The Salvation Army are very much the driving force behind the concerts and the way in which they have marketed the product should be seen as a lesson for any other promoter to follow. The banding world has much to be grateful for their intervention and they know their potential audience very well indeed - and that is why the Gala Concert is now such an unprecedented success.

It also explains why the programmes that the bands choose are geared towards the mainstream with lots of the easy listening variety of the tried and tested and a guest spot reserved for a "favourite" of an age group that still remembers a time when trombone players wore dinner jackets and women wore evening dresses to lunch. The humour is derived from Radio 4 not Channel 4 as well.

It makes for a civilised evening of entertainment and although mistakes are made (and there were a few this year) the New Gala Concerts have a feel of tradition even though they are only in their second year. More of the same will come again in 2003 for sure.

As for the standard of playing that was on offer, this CD has been produced with judicious use of the editing cutter and we are therefore spared the atrocious finale that split eardrums and nearly caused the stage to go up in flames. We don't think there will be another attempt to out bang Bonfire Night next year with another "1812". Such was the din Napoleon himself was nearly awoken from his tomb. The use of the venerable old organ will surely be curtailed as well, and we are thankfully spared the Saint Saens "Organ Symphony" which sounded as if the bands and the giant bit of plumbing were playing two different versions of the same piece.

The individual items left on offer though are excellent, with Dyke sparkling and spanking and the ISB producing some lovely playing in their spots. Roger Webster is simply awesome with his "Mexican Hat Dance" - the cornet playing equivalent of Speedy Gonzales.

The pieces are interesting to listen to as well, with the exception of the "Bravura Variations on British Folk Songs" which through no fault of the players (Messers Mead, Childs junior, Kane, Thornton and Childs seniors) simply doesn't come off on CD at all. As this was the visual "humour" item it is rather like taking a blind man to see a fireworks display. Plenty of pyrotechnic bangs and whooshes but no clue to who or what is going on. There is a video to come however, so all will be made clear and the humour can be understood. The playing is brilliant, although you wish you knew who was doing it.

The same can't be said of the Don Lusher Big Band items, which are slickly whipped off in a manner that only true pros can manage. The trumpet playing of Tony Fisher is ear achingly brilliant (although he does suffer with a couple of moments of "minim blindness" and a tendency to have more re entries on the last note than a mischievous child in a revolving door). It is high class playing indeed and well appreciated by a knowledgeable audience who claps in the right places (a better effort than they could manage on the ISB's first offering on the CD). It's pleasing music to listen to though.

The gem of the release though is the live winning performance of "Masquerade" by Williams Fairey which confirms once more what a special bit of playing it was. The detail is immense and the style is captured perfectly. The soloists are outstanding with Morgan Griffith on euph quite brilliant, whilst the playing of many of the cameo parts from Kevin Crockford on soprano, Geraint Griffiths on bass trombone and Les Neish as just as good. Allan Withington made the band sparkle on the day and it is a performance that is well worth replaying a few times on the CD player. It is one heck of a show and fully deserved to take the title.

All in all then a fine release and a worthy reminder of a great weekend of brass playing. No weekend is perfect though and there were glitches in the Gala Concert that did upset many. Our only other grumbles are with the programme notes, which do not do the recording justice and are poorly set out. They do not reflect the running order on the disc and give us little information, whilst the origami inspired photomontage adds nothing and is space that could have been better used. (Why not an order form or details to get the video?). Still – roll on 2003.

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