Raising Brass for Kirsty

Black Dyke Band
Dr Nicholas J Childs
Delph Band Club
Saturday 16th April

Black Dyke is a band on a mission.  The reward for winning the National title in London last October is a crack at the Europeans in Holland in two weeks time, and at present, everything they do is geared towards that trip to Groningen.  The focus within the band is as it always is for every contest, but in it's 150th year, Dyke would dearly love to have the European Championship trophy back in their bandroom for the eleventh time in its history, and for the first time since 1995.

This concert was part of those pre-European preparations, but in addition, the band raised more money for Kirsty Howard's appeal in support of Manchester's Children's Hospice, Francis House. This fantastic little girl has been an inspiration to millions, and however serious winning the European maybe, what she has been through puts it all into perspective. This was a night all about her appeal.

Delph Band Club was packed to the rafters with around one hundred banding fanatics who would savour every moment of having Dyke in their club for the very first time (tickets were a bit like gold dust) and at the end of the night they all went home very happy. 

The programme was kept light, but maintained all the hallmarks of any recent concert given by the Queensbury outfit - an emphasis on entertainment from the opening note till the last. The locals certainly lapped it up, and there was a warm and friendly atmosphere right from the word go. 

Dyke didn't need to warm up before they launched into their opening number, although perhaps a few of the players were still feeling the cold in their bones after an early morning recording for television on top of Ilkley Moor for a recording for television, which was then followed by some European rehearsals in the Dyke bandroom.

Karl Kings ‘Melody Shop' and Mozart's ‘Marriage of Figaro' were polished off with consummate ease, before the enjoyable sets of ‘Dyke at the Movies' and ‘The Golden Swing of Black Dyke' brought the house down and were another demonstration that it just doesn't matter whatever musical form is performed, the standard at present never drops.

The ‘Movies' set was complete with intros from the MD (we suspect with memories of the damp seats in the Olympia Picture House and a bag of chips from Cavana's Chippy  on a Saturday morning in Tredegar giving him the inspiration) linked to snippets of ‘Pearl Dean' and ‘20th Century Fox' and which featured some fine trombone player from Brett Baker, Gary Reed and Adrian Hirst in ‘I will follow Him' from the film ‘Sister Act'.

It was the soloists though who took the limelight during the night.  Peter Roberts set the standard with a typically impeccable rendition of ‘Memory' whilst David Thornton rattled off Pete Meechan's arrangement of ‘Auld Lang Syne' without breaking sweat.

Brett Baker and John Doyle both went walk about in performances of ‘Stardust' and ‘Children of Sanchez' respectively, whilst Joseph Cook threw more than a few extra notes than are written in Monti's ‘Czardas'.

This concert also featured the MDs daughter, Rebecca in a performance of ‘The Young Virtuoso' arranged for her by uncle Bob.

For those of a certain age, the piece was one of the great building blocks in making a player, with the likes of the other classic, ‘The Young Artist' – even Rebecca's Dad played it once (although the memory of the Editor of 4BR recalls, perhaps not as well as his daughter when he came second in the under 11 year old Slow Melody Contest at the Cwm Miners Institute in 1972!)

Rebecca plays baritone with Beartrees Community Band in Oldham and played at the Music for Youth last year at the Royal Albert Hall.  A CD is on the horizon for Beartrees and Rebecca will be featured as a soloist.  She loved every minute of this experience and the smile from Mum (Alison) and an affectionate hug and praise from Dad, said it all really.

Music from ‘Deep Space Nine' and a tribute to the ‘Battle of Trafalgar' with Matthew Routley setting the scene with a prologue that brought understanding for the audience into the origins of the composition (although they didn't really know how many Welshmen were there on the decks on the day) also featured in a concert that was for many like having this band in their front rooms – they were that close.

The whole night was completed with the band testing the foundations of the club courtesy of ‘Pines of Rome' followed by an encore featuring Delph's very own, Phil Goodwin in ‘Lucerne Song'.

A great night sadly had come to a close, although the beef sandwiches and drink were consumed late into the night by the majority.  It was a great night out for a great cause, and even if the ears were ringing a bit after the last note, everyone was more than pleased to have been treated to Dyke on cracking form.

This was a thoroughly entertaining workout for the band as rehearsals continue for the Europeans.  The band will take the stage at the Opera House in Blackpool on 7th May (after the Spring Festival) in the hope of being in celebratory mood, whilst on this form, they could take some beating in a couple of week's time. The only makeover they may need then will be to possibly find room in the cramped Queenbury bandroom for the trophy. We will wait and see.

Malcolm Wood

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