Enfield Citadel's annual pre-contest festival was held in the elegant Victorian setting of Holy Trinity Church.
Completed two years after the foundation of Tottenham Citadel Band, it was a congenial setting, although the high vaulted ceiling produced an acoustic that tended to mask some of the detail.
Drawing on friends and former players to boost their numbers the band put together an excellent ensemble, directed by Don Jenkins and Andrew Blyth.
Great control
'Thy Matchless King' (Joel Collier) was a high-energy opener, followed by the opening and closing sections of 'I know a Fount'' (Thomas Rives). The band continued with 'Immeasurable' (Blyth), featuring the melody 'Penlan'.
Thomas Nielsen of the International Staff Band, Croydon Citadel and the National Youth Brass Band showed great technical control and sensitivity in his renditions of 'Jubilance' (Himes) and 'Glorious Ventures' (Graham).
The highlight of the evening however was his playing of 'Before the Cross' (Gregson) in the second half.
Thomas Nielsen of the International Staff Band, Croydon Citadel and the National Youth Brass Band showed great technical control and sensitivity in his renditions of 'Jubilance' (Himes) and 'Glorious Ventures' (Graham).
'Tu es Petrus' (arr. Ritman) was followed by 'Shine Down'; Chris Ford excelling in the xylophone feature.
The first half closed with 'Quintessence' by Robert Redhead, a vivid portrayal of the Salvation Army in Australia. Depicting the wide expanses and with references to several Australian melodies, the cathedral-like setting of 'At thy feet I bow adoring' was particularly effective.
Antipodean
There was a further antipodean reference as the band opened the second half with 'The Southern Cross' (Bowen), written for the Box Hill Band.
‘Thy Tend'rest Blessing' is a new work gifted to the Army by its composer, with an original melody preceding a setting of 'Eudoxia'. 'Shine' (Gott) found the band in swing mode, before 'My Father's World' (Blyth) which formed the basis for the scripture message.
The programme ended with 'To Boldly Go' (Peter Graham), written for the Melbourne Staff Band and featuring 'I'll go in the strength of the Lord' and 'I'll not turn back'.
Solos by Maurice Patterson and Derrick Kane preceded a climax which produced a big but well controlled sound.
All that remained was a stylish performance of 'The Red Shield' to round off an excellent evening of music and worship.
Peter Bale
