Smithills Schools Senior Band

Conductor: Chris Wormald
Stroud Subscription Rooms
Saturday 21st October

On Saturday evening, Smithills School Senior Brass Band and MD Chris Wormald made a highly successful third appearance in the famous Subscription Rooms in Stroud. Each member of the audience was given a complimentary, full colour brochure of the band, a nice touch made possible by one of the band's main sponsors.

Compere John Forryan informed the full house that this was Chris Wormald's fifth appearance in Stroud; many years ago he appeared with James Shepherd Versatile Brass during his five years with the group and years later he returned as MD of Wingates during his two year spell with them.

Smithills made their Stroud debut in 2001 and following the success of their first appearance were invited back to give the 2003 Christmas concert. This year, Smithills were following on from Sellers last month whilst future bands this season include YBS, Fodens, Hepworth and Rothwell.
 
Chris announced to the audience that Stroud was the third Saturday evening concert Smithills had given in four weeks. They certainly proved, in spite of an enviable contest record, that concerts are their real strength and enjoyment. In a programme which featured no less than thirteen arrangements by Chris, each half began with a lively Alford march. Following a new harmonisation of the National Anthem, the concert began with 'The Great Little Army' which was given a brisk but welcome tempo.

A new arrangement of the hymn tune 'The Lord's My Shepherd' followed, which illustrated the excellent foundation given to the band given by the larger than usual, all male bass section. The middle of the band shone through as it did all evening, with the Horns, Flugel and Solo Baritone excelling and similarly fine contributions were made by 16 year old Principal Cornet player Joanna Hurst and her 13 year old brother Thomas, who has already been the band's award-winning Soprano Cornet player for the past two years. His effortless high notes were completely secure all evening and were as impressive as his stamina.
 
There were a number of American items in the programme. The first of these was a simple but effective ' Beauty and the Beast' taken from the Disney film of the same title.

Principal Cornet Joanna Hurst then gave a faultless solo performance of the George Michael song 'Kissing a Fool', made famous more recently by the Canadian singer Michael Bublé. As Principal, Joanna was typically confident throughout and, in the central, big band section, effectively soared above the band before finishing in complete contrast very quietly. Next came the film music 'Pirates of the Caribbean'. Once again the percussion section was featured and remained excellent throughout, as was the case all evening.
 
The second soloist of the concert was 17 year old Solo Horn player Laura Shannon. She, too, gave a perfect rendition of a brand new arrangement made especially for her, this being the Johnny Mercer song entitled  'Laura'. There was no doubting the arrangement showed off the soloist's playing at its very best and the audience responded appropriately.
 
The penultimate item of the first half was another new arrangement, this time of the 1975 Queen classic, 'Bohemian Rhapsody'. Opening with just Flugel and the Horn section, this arrangement again showed off every player of the band to his or her full potential and the ensemble confidently overcame every technical and rhythmical obstacle with ease. All the Principal players were excellent and kept busy with the young Soprano once again leading the way with complete security and style.
 
To close the first half, John Forryan introduced 'Resurrection', Chris Wormald's arrangement of music from Gustav Mahler's 'Second Symphony' - and what a finish. Chris explained that the front cover of the colour brochure given to every member of the audience was a photograph of the band playing this very arrangement in London 's Royal Albert Hall last November. From the excellent Solo Horn opening to the huge percussive close, the band was again in its best form and took the evening to a well deserved interval during which the audience was buzzing with compliments and superlatives. 
 
The second half began as did the first, with a rousing Alford march, this time 'Army of the Nile'. Once again the Soprano coped with all of the technical obstacles which the march presents and the band showed off the widest possible dynamic range with some very quiet playing in the trio. Then followed the first of two Flugel, Horn and Baritone features. 'I've Never Been in Love Before' is taken from the musical 'Guys And Dolls' and begins calmly with a warm sound and simple accompaniment but soon builds to a dramatic climax. Perhaps the soloists normally stand up when this item is played, but given the size of the 40 strong band and the limited stage room, to have done so would have proved impossible.
 
As soon as 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' began it was easy to see that the band really enjoys this music by John Williams and plays it particularly well. Not a single missed or clipped note was heard throughout as the front row repeatedly rang out the well known melody. Again the middle of the band and percussion were clear, precise and in excellent form. The second of the Flugel, Horn and Baritone features was then the Glenn Miller signature tune 'Moonlight Serenade' which was particularly well received and effective given that the sound is normally associated with saxophones.
 
By way of a complete contrast, Smithills then offered a full blooded account of the Greenwood march 'The Pathfinder' which John Forryan announced had proved so successful for Smithills in recent years at the Whit Friday villages. Then the audience was involved singing the great Parry anthem 'Jersusalem' which created a wonderful sound with brass and unison voices as Chris Wormald walked around the hall encouraging the audience to sing as loudly as possible. This was a nice touch and appreciated by all.
 
To conclude the evening, Smithills finished with a pair of completely contrasting works inspired by the city of Rome . Firstly came the Hollywood epic 'Ben Hur' which again showed off yet more excellent percussion work and finally the stamina-sapping 'Pines of Rome' which Smithills brought off with great prowess at the end of a very demanding programme.
 
Hardly surprisingly, the band declined calls for an encore but the understanding audience certainly went home full of compliments and very happy. The most telling sign of a great evening was that everything had seemed so effortless and had passed so quickly. Smithills and Chris Wormald are once again to be congratulated for providing an evening of excellent music in a wonderfully relaxed manner, clearly appreciated by the very supportive audience throughout.
 
S. Ashley

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