Hepworth (Lanson Homes) Band

Conductor: Mark Bentham
Warrington Male Voice Choir
Conductors: Russell Paterson & Anthony Whitaker
Parr Hall, Warrington
Saturday 16th December

Warrington Male Voice Choir has gained a reputation in recent years for their quality of the concerts that they perform.  They have the ability to adapt their programmes to suit all needs and all occasions, be it a brass band, an orchestra – whatever it is, and wherever it is, and like other top class musical organisations they aim for the highest standards possible.

Those standards have enabled them to work closely with Wingates Band in particular of late in concerts and a couple of commercial recordings.  They're not on their own, but they've become proud ambassadors for the town and work with former Beirut hostage and Archbishop of Canterbury envoy Terry Waite on projects on a regular basis as well as continually raising monies for charities within the area.

Parr Hall in Warrington isn't the biggest hall around but demand for tickets from the good folk of Warrington and its surrounding area means that the choir's Christmas Concert is performed on two successive nights amid an atmosphere that is so friendly, warm and enjoyable.  With the odd exception, it's all seasonal repertoire and that's what the good folk of Warrington want and get.

In recent years, Fodens Richardson, Pennine Brass, Wingates and Leyland have joined the choir for this occassion and this year it was the turn of Hepworth (Lanson Homes) led by Mark Bentham.

Hepworth have made great strides as a band over the past couple of years with victories at the Scottish Open and (perhaps most importantly), Grand Shield, enabling them to compete at the British Open and the All England International Masters where they've been able to produce notable performances that have shown their ability to be seen as a leading top class championship band.

Throughout their programme of seasonal music, that delighted both the choir and audience, Hepworth demonstrated their ability to entertain not just in the strict brass band genre; they're not frightened of trying something different, albeit from an arrangement by the MD and from utilising players within the band. 

It's an indication of why the band has broken into the top echelon of banding and is clearly a strength on the concert platform, although occasionally the band sound could have been less harsh and hard in addition to needing a little more dynamic variance.
 
The band's principal cornet, Rob Westacott, principal euphonium, James Fieldhouse and flugel Maria Beazer were the bands stars on the night.  Rob's one of the most dependable and solid cornet players around who led the band in exemplary fashion all night, shining particularly in ‘The Shepherds Song'.

James Fieldhouse is certainly a talented chappie and he was showcased his adapability in by playing the saxophone.  The traditional ‘Jingle Bells' has been arranged by Mark Bentham to become ‘Swingle Bells' and it came off as did James' versatility in Himes' ‘Three King Swing'.

Maria Beazer has joined the band in recent weeks on flugel and it's definitely a player to keep your eye on.  Maria produced the quietest playing of the night in ‘Away in a Manger' and all this with a back problem too making it difficult for her to stand. It was a fine performance.

Bass trombonist, Graham Starr was the other featured soloist in ‘Frosty the Snowman' complete with the obligatory lower the better notes, whilst the band also featured music from Sandy Smith in ‘Santaclaustrophobia', Prokofiev's ‘Midnight Sleighride' and Rutter's ‘Candlight Carol' and Stephen Roberts' ‘Gaudete' prefaced by a fanfare added by the MD.

Warrington's sound maintains all the hallmarks of a top quality traditional male voice choir, and that was depicted to fine effect in the ‘Hallelujah Chorus', but as was said at the beginning, the sound is adapted to the repertoire. Particularly impressive were ‘The Pasture and Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening' and ‘Born Tonight'.  The first two are adaptations of poems and certainly off the beaten track of the Male Voice Choir sound, as was ‘Born Tonight', a rock-style ballad about the season written by MD Russell Paterson who on this occasion swapped roles with accompanist, Anthony Whitaker.

As usual at such concerts as this one, the audience got the chance to flex their lungs in a couple of Christmas carols and they even got the chance to sing in German in the choir's traditional finale, ‘Schneewalzer'.

A fine night though (with the Friday night being received just as well) and done at a decent hour which the staff of the hall were grateful for, having had Ken Dodd on stage on the Thursday evening with his tickle sticks. Christmas comes in many forms eh?

Malcolm Wood

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