One of the emerging championship ensembles of Welsh banding produced further evidence of their solid progress under the baton of MD Paul Jenkins with this enjoyable concert in ‘God’s own little acre’ of Pontardulais.

Compered by local vicar turned pantomime dame, cum occasional Swansea City football fanatic Kevin Johns (hence his non-conformist description of his old local parish) it was an evening of relaxed musical contrasts, good humour and plenty of decent playing.

Alumus

The featured soloist was an old ‘Bont’ alumnus James McLeod, who developed his emerging talent with the band whilst studying at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff.  

Since then he has become a highly accomplished performer (moving on to Cory and now Leyland) – the evidence of which was certainly shown with his solo contributions.

Cultured

The opening PLC ‘Walking with Heroes’ was a lively, well balanced starter, followed by James producing a cultured pyrotechnical account of ‘Grandfather’s Clock’.

It was intelligently played; and all the better for not sounding as if powered by the Cern Large Hydron Collider, even though it was obvious his technique still had a few notches left on the speed gun. 

It was followed by an impressive rendition of ‘Myfanwy’, played with a welcome appreciation of the original musical line.

Tasty

‘Gaelforce’ gave the opportunity for the band’s talented young solo players to showcase their growing maturity, with neat cornet, flugel and sop cameos, before the choir delivered a few tasty lollipops of their own to satisfy the choral fans in the audience.

The first half closed with a purposeful account of ‘Journey into Freedom’ delivered with technical security and shaped with warmth and understanding.

Long term development

A lighter second half featured more choral classics as well as the most recent crop of young players being produced by the band’s Beginner and Junior Sections.

This long term commitment to developing home grown talent (the village of Pontardulais is towards the far end of the M4 motorway) is one that other bands in the Principality and beyond could well authentically copy rather than artificially mimic.

Excellent duets

James returned for a brace of excellent duets with current principal euphonium (and another crafty Welsh College import) Matthew Fletcher, who is already developing into a fine player, as well as a neat bit of old ‘tweety-pie’ throstling on ‘Hot Canary’.

All that was left was for a quick whip through Gavin Somerset’s ‘Classical Brass’ – a mind boggling compendium of well known tunes hewn from the equivalent of musical Caerphilly cheese, and a rousing ‘1812’, with percussion led bass-drum cannon fire that would have given old Napoleon in his Parisian resting place a nasty turn or two.

What the ‘Little Emperor’ would have made of Barry Manilow’s ‘One Voice’ encore heaven knows – but those who did make it to listen to this cracking concert in ‘God’s own little acre’ certainly enjoyed it.

Iwan Fox