Keen to be historically topical, Chalford Musical Director Steve Tubb reflected the 70th anniversary of the 1944 Normandy landings and the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War to open this concert at a packed Stroud Subscription Rooms.

Interaction

The theme encouraged interaction and participation, with the audience singing along to the famous medleys featuring   tunes such as ‘Bless 'em all’, ‘Hang out your Washing on the Siegfried Line’ and many others.

Chalford’s well known reputation for innovation saw the musical feast interspersed with all manner of pieces linked to stories that would have appeared in the newspapers of the day and of the calendar anniversaries since - cleverly presented with the players from the senior, academy, youth and junior bands dressed in white, black and even ‘red all over’ to mirror the old joke.

Highlights

Highlights included the ‘Great Train Robbery’, flugel soloist Katie Godwin's ‘Eyes of a Child’, ‘Rhapsody in Black’, ‘James Bond Themes’, ‘Get Happy’ and ‘The Beatles: Echoes of an Era’. The 45th anniversary of the Moon landings was remembered with ‘Light Walk’.

With a nod to the World Cup, the combined bands played ‘Brazil’, the percussionists joined by winners of a competition to make the best Carmen Miranda hat out of material supplied on each table!

Cabaret

The fantastic cabaret act, Marcel Marceau's Mime Academy’s ‘Sounds of Music’ (Amy Tubb, Steve Tubb, Derrick Witts and Bill Williamson) went down so well at the Christmas concert that it was repeated for the summer show and again brought the house down.

It was also good to hear musical substance with the beautiful third movement of ‘Fanfares and Love Songs’ by Gavin Higgins, the test piece which Chalford recently won third place at the recent Weston super Mare Band Contest.  

It provided a wonderful opportunity to showcase the band’s impressive musical ability on an evening of outstanding entertainment.

Ron Gardiner