On Monday 18th March, the ladies and gentlemen at Rodley House, Lydney, were treated to a brilliant springtime showcase of talent by the Lydney Starter Group. The group of 16, including new starters and three adult learners, performed a range of solos, duets and ensemble performances including Abide with Me and Peppermint Tango! Five of the players: Autumn, Shiann, Kaiesha, Cora and Kip made their solo debuts. Kip on his red Trombone looked like he was really enjoying himself.
The band was led by Kerry Ford, with support from tutors Roger and Ken Powell. There was a fun rendition of Wonka’s welcome played by Rhys and Sadie (a brother and sister team) and a wonderful version of the Floral Dance by adult learner Lisa. Our young trombonist Edith played a beautiful rendition of ‘Jupiter’, and there were many more to enjoy. Youth Development Officer Kerry Ford said, “With 15 soloists there was an amazing variety of music and the audience at Rodley House sang along to Daisy Bell and The Pink Panther. It was just great to see some new brass talent in the making”. The Starter Group are appearing at two other residential venues this spring as part of their performance tour. Their next concert will be at Goode Court on Monday 15 April. The tour is a great way to build confidence and develop team working skills, enabling the new players to move on into the Training Band as quickly as possible with their new found skills. Today marks International Women's Day! Lydney Town Band is immensely proud of having so many wonderful and committed women who contribute to our organisation, particularly in Lydney Training Band and the Starter Group, where they continue to set a superb example for the next generation of musicians who are coming through the ranks.
The Lydney Town Band Monthly Prize Draw has been a key fundraising tool for the band for many years. In recent times it has contributed funds towards the purchase of the Band's storage unit and its new band jackets, which we were able to debut at the 2023 WEBBA Regional Finals. The draw enjoys support from band members, their families, as well as friends and supporters of the band (even a cat...) and has a guaranteed prize of at least £30/month (see below for last year's winners).
New entrants are always welcome and can join at any time of the year from as little as £1/month. For further details of how to join, please contact Kerry Ford (Band Secretary) We had a busy Monday evening in the Lydney Band Room. The Starter Group had a rehearsal then presented a wonderful 'Mini Concert'. Under the guidance of Kerry Ford, ten of the fourteen players played short solos, some after just a few weeks of joining the group. The supportive audience were also treated to some band pieces to add to the superb evening. The future continues to look very bright for Lydney Band.
Last night we celebrated an incredible twelve months of progress and success at our Annual Achievement Awards, held at Watney Hall, Lydney. Band Chairman, Kevin Ford, opened proceedings welcoming members of the Starter Group, Training Band and Town Band with a recap of what each ensemble had achieved over the last year before moving onto the awards!
The band's newest members in the Starter Group and Training Band received achievement certificates recognising the hard work and progress before we moved onto the Training Band awards. The winners were:
We would like to wish you Merry Christmas from everyone at Lydney Town Band and Lydney Training Band! Enormous thanks to everyone who has come out and supported the band over the festive period. We hope you enjoy this video.
It was an absolute pleasure to play for the ladies and gentlemen at The Priory in Llandogo. The children and adults from the Starter Group were all prepared with their solos and duets - 16 in all. It was a great opportunity to hear from four debut soloists: Louie, Cora, Mia and Etta. With assistance from members of the Training Band, the ensemble performed Marching Marines, Away in a Manger, Peppermint Tango, and Once in Royal David’s City.
The highlights included our new starters nailing their debut solos, when the audience started singing along with Bobby’s ‘Merrily We Roll Along’ and Jonah’s ‘We Three Kings’, Rhys with his best elf hat and ‘Jingle Bells’, George’s rendition of ‘The Christmas Song’ and the amazing band version of ‘Away in a Manger’. The styles of music were all different and the soloists made them sound truly wonderful. Feeling nervous and still doing it deserves massive praise and they received a fabulous applause and a big pat on the back for their efforts. I was so proud of everyone and its all looking very positive for the future of Lydney Band. Well done everyone. What a super way to say hello to Christmas cheer and goodwill. A big thank you to The Priory for their wonderful supportive audience. Kerry (Development Officer Enormous congratulations to our team who all successfully finished the Severn Bridge 10k! Thanks to all the marshalls and stewards who helped out along the way .
We also managed to hit our fundraising target of £1,000!!! Thank you so much to everyone who donated to our fundraiser! Big thanks also to everyone who shared it online on our behalf! Your help means that the Band is one step closer to getting a storage unit which will allow us to better utilise our facilities to continue the brilliant work of Lydney Training Band in developing the next generation of brass players! This Sunday, our team of intrepid runners from the band will be taking on the Severn Bridge 10k!
For two members of the team - Kerry and Louise, our Principal Cornet and Flugelhorn player respectively, this will be their very first 10k race and a massive achievement after months of training! We’re over 60% of the way to our fundraising target of £1,000 to help fund a new storage unit at the bandroom, which will help us make better use of our tuition spaces for the benefit of our aspiring musicians in our Starter Group and Training Band! If you’d like to sponsor the team, head on over to:https://www.justgiving.com/.../lydneytownbandcontainerfund There's just two weeks to go until the Severn Bridge 10k, where a team from the Band will be amongst the throngs of runners!
As part of the challenge, they're looking to raise money for a shipping container for the Band which will help us make better use of our bandroom and facilities. Anything you can give in sponsorship would be greatly appreciated! If you've already donated - thank you so much! If you'd like to give but maybe can't at the moment, you can still help out by sharing this link: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/lydneytownbandcontainerfund Earlier this week, our Starter Group (made up of players who are at the very start of their musical journey) and members of the Training Band paid a visit to Rodley House, Lydney!
It was great to be able to entertain the residents with a combination of solos and group performances, earning our aspiring musicians some valuable, confidence boosting, experience of playing in public! Many thanks to Rodley House for having us. Lydney's Outreach Programme to local schools continued last week with a visit to Lydney CofE School. Our planned ‘Proms in the Playground’ turned into ‘Proms in the Hall’ because of the weather but we were joined by Matilda, one of the pupils at the school, on cornet!
The school hall was buzzing, especially with the crowd pleasers Baggy Trousers and Sweet Caroline, before the finale of British Sea Songs, which just got faster and faster and faster, much to the kids’ delight. Over the next week, Kerry Ford, the Band's Youth Development Officer will be visiting local primary schools to try and inspire interest in brass banding amongst the pupils. On Monday 10th July, she will be visiting Woolaston Primary School and on Thursday 13th July, an ensemble of Town Band players will be visiting Lydney CofE School to put on a mini-Proms in the Playground. In September, the Band will also be offering free lessons at Primrose Hill School to try and encourage them along to the Starter Group!
Speaking about the Band's outreach programme, Kerry said: "It's never easy to maintain the development of young brass players so that there is a healthy balance in a brass band. It is a competitive world, with lots of activities to attract a youngster’s time and attention. Getting them interested in playing a brass instrument is can be tricky but once they’re hooked the benefits are endless - learning about teamwork, self-discipline, a new whole language, a sense of belonging and making friends for life. It is a wonderful hobby." If you'd like to know more about introducing brass into your school, please get in touch! The Band has been saddened to hear of the recent death of Jim Cooke (pictured in middle).
Jim started played with Lydney Town Band in the 1940s at the age of seven and he maintained his connection with the band until he retired in 2016. During his time with the band, he played Bb cornet, soprano and baritone and in the 1980s Jim took on the role of Conductor. In the mid-2000s, when the Band was at a low-ebb, Jim was closely involved in the establishment of Lydney Training Band, helping to ensure the long-term survival of the organisation. When the Band returned to contesting in 2012, Jim, alongside many of the young players he'd help to tutor, was part of the team that achieved 12th place in the WEBBA Regional Championships. Kevin Ford, Band Chairman, paying tribute to Jim said: "Lydney Town and Training Band has much to thank Jim Cooke for. His involvement, enthusiasm and loyalty were key to the ongoing future of the organisation and its successful Training Band. Thank you, Jim, your legacy with Lydney Town Band lives on". On Saturday 13th May the annual 53rd Bailey Lane End Music Festival was held at Five Acres High School. As in previous years, the event was organised by A.W. Parker Drybrook Band. The adjudicator for the contest was Jack Lythaby, Principal Horn at Tredegar Town Band, with the music publishers Wright & Round kindly donating prizes for each class. A number of players from Lydney Training Band and our Starter Group took part - Dougie, Jonah, Sadie and Wren (cornet) and Euan (horn).
Commenting on this year's event, the Training Band conductor Kevin Ford said: "Lydney Training Band continues to support this event, enjoying the occasion and gaining valuable performance experience. It was a great morale boost for all our youngsters with super playing by them all. As in previous years, we had expert accompaniment by pianist Dorothy Wilson, who helped to make the performances special. Well done Team Lydney, with many thanks to Kerry who helped all players play at their best." The results were as follows - Junior Brass solo under 11: 3rd – Jonah (Daisy Bell) Junior Brass Solo 11-12yrs: 1st – Sadie (When I Fall in Love), 2nd – Euan (Titanic Theme) Junior Brass Solo 13-16yrs: 3rd – Dougie (When the Saints) Brass Duet/Trio 21yrs and under: 1st – Sadie/Dougie (Be Our Guest) Open Duet: 2nd – Dougie/Kerry (Maccadeus) |
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March 2024
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