Thanks to Niki for this lovely photo of Lydney Training Band at the St Mary’s Church Christmas Concert last night! Many thanks to the organisers too, it was great to play to such a large audience.
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 This evening, we celebrated Christmas with our Christmas Concert at the Mount of Olives Church, Coleford!
Alongside the usual array of carols, the audience were treated to a beautiful solo from our Principal Horn, Samantha Ford, with In the Bleak Midwinter. We closed the first half with the epic Santa-Claustrophobia and opened the second with the magic of The Muppets Christmas Carol Overture, before we closed the show with Schneewaltzer (audience participation included). Many thanks to our brilliant hosts! Next up: on Wednesday, we’ve got a double feature! We will be performing at the Azalea Memory Care at Lydney Community Centre (1:30pm onwards) and to the residential homes of Lydney in the evening! The carolling season began for Lydney on Saturday morning as we entertained the shoppers outside Lydney Tesco.
We've had some changes to our Christmas plans! Next Wednesday, a Band ensemble will be performing carols at the Azalea Memory Cafe held in Lydney Community Centre, Naas Lane from 1:30 - 2:30pm.
On Saturday 16th December, unfortunately our 'Carols 'n' Things' event at the Brockweir and Hewelsfield Village Shop has had to be cancelled but we will instead be performing at the Rising Sun, Moseley Green from 5:00pm! Come along, grab a drink and enjoy some festive cheers with us! Many thanks to Chepstow Male Voice Choir for inviting Lydney Training Band to be part of their Christmas concert last night! It is always such a well supported event and one of the biggest audiences the Training Band have performed to this year!!!
Next up: Lydney Town Band will be performing a Christmas Concert at the Mount of Olives Church, Coleford on Sunday 10th, starting at 4pm. There will also be an ensemble of players performing/collecting at Tesco, Lydney on Saturday morning from 10:30am - come along and say hello! Lydney Training Band provided some festive entertainment as part of the Lydney's Christmas Light Switch-On event on Friday evening.
Christmas is nearly upon us and we’ve got another fabulously busy season ahead of us!
the first time in four years for a Christmas Concert in Chepstow. The Town Band is returning to the Mount of Olives Church, Coleford on Sunday 10th December! You may remember that last year’s concert was cancelled due to snow so fingers crossed Jack Frost stays away this time. We hope we get chance to see you at one of our events next month. Lydney Town Band and Lydney Training Band both returned to the Gloucestershire Brass Band Association (GBBA) Contest on Sunday for the first time in four years...and both bands enjoyed great success!
First up was the Training Band, led by Kevin Ford. They performed a five piece set which opened with Concert Overture and was followed by Irish Blessing, which featured a quintet of players from across the band. Next up were two well-known classics - Beyond the Sea and Bohemian Rhapsody before the band finished with Kenilworth March. The band on stage featured a number of new players who've joined the band over the last twelve months, who were taking part in their very first contest. Their brilliant performance was recognised when the Training Band received a Gold Award from the Adjudicator, Stephanie Binns. Next, the Town Band took to the stage for the March and Test Piece Contest. They opened their set with Swan Road, the march composed by Thomas Dunne for the Band's 130th Anniversary in 2022 and based on Camille Saint-Saëns' The Swan. For the test piece, Philip Harper's magnificent Kingdom of Dragons was chosen - a piece which has special resonance for many players in the band including those who performed it with Gwent Youth Brass Band in 2010. We were elated to take home The Maxie Cup for Best March (Third Section), The AR Watkins Cup for Best Test Piece (Third Section) and the Haydyn Evans Trophy for Best Percussion Section! We're really excited to share an update about two members of the Band who are at very different points of their musical journey and have recently both celebrated a fantastic achievement! We believe that music should be fun and that individuals should be rewarded and recognised for their achievements. The development programme for our players produces well rounded performers including Alasdair and Rhys!
Alasdair, who we recently we bade a fond farewell to as he headed to University, has just achieved a Grade 8 Distinction on his Trombone! He has been a member of the Band since he was just eight years old and over time has become a superb and well rounded musician. Just at the very start of his musical journey, we have Rhys, who is the youngest member of the Training Band. He recently received his Silver Achievement Award from the Band and this weekend, he will be taking part in his first contest alongside his mum and sister who also play in the Training Band! Success involves time and effort and we are so proud of these two young people and can't wait to see what they achieve next Players from Lydney Town Band and Lydney Training Band came together this morning to take part in the Remembrance Sunday service at the Cenotaph, St Mary's Church.
Lydney Town Band returned to the Wychavon Festival of Brass following our success at last year's contest. This time, we came with a nautical themed set of original music composed and arranged by our Musical Director, Thomas Dunne and Malcolm Hannaford-Waddingham. The audience's voyage aboard 'The Good Ship Lydney Town' started with Out of Portsmouth, a new march composed by Malcolm and dedicated to Clare Rawlyk. Our Solo Horn, Samantha Ford performed a wonderful solo as part of Ar Lan y Môr, a traditional Welsh love song, before there was swashbuckling drama in A Lofty Ship to Lee - featuring Herbie on telescope and Louise on pirate flag! Next, Thomas' arrangement of Felix Mendelssohn's Calm Sea brought some music needed peace to proceedings before we ended our set with a rip-roaring arrangement of the sea shanty Johnny Come Down Hilo - drunken sailor/trombonist included!
We were really pleased with our performance and absolutely thrilled to get third place! In addition to this our Principal Cornet, Kerry Ford, received the Dave Hodgetts Memorial Trophy for Outstanding Contribution - a well deserved recognition!
One of the highlights of our Celebration Concert earlier this month was the Training Band's phenomenal performance of Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody, featuring individual solo moments from the front row cornet team: Dougie, Herbie and Sadie! (...many thanks to Krysten for this brilliant recording!)
We had an absolutely incredible time on Saturday evening at our 2023 Celebration Concert. Lydney Town Hall once again played host to this fabulous event which brought together both the Lydney Town Band and Lydney Training Band.
The Town Band's opening set featured the world premiere of five brand new pieces written by our Musical Director, Thomas Dunne, and local composer, Malcolm Hannaford-Waddington. This nautically themed set included a lovely arrangement of Felix Mendelsohn's Calm Sea and the toe-tapping, fun-filled sea shanty Johnny Come Down to Hilo (drunken sailor included!) Next up, the Training Band featured a number of the upcoming talents within their ranks, including Emma and Ruth performing the Whitney Houston hit One Moment in Time, and George and Sadie with Sunshine of your Smile, before the band closed their set with Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody! During the second half, the Town Band entertained the audience with a range of highlights from their summer concert programme including the manic Baggy Trousers, the sublime Hymn to the Fallen and the majestic finale of Kingdom of Dragons. The bands then came together for their massed band finale closing the show with The Proclaimer's 500 miles! We'd like to say a massive thank you everyone who was involved in the organisation of the show both in preparation and on the day, and a thank you to everyone who came along - there's something very special about playing to a home audience! There’s only three days to go until our Celebration Concert at Lydney Town Hall on Saturday evening!
Lydney Training Band will be playing alongside the Town Band and they’re going to be offering an opportunity to see the fabulous upcoming talent that resides within their ranks, including those pictured below who will be taking on starring roles of their own! Emma and Ruth (not pictured) will be taking on a Whitney Houston classic, Sadie and George (not pictured) will slow things down with a wonderful and soothing classic from 1913, before the Dougie and Herbie help bring things to close with one of the biggest musical hits of the last 50 years! It promises to be an incredible night of entertainment and music, so don’t miss out! Doors open at 6:30pm for a 7:00pm start, with a retiring collection. We can’t wait to see you there! |
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March 2024
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