The band is proud to have been awarded 2nd place in the Second Section Final of the National Brass Band Championships of Great Britain, held at The Centaur, Cheltenham Racecourse, on September 15th 2018. The band gained the invitation to represent Wales at the contest through winning the Second Section at the Welsh Regional Championships in March.
All 18 competing bands were required to perform the set test piece ‘Firestorm’ by Stephen Bulla, with three adjudicators to impress – Roger Webster, Brian Rostron and David Hirst.
Full results for the section are below, along with a selection of comments on the band’s performance from brass band media.
| Position | Band | Conductor | Draw |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middleton Band | Kevin Gibbs | 13 |
| 2 | Pontardulais Town Band | Paul Jenkins | 4 |
| 3 | North Skelton Band | Lewis Wilkinson | 14 |
| 4 | Bollington Brass Band | Peter Christian | 15 |
| 5 | Crofton Silver Band | Dean Jones | 12 |
| 6 | Milton Keynes Brass | Jonathan Mott | 11 |
| 7 | South Yorkshire Police Band | Leigh Baker | 6 |
| 8 | Shrewton Silver Band | Michael Dunford | 16 |
| 9 | Helston Town Band | John Berryman | 7 |
| 10 | J36 Brass | Steven Craig | 17 |
| 11 | Annan Town Band | Paul Drury | 5 |
| 12 | Ifton Colliery Band | Scott Lloyd | 3 |
| 13 | Hucknall & Linby Brass | Paul Whyley | 10 |
| 14 | LGB Brass Band | Ian Stewart | 1 |
| 15 | Flixton Band | Matt Ryan | 2 |
| 16 | Campbeltown Brass | Paul Kiernan | 9 |
| 17 | St. Sebastian Wokingham Band | John Watts | 8 |
| 18 | Rolls Royce (Derby) Band | Graham Cardwell | 18 |
Best instrumentalist: Jo Robinson – Soprano Cornet (North Skelton)
From 4barsrest.com – Purposeful intent from the off. Descriptive images of war and military right from the off. Tempos are good but occasionally the clarity drops but the confidence from all on stage is coming through.
The quality playing remains and the soloists step up to the mark. This is a real team effort and the excitement builds right to the close.
Overall: Very impressive stuff from the word go. The odd moment, but an account of real musical intent.
Star Player: The first clich’d ‘team’ effort of the weekend. Everyone stepped up there.
From the BritishBandsman.com – Solid start with a great sense of style! Lovely dynamics that colour the music so well. This band really keep you engaged. Conductor is really clear in conveying the story of this piece… This is clearly all about the music! Ensemble really tight throughout this opening section. Bravo!!
Slow section- A tiny bit of intonation creeps in. Lovely solo lines throughout. The band are taking lots of risks with their lower end dynamics and its really paying off!
Final section ticks along with the same quality as earlier and accels well. Great balance between sections and all effects are heard. Band not holding back but it works.. oozes quality. Great early marker for us!!
STAR SECTION :- Condutor (Lovely interpretation)
STAR PLAYER :- Cornet
From Brass Band World on Twitter – @bontband deliver a very convincing performance. We hear the detail of the score come across, complimented by a huge, yet always controlled band sound. Quality playing around the band and soloists do well. An early contender for sure!
