Brass @ Bont Academy

Who Are We?

Brass@Bont Academy, launched in June 2022 by members of the Bont Band, is a growing community organisation for brass players of all standards and ages to make music.  In all rehearsals we aim to nurture musical interest and talent as well as further develop instrumental skills. Our rehearsals are encouraging and productive, and band members enjoy working together as a team to perform a wide range of musical styles. We are always working towards fostering more working partnerships with local schools and other local bands.

What Do We Offer?

We welcome players of all ages and abilities, based in the Pontardulais Bandroom Brass@Bont Academy rehearsals are staffed by a team of highly experienced brass musicians and teachers with a wealth of experience in the field. Alongside weekly rehearsals there are opportunities to attend summer schools and weekend workshops as well as regular opportunities to perform in the local community. We encourage our members to perform in a number of concerts across the year – some featuring just the Academy Bands and others featuring the complete Bont Band Family.

Buzztastics

As the name suggest this is the band for players that are starting their musical journey. We welcome players blowing their first note to those that have been learning for a little while.  We can even help you with an instrument. We meet on Sundays between 4:00pm – 4:45pm term time only. These rehearsals are about having fun and being busy making music.  Players are rewarded for their hard work with certificates as they progress and demonstrate new skills.

Little Bonty Brass

This is the group for players who can confidently play 5 or 6 notes and read simple music to develop their ability to play as part of a band. We meet on Sundays between 4:30pm – 5:30pm term time only. Players continue to be rewarded for their hard work with certificates as they progress and demonstrate new skills.

Academy Band

Academy band leads on from the skills developed in Little Bonty Brass, players here continue to develop skills reading music and playing together in an ensemble. These rehearsals cover a wide range of musical styles, and the music is carefully chosen to ensure it’s fun and accessible with just a little bit of challenge. From here players graduate to Bont Community Brass. We meet on Sundays between 5:30pm 6:45pm term time only.

New and returning players are always welcome – but we would ask that you drop us an email at brassatbont@gmail.com so we can make sure that this is the right band for you!

Annual Summer School

Our Summer Schools are open to new and existing brass players aged 7-18. Rehearsals will take place between 10:00am – 3:30pm from Monday to Friday. Each year the course is tailored to suit the players attending and there will be sessions to suit all from complete beginners to more advanced players. The course concludes with a concert to family and friends.

More information and registration details available from brassatbont@gmail.com

You don’t need to be a member of Brass @ Bont Academy to be part of this exciting project.

Community Brass

Rehearsing on Monday evenings between 7:00pm – 8.30pm term time only, this group plays a wide range of seasonal concert repertoire and we will welcome players of any age from in and around the Bont area who want to come together for some relaxed but focussed rehearsals.

This band is for you if you are ready to move on from a training band, are returning to playing after a short (or long) break, if you want to play concert music well without the pressure of contesting, or you just want a good blow on a Monday!!

There will always be a warm welcome to new players– but we would ask that you drop us an email at brassatbont@gmail.com before you join us so we can make sure that we have music and a stand ready for you.

We place the utmost importance on the safety of our members. We strive to ensure that there are opportunities for all people, whatever their age, culture, disability, gender, language, racial origin, religious belief and/or sexual identity to participate in brass banding in an enjoyable and safe environment. Our Academy team are all DBS checked and our band organisation meets the requirements of the Brass Bands England Bandsafe programme.