GBBA 75th Anniversary

Highnam Court

    Yesterday saw the Gloucestershire Brass Band Association's 75th Anniversary Celebration concert.  Highnam Court was the fabulous venue for the event that saw 20 of the Association's member bands perform short sets to an ever increasing audience.  At 10am Cheltenham Silver started with an entertaining programme; Pillowell Silver, Forest of Dean Brass and then Flowers Band were next on stage, followed by Gloucester Brass and Bream Silver.  They were followed by were Portishead Town Band, ably assisted by members of the City of Bristol Brass Band.  Their programme was Let's Face the Music and Dance, the Witches of Westmerland, Autumn Leaves, the Lincolnshire Poacher and the famous march Ravenswood.

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    The MD Kevin White's jokes were a groan-a-minute as the compere read them out but were well received by the audience.  AW Parker (Drybrook) Band in their teal shirts and Lydbrook Training Band took to the stage before the City of Bristol Brass Band, ably assisted by members of Portishead Town Band.  Our programme was the swagger march The New Colonial, David of the White Rock, Singing in the Rain, Misty and That's a Plenty. 

    Drybrook, Lydbrook Training, Gloucester Excelsior, Frampton, Tewkesbury, Lydbrook, Cirencester, Gloucester SA and Wotton Bands respectively played their programmes throughout the afternoon under a sky that threatened rain but never quite delivered.  Gloucestershire Youth Brass Band concluded the evening before the massed band event which was conducted by Philip Harper.  Both the GYBB and the massed bands played premieres of specially commissioned works by Philip Harper and Matt Kingston and the massed band also played a piece commissioned by the British Federation of Brass Bands to celebrate the 2012 Olympics: Going the Distance by Paul Lovatt-Cooper.

    The event went very smoothly with every band starting on time.  The beer tent and pork roast tent did excellent trade while the bouncy castles entertained the younger members of the audience.  Well done to everyone involved and especially to those who organised it and helped out on the day.