A Little Light Music

With less than three weeks to go until the Areas contest in Torquay, the band is working hard trying to get to grips with Philip Wilby’s challenging test piece ‘A Little Light Music’. The five section suite, which was commissioned by the Welsh Brass Arts Festival, is very different to last year’s more traditional test piece ‘Labour and Love’. With each movement posing its own challenge, it will no doubt be the bands that are able to best capture all of the contrasting styles featured that will be successful on the day, from the opening and closing fanfares, to the steady ‘Clog Dance’, the slow and melodic ‘Lady of the Fountain’, and the tricky but likeable ‘Cardiff Bay Ice Cream’. As always, the band is working hard to try and master all of the musical and technical requirements, but with only 10 rehearsals left, that inevitable pre-contest mixture of nerves and excitement is starting to kick in.

The band had a welcomed break from contest preparations at the weekend, when it joined forces once again with the River City Chorus for the Lions Club of Sidmouth’s charity concert at the Manor Pavilion. It was an enjoyable evening and one that we hope raised lots of money for two great causes - the British Heart Foundation and the Devon Air Ambulance Appeal.