The Aldbourne Band is ending 2011 on a strong note – they’ve been awarded second place in the open section at the sixty-fifth annual championships of the South West Brass Band Association. The contest was held at the Riviera Centre in Torquay with thirty-seven bands competing for the top prizes.
Musical director David Johnson chose an extremely challenging test piece for the band – On the Shoulders of Giants composed by Peter Graham. This piece was commissioned for the British Open in 2010. The ‘giants’ that the music reflects are the composers who have influenced the style of brass bands over the past hundred years.
The piece took a great deal of concentrated practice and rehearsal.
The band’s chairman, James Sheppard said: “It was great to see so many supports and ‘Friends of Aldbourne Band’ with us on the day. We had a marvellous result being placed above four other championship section bands.”
“We achieved the task we’d set ourselves – to play a challenging test piece in preparation for the area finals in March 2012.”
The adjudicator, Peter Bassano, praised the band’s performance and even noted the loud, prolonged and enthusiastic applause from the audience who appreciated a piece well executed.
The band has now moved up into the top world rankings and lies at sixty-first in the world. The band aims to be within the top fifty by this time next year.
You can hear the band play at several Christmas concerts including one at St Michael’s Aldbourne at 7.00pm on Sunday, December 11.
