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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.  If you would like to hear the piece, you’re very welcome to come along to one of our remaining rehearsals.  Details are given below, or contact us for more information.

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.

It’s now only five days to go until the most important date in the band’s calendar, and after weeks of preparation, Philip Wilby’s ‘A Little Light Music’ is starting to come together.  There is still plenty to work on during the last three rehearsals, but we are looking forward to the challenge that awaits us as we head to Torquay on Saturday to compete against the other 11 bands in the Third Section.

Full results will be reported on 4barsrest, however, don’t forget to follow us on Facebook or Twitter for updates on what the band is up to!

The band is back on Cloud Nine this weekend after being crowned West of England Third Section Champions at the Regional Championships in Torquay for the second year running.

After last year’s win and a good result at the National Finals in September, confidence was high as we set to work in January on Philip Wilby’s ‘A Little Light Music’.  Featuring ‘Cardiff Bay Ice Cream’, a technically difficult movement that would challenge bands in the Second or First Sections, we knew we had our work cut out if we were to even come close to repeating the success of 12 months previous.  Luckily, hard work is something this band is not averse to, and over the following weeks the piece started to come together.  If there’s one thing that the band has in abundance it’s imagination, and this was proved once again as ice cream, clog dancing, seagulls, sprinkles and Mr. Whippy all played a part in our story-telling approach to contest preparations!  With rehearsals having gone well, we left for Torquay early on Saturday morning hopeful that we would be able to put in a good performance on stage.  Not only were we looking to try and book our place at this year’s National Finals, but we also knew that a placing in the top 4 would guarantee us promotion into the Second Section in 2012 - a feat that hasn’t been achieved by the band for over 60 years.

Not long after arriving at our rehearsal venue, we learned that we had been drawn to play 10th out of the 11 bands competing on the day.  With several hours to go until we would play, we had a short practice before heading to the Riviera Centre to do something else that we are good at - waiting!  You could argue that our approach to waiting is not the most conventional (just ask the bands who are within earshot when our ritual humming begins...), but that time spent together is proving to be an important part of our pre-performance routine.  With the waiting and humming over, it was time to take to the stage.  Although there were odd bars here and there that we knew we could play better, we came off stage very happy with our overall performance.  With only one band left to play after us, it wasn’t long before we were back in the hall awaiting the results.  If we thought we were nervous before we played, that was nothing compared to the nerves we felt sitting and waiting for the top 6 places to be announced.  With finger nails getting increasingly

shorter, it came as a huge relief when those

words we had dreamt of hearing - “ In first

place, the band drawn number...ten!” - were

read out.  Our cheers, grins, and a few tears

were a good indication of how delighted we

were with the result!  Congratulations must

also go to Downtown Band, who claimed

second prize.

Being crowned West of England Third Section

Champions for the second year running is a

fantastic achievement for the band, and we very

much look forward to returning to the National Finals in September to see if we can equal or better our result last year.  The icing on the cake (or in this case the sprinkles on the ice cream) is gaining promotion to the Second Section in 2012 - the year that the band celebrates its 150th anniversary.  This achievement is a testament to the tireless enthusiasm and ambition of Adrian, our Musical Director, and the hard work and dedication of the entire band.

You can read the adjudicator remarks from yesterday’s contest here, or have a look at our Gallery page to see some photos of the day.

The sun shone in Sidmouth yesterday morning for one of the bands’s favourite engagements of the year - the annual Hot Cross Bun Giveaway.  After two consecutive years where an alternative wet weather plan has had to be put

into action, it was nice to return to the Bedford

Lawn Car Park to take part in this tradition that

has been running for over 100 years.

In addition to rehearsing for the forthcoming

summer season of concerts in Connaught

Gardens, we have been preparing for a special

one-off event taking place on 29th April to

mark the Royal Wedding.  Organised by the

town’s Chamber of Commerce, the street party

is due to run from 4-7pm, with the band

playing between 5:50 and 7pm.  We will be

joined by the talented soprano singer Val Howells for a rousing, patriotic ending to the event.  If you can’t make the street party, have a look at our engagements list to see where and when you can hear the band in the near future.

After warm, sunny starts to both the 2009 and 2010 summer seasons, 2011 has bucked the trend thanks to the unpredictability of British weather.  With one cloudy, one damp and one rained-off concert so far, we’re hoping that the weather will be kinder to us for the rest of the season, so that the music and surroundings can be enjoyed in their full glory.

Much of the last six weeks has been spent

practising for the summer season, however,

as always we have been busy taking part in

events in and around Sidmouth.  On 29th

April, the band played at the street party held to

celebrate the royal wedding.  Come the

finale, a sea of red, white and blue filled the

Market Square as hundreds of people gathered

to sing along and celebrate in true patriotic style.

On 20th May we were back in the heart of the

town to give a concert at the Parish Church.  The Church has been improved greatly since it’s refurbishment just over a year ago, and we were very pleased to have an enthusiastic and appreciative audience filling the pews.

We are delighted to announce that three new players have joined the band, just in time for the start of the summer season.  Jerome Blackburn has joined our percussion section, whilst husband and wife Nick and Karen Alderton have joined us on trombone and horn respectively. All three players are proving to be very valuable assets, and we wish each of them a long and happy time with the band.

Tickets for this year’s Last Night of the Proms concert are now on sale.  The concert, which is the band’s biggest of the year, is being held in Connaught Gardens on Saturday 20th August, at 7.30pm. We will once again be joined by local singer Val Howells, whose talent and impressive outfits always add some extra sparkle to the evening.  We will also be joined for the second year running by compere Nick Agg-Manning, who will be ensuring the evening runs smoothly.

Tickets cost just £5 and are now available from Sidmouth’s Tourist Information Centre, at any of our concerts, or from any member of the band.

After waking up to torrential rain, the band sighed with relief as the sun came out to make last Saturday’s Last Night of the Proms concert the best yet.

Although we have learnt from previous years that the people of Sidmouth will turn out in their hundreds come rain or shine, the dry and sunny

weather certainly helped to make the evening

one to remember, as once again the picnic tables,

candelabras and red, white and blue flags were

all out in force.

There is one person that the Proms would not

be the Same without, so we were delighted to be

joined again by the very talented Val Howells.  

Val not only sings beautifully, but her enthusiasm

and amazing outfits never fail to rouse the

audience and add a touch of sparkle to the

evening.  A big thank you to Val, to our brilliant compère Nick Agg-Manning who kept the evening running so smoothly, and to Sidmouth’s Lions Club for all their support on the day.

With the Proms over for another year, we’re down to the serious business of rehearsing for the National Finals being held in Cheltenham on the 25th September.  Once again we’ve enlisted the help of Steve Sykes, who will be joining us for a couple of rehearsals in the near future to put us through our paces.  For the benefit of band members who lose pieces of paper and for anyone who would like to come long to a rehearsal to hear the test piece ‘Darkness Visible’, we will be practising at the following times:

The band is absolutely delighted to announce that, at last, our Musical Director Adrian Harvey and Principal Cornet Fiona Bell have got married.

In a private ceremony far enough from

Sidmouth to guarantee the band didn’t turn

up with our instruments, the happy couple tied

the knot on Tuesday 23rd August to become

Mr. and Mrs. Harvey.

Adrian and Fiona are massively important to the

band.  Not only has the endless amount of time,

effort and commitment they’ve given been a

key factor in the band’s recent successes, but

their kindness, hospitality and ability to throw a

good party means they are very much at the centre of what we like to call our ‘STB family’.

We all wish Adrian and Fiona a very long and happy marriage!

The end of the summer season has traditionally been a time for the band to take a bit of a breather, but this autumn has been the busiest part of the year so far.  As always, we made our way along the short stretch of East Devon coastline to Exmouth on Saturday 3rd September to take part in the SWBBA’s Brass Band Festival.  Having been drawn to play 4th and therefore taking to the stage around 12pm, this year the band was a little more awake by the time it was our turn to play the 25 minute programme to a small but enthusiastic audience inside the Exmouth Pavilion.  The six pieces of music selected from our summer concert programmes proved to be popular with both the audience and the adjudicator, with the band winning the prize for best third section band and being placed a very credible third overall, beating bands from higher sections in the process.  For the second year running we also returned to Sidmouth with the cup for the Least Ropey Best Trombone Section of the day, so congratulations to Chris, Nick and Martin for maintaining that title!

With the Exmouth contest and the last Connaught Gardens concert over for another year it was time to turn our attention to Richard Grantham’s Darkness Visible, the test piece for the National Finals that were being held a mere three weeks later.  Although technically easier than Willow Pattern (Philip Harper’s composition used for the 2010 Finals), the piece required a great deal of work in order to build stamina and capture the essence of the story of light and shade being told.  Those following three weeks flew past at a worrying pace and, before we knew it, we were mastering the art of jumbo Tetris as we attempted to fit 45 people, all their luggage, 25 instruments and everything but the kitchen sink from the percussion section into the coach that was to drive us the 120 miles up the M5 to our Gloucester hotel.  Once we had reached Gloucester there was just enough time to relax and eat dinner before heading off to Cheltenham’s Salvation Army church for one last rehearsal.

After waking up to alarm clocks at a time that shouldn’t be allowed on a Sunday morning, we all set off bright and early towards Cheltenham once again and, after being treated to an unexpected tour of the town on the way, we finally arrived at our destination – the Racecourse.   A midway draw of 8th out of the 16 bands meant that we could take our time and explore the venue before being required to assemble in the ‘holding pen’ prior to going on stage.  A change of clothes, a 15 minute warm up and a ritual hum later, we were ready to take to the stage to see if we could consolidate three weeks worth of hard work into a 13 minute performance.   Despite feeling that we could have benefited from one or two more rehearsals to add some extra Sidmouth sparkle, we came off stage extremely happy with a performance that was better than any run-through we had done previously.  In a section where the standard was particularly high, we were very pleased to be placed 6th and to receive some good comments from adjudicators Philip Harper and Paul Holland.  With spirits high and a couple of hours to kill before the coach was due

to leave for Sidmouth, we did what any other

group of shy and retiring brass banders would

do on a Sunday afternoon; we had a break from

treating the entire bar to some karaoke classics

and tried our luck at jumping some fences on

the racecourse.  Having proved why we should

probably stick to banding rather than athletics,

we passed the finish line and retired to the

paddock to catch our breath before boarding

the coach for the last time.  For the second year

running, we headed back to Sidmouth from the

National Finals very proud of our achievement.  

To say that it’s not the winning but it’s the taking part that counts is a bit of a cliché, but to play as well as we could have done on stage and to have such a great weekend with a fantastic bunch of people proves that it really is true!

With two concerts and another contest to prepare for, October continued in the same busy fashion.  On Saturday 1st October, the band performed in Branscombe Church alongside a number of other acts that were all there to help raise money towards the cost of restoring and refurbishing the Parish Church of St. Winifred.  The following few weeks were spent practising for our own Autumn Concert at the Manor Pavilion on 30th October and for the SWBBA’s annual contest in Torquay on 5th November.  The concert in the Manor Pavilion gave us the opportunity to play out the test piece for the contest – Philip Sparke’s Saint-Saëns Variations.  Less than six days later we were sat on stage in the Riviera Centre ready to play the piece once again, only this time to an adjudicator as well as an audience.  Our involvement in the National Finals meant that we had less time to rehearse than we would have liked, however, a solid performance on the day secured us a very credible second place.  Congratulations to Weston Brass and their conductor Tony Osborne for their win – we look forward to competing together in the Second Section next year.

We can hardly believe that we are now having to dust off our carol books and prepare for 2011’s Christmas engagements.  Have a look at our engagements list for details for where and when you will be able to hear the band over the festive season.  Be warned though, for those of you wanting to buy tickets for our Christmas Concert in the Manor Pavilion on the 9th December – be quick!  Tickets only went on sale in the last week of October but they are already selling fast.  Get yours as soon as possible to avoid disappointment!

Another piece of good news for the band is the arrival of two new players.  Husband and wife Greg and Clare Morgan have both joined our cornet section – Greg on solo cornet and Claire on 2nd cornet.  Although they have only been with us for a matter of weeks, Greg and Claire have already fitted into the band extremely well and we hope they enjoy a long and happy future with their new STB family!

One of the band’s busiest and most successful years in recent history ended in typical fashion, with plenty of carols, mince pies and festive fun.

December always flies past, and this one was certainly no exception.  It seemed like no sooner had we dug out the gloves, scarves and carol books ready for Sidmouth’s late night shopping on 3rd December, we were in the Volunteer

just before midnight on Christmas Eve ready

to hang up the tinsel and sleigh bells for another

year.  On 5th December we once again joined

forces with the Exeter Police and Community

Choir for their annual charity Christmas concert

at St. Peter’s School in Exeter.  Just five days

later we were back on stage, but this time at the

Manor Pavilion in Sidmouth for our own Christmas

concert.  Tickets for the concert had sold out well

in advance, and those people who had brought

their tickets early were treated to an evening of

festive music from both the senior band and the

training band.  With a packed out theatre and a fantastic atmosphere, the concert was a fitting way to end what has been a great year for the band.  As we reflect on the successes of 2010, we head back to the bandroom with plenty of enthusiasm that 2011 will be even better.

We would like to take this opportunity say a big thank to each and every one of our supporters throughout year, and to wish you all a very happy new year!  Keep an eye on our engagement list for 2011 to find out when you can see and hear the band over the next 12 months.

Christmas Day is now only one week away and, as usual, the band’s busy festive schedule means that there are still many carols to be played, mince pies to be eaten and glasses of sherry to be drunk.  This evening a small group of us are extending the Christmas cheer along the coast to Beer, where we are helping the Social Club’s Christmas Draw go with more of a festive swing by playing carols.  On Tuesday, Friday and Saturday morning we are playing more carols back in Sidmouth, before concluding our festive season with our annual carolling marathon on Christmas Eve.  Have a look at our engagements page to check where you can see and hear us around the town over the next six days.

On 4th December the band was invited once again to join forces with the Exeter Police and Community Choir for its Christmas Charity Concert.  We hope the entertaining afternoon at St. Peter’s School in Exeter raised lots of money for this year’s chosen charity, the Alzheimer's Society.  Just five days later we were back on stage, only this time it was at Sidmouth’s Manor Pavilion to give our own annual Christmas concert.  The concert is one of the band’s favourite events of the year and, with tickets selling out weeks in advance, we know it is popular with our audiences too.  The concert provides us with the opportunity to celebrate the year that has passed, with the giving of both the Michael Parker Memorial Cup for the most improved player and the President’s Cup for anyone who deserves special recognition.  This year the President’s Cup was presented to both Adrian and Fiona Harvey - the band’s Musical Director and Principal Cornet.  Adrian and Fiona put an endless amount of time and effort into keeping the band running smoothly and successfully and so this recognition is greatly deserved.  This year’s most improved player award was presented to one of our third cornets, Jasper Dommett.  Jasper has progressed significantly over the past couple of years with the band and we are sure he has a long and successful playing career ahead of him.

All that is left is to wish all our supporters a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.  2011 has been another great year for the band and we look forward to an exciting but challenging 2012 in the Second Section!

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