Latest News                          

18th December 2011

Festivo at Windsor Castle

We were very honoured to be invited back for the second consecutive year by Lt. Col. Stuart Watts on the 15^th December to take part in Festivo at St George’s Chapel inside the grounds of Windsor Castle.

Last year's concert was a great success and this year's was no exception. A lot of effort went into the preparation for this year with eight piece arrangements to find for the Willcocks' carols, two of our cornets playing an excerpt from the Messiah and working on several big pieces for the full band.

The concert started at 7.30pm and we took the stage in a state of panic because four of the band were stuck in the London traffic! Fortunately, only the eight piece were required at the start and they got to us just in time for our first full band number.

This year we were asked to have more involvement with the choir and one of those pieces was an excerpt from the Messiah, Glory to God. Andrew Tovey (sop) played piccolo trumpet and Jason Pickin (rep) played trumpet in D. The full band also played a march, The Joy Bringer, which was requested and conducted by Lt. Col.Watts and also involved the Lay Clerks singing the chorus, Jesus Wants me for a Sunbeam.

The band played superbly throughout and we received lots of great feedback from the audience. We finish 2011 on another high and we are looking forward to 2012 with excitement and confindence.

Christmas Concert at St Peters

Staines hosted their final concert of the year at St Peter's Church in Staines. Soloists of the afternoon were Jonny Sproule (Euphonium), Susan White (Trombone) & Nick Mott (Cornet). There were many new faces in the audience which is always a pleasure to see.

After the concert, many members of the band celebrated Christmas with a meal at The Bells.

3rd December 2011

The band will be hosting their annual Christmas Concert on Sunday 11th December at St Peter's Church, Staines. Please come along to enjoy a wonderful afternoon of music.

2nd December 2011

Wraysbury Jazz Club

Staines Brass will be returning to Wraysbury on Sunday 4th December to provide the musical entertainment for the Wraysbury Jazz Club. This is the third year that the Jazz Club have hosted the concert & everyone hopes it will be as successful as the last two years.

20th November 2011

Christmas is Underway!

Yesterday, Saturday 19th November, saw Staines Brass start it's Christmas Festivities with a quintet of players providing the carols & fanfare to light the tree at Windsor Castle.

Today the full band performed once again for the Santa Parade in Staines High Street. Unfortunately, due to 'Elf' & Safety, there were no reindeers to pull Santa's sleigh for him. Instead, the head Elf took charge of the motorised vehicle. I suppose times have changed & Santa has decided to get a more effective mode of transport!

4th September 2011

Proms Concert 2011

Staines Brass will be holding their annual Proms concert at St Peter's Church, Staines on Saturday 10th September. We are also pleased to welcome along Northfleet Brass who will be performing Portrait of a City by Philip Sparke, the forthcoming test piece for the 2nd Section National Finals at which the band will be competing.

19th August 2011

Concert Review by Zoe Macdonald

Last Sunday, the 14th August, the band played at St James' Park in central London for the third year running. Due to an Olympic Test cycling even, there was a feeling of excitement in the park, although traffic and parking was a problem. Uncharacteristically, it was a sunny afternoon and the rain held out for our concert programme.

Melvin pulled together a varied programme that was as enjoyable to play as to listen to. Mixing old band standards with some newer classical, jazz and pop arrangements which suited the band. We had a good strength band with some help from friends at Medway and made a suitably impressive sound for the venue.

What a joy to be able to play to so many people. We got the feeling that our performance was enjoyed very much by some park regulars, brass band aficianados, friends, family and tourists of all ages.

19th August 2011

Another Marriage Celebration

Everyone at Staines Brass would like to pass on their congratulations to Emma Sweet (Staines Lammas Band Manager) and Dave Elliott-Smith on their marriage in Gower, South Wales on Sunday 24 July.  The couple honeymooned in Cape Town, safari and Mauritius.

7th June 2011

Marriage Celebration

The band would like to pass on their congratulations and best wishes to Stewart Gaudion (Chairman of Staines Brass and Staines Lammas Band) and Ann Hawkins (band trustee) who married in the beautiful setting of Hawaii on 6th May 2011. The happy couple then celebrated on return to the UK in style at Jagz in Ascot.

22nd May 2011

Fanfares and Quintets

A Fanfare for Richmond’s new Mayor.

On Sunday 22^nd May Staines brass were invited to play a fanfare for the Inauguration of Councilor Clare Head as Mayor for the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames for the Municipal Year 2011/12.

Four members of the bands cornet section Phil Dawson, Claire Howard, Zoe MacDonald and Jason Pickin welcomed the Mayor with a rousing fanfare before the church service at Mary the Virgin Church, Twickenham.

Quintet for Meadowside care home

On the afternoon of Sunday 22^nd May a Quintet performed for the residents of Meadowside care home in Staines. The ensembles members were Jason Pickin and Phil Dawson (Cornet), Simon Angel (Horn) Ian Dewhurst ( Euphonium) and Kenny Ralston (Tuba).

The programme consisted of ballads, marches and rousing tunes ranging from The Floral Dance to New York, New York.  The band had the audience tapping feet, clapping hands and the singing.

The residents thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon’s music and elcomed the band back at any time.

19th May 2011

Spring Concert Reviews

We have two reviews of the band's Spring Concert & so decided to publish both of them for you to view. The first one is from an audience member whilst the second one is by a player within the band.

A Concert for Spring by Larissa Simpson 

It was a warm spring evening as we drifted in to the welcome cool of St Peter’s Church. Although somewhat diminished in numbers owing to the Easter Vacation, there was a buzz of anticipation amongst the audience as Staines Brass took to their seats, resplendent in their black, maroon and gold uniforms. 

Immediately the band set the celebratory mood with a lively Hungarian March, followed by Le Carnival Romain. Hardly had toes finished tapping, when John Spencer took the centre stage on Soprano Cornet, bringing with him the sparkle and glamour of American Football Cheerleaders; immediately followed by the more soulful Sugar Blues, played poignantly by Ian Graves on the Cornet. 

Black Bottom Stomp took the tempo back up several notches with John and Ian joining forces with Susan White and Kenny Ralston; and a grinning Jason Pickin adding the lively washboard accompaniment. 

Well-known and soon-to-be favourites followed on thick and fast; the vibrant  adaptation of Grieg’s Hall of the Mountain King, showing off the Band’s wealth of talent to perfection. There were further inspiring and evocative solos from Susan White, John Sproule and Richard Pemberton; and the programme was brought to a glorious conclusion with excerpts from the king of Heaven, allowing its listeners to pick out familiar and soul-stirring themes. 

The evening was for me; and I’m sure for all of the audience, one of many delights: truly a wonderful way to celebrate the joys of Spring.

St Peter's Church Spring Concert by Phil Dawson

The band gave their first concert of the year to their loyal supporters at St Peter’s church on 16 April.  This came just a few weeks after contest performances at Porthcawl and Stevenage and it was very pleasing to be able to play items from those contests to our home crowd.  Sprinkled amongst these well-polished gems were several lighter pieces, with a definite swing feel.   

The afternoon of the concert was warm and sunny, Spring had truly sprung!  As usual there was a short rehearsal in the church before the concert, after which several of the band enjoyed the last golden rays of the sun, eating their sandwiches on the riverbank.  The waterside was busy with walkers, and on the river there was a rowing team making a sponsored charity row-a-thon.   

The programme began in fine traditional style, with a double helping of Berlioz: first the rousing Hungarian march, followed by the area contest testpiece Le Carnival Romain.  The wonderful acoustic quality of the church lent a touch of class to the Carnival.   As the last sounds died away there seemed to be an unspoken feeling that here at last, in St Peter’s, we had managed to do justice to the music.  The band had felt that our contest performance of the piece at the area contest in Stevenage in March really lacked colour, mostly due to the unsuitable acoustics of the auditorium.  Tonight’s performance put away any feeling of dissatisfaction on that count.   

Next up came two contrasting but relaxed cornet solos.  First on Soprano cornet, John Spencer treated us to a cheekily-styled piece of American TV music, Bubbles was a Cheer Leader.    This was followed by Ian Graves, standing in the Principal’s position to perform the trad classic, Sugar Blues. 

 For the next number, John and Ian were joined by Susan White on trombone and Kenny Ralston on Tuba to form a Mississipi style quartet playing Black Bottom Stomp.  This high spirited arrangement is really a solo for four players, each taking their turn to show off.  The authentic sound of a real washboard was provided by our man from the Deep South (of Wales), Jason Pickin.  Whether or not the audience enjoyed this frivolity was irrelevant, these five players certainly did!

 The band then got back onto more traditional ground with an arrangement of 76 Trombones, with a few extra tunes thrown in for good measure. 

 Susan White took centre stage once more with a fast-paced rendition of a Carpenter’s classic, We’ve Only Just Begun.  Susan delivered a self assured performance of this familiar tune, with the melody lightly passing back and forth between her and the band accompaniment.   

The first half concluded with a piece paying tribute to the American Civil War, An American Tale, which moves from a thoughtful opening through a number of well-known songs to a heroic finish with the unofficial national anthem of the US, Amazing Grace. 

 During the interval audience members enjoyed refreshments and took their opportunity to snap up some unusual bird boxes, handmade by Geoff Bailey  (Zoe’s Dad) which were being sold to support the band’s funds.  Demand was high for these First-Time-Fliers desirable residences!

 Beginning the second half was a quirky arrangement of Grieg’s Hall of the Mountain King.  This is a high speed drive through the fantastical underworld imagined by Grieg, with challenging percussion parts played with real flair by Mike Jefferies and Dave Longman and guest percussionist Emma Stoffer.  The arrangement also gave the middle band and bass end the chance to have lots of fun. 

 A much more introspective and contemplative mood was created by our next soloist John Sproule on euphonium.  His solo Michelangelo payed homage to the Italian artist and polymath.  The descending notes of the melody portrayed a sense of descent into the subject, as if searching for answers. 

 Returning from this quest for knowledge, we headed straight back into pure entertainment with a big band style piece of music, Sparkling Diamonds from the film Moulin Rouge.  The film portrays the life and loves of various imagined and real characters (including Toulouse Lautrec) within the cast and company of the famous Paris theatre in its heyday.  Like the theatre, the music is an overblown gaudy pastiche; ripping good not very clean fun! 

 The band took back seat to the next soloist, Richard Pemberton on flugel, who gave us an emotive performance of Scarlet Ribbons, accompanied by piano and just a few brass parts.  This smaller group of musicians provided a lovely contrast to the full on force of the band. 

 The band swung back into action with a demanding arrangement of the Windy City’s own anthem, Chicago, that Toddling Town.  A real toe tapper. 

 The penultimate piece made full use of the wonderful space in the church and filled it with really beautiful music with Lux Aurumque, Light and Gold.  There is no rhythm in this piece, it is pure sound.  This one really had the audience and band listening hard, sitting on the edge of their seats to hear the rich tones within the music.   

The concert finale was an excerpt from King of Heaven, a modern arrangement of the theme and variations of the hymn, Praise my soul the King of heaven.  This begins with a forthright declaration of the theme and is followed by interleaved variations from all sections of the band, moving through a bass–led melody and fugue before finally concluding with a triumphant re-statement of the theme. 

 The band would like to thank the church, door & raffle helpers. 

11th May 2011

Concert Cancellation

Due to unforeseen circumstances, the concert for the Ashford Rotary Club on Saturday 21st May at St Peter's Church has been cancelled.

27th March 2011

Spring Concert

Staines Brass invites you to their spring concert at St Peter’s church on Saturday 16^th April. 

The concert is in aid of the Mayors charities and to raise funds for the church.

The band would love to see you, your family and your friends.

21st March 2011

No Placing but a Promotion Ahead by Karen Rawcliffe

On Saturday 19th March, the band made the trip up the A1M to Stevenage to compete in the London & Southern Counties First Section Regional Qualifiers. We arrived for our rehearsal & after a few hymn tunes to warm up, conducted by Ian Graves, our Musical Director arrived after having conducted Northfleet Brass in the second section.

The rehearsal went well although we were a Bb Tuba missing as he was working & would join us later. The band made it's way across to the Stevenage Arts & Leisure Centre where the competition was taking place & we waited to hear from Ian when we would be playing. Soon after 2.45pm, we began to hear that we had been drawn in the dreaded number one spot. Unfortunately, it was confirmed that this was the case & our Bb Tuba player was not going to make it in time for our performance. On a positive note, it did mean that we would be finished in time to watch England v Ireland in the 6 Nations rugby match!!

Everyone seemed quite relaxed back stage & after being given the consent to have a 30 second warm up, we made our way into the sports hall where we were to perform. Sadly, the audience were still being allowed to filter into the hall & after 5 minutes, Melvin decided to remove the band from the stage until such time that we would not have to sit there while our instruments cooled down! A few more minutes later, we returned to the stage & gave our rendition of Hector Berlioz's 'Le Carnival Romain'. Regrettably, our performance of the piece was not up to our usual high standards that we had produced earlier in the day & everyone came away a little disappointed.

Approximately 4 hours after we had played, the results were announced & those of us that were there were not surprised to hear that we had not been placed in the top 3 & be going to represent the London & Southern Counties region at the National contest in October.

We were placed in 7th position out of the 17 bands in our section which does mean that we will be promoted back up into the Championship section from January 2012.

Our congratulations go to Haverhill, East London Brass & Bedford Town who will be heading to Cheltenham to represent our region. We wish them the very best of luck.

15th March 2011

Regional Qualifiers Ahead

This Saturday (19th March) sees the band competing in the First Section Regional Qualifiers for the London & Southern Counties Area at the Stevenage Arts Centre. This year's chosen test piece is "Le Carnival Romain" by Berlioz. The piece is an easy listening piece with lots of lyrical passages which should make an enjoyable afternoon's banding if you were to come along & support us.

The band is hoping to improve on last year's 4th place which may see the band return to the National Finals, which will be held this year at Cheltenham Racecourse, & a return to the Championship section.

8th March 2011

More Success in Wales with an appearance on S4C by Jason Pickin

Saturday 19^th February 2011 saw Staines Brass return to the Grand Pavilion in Porthcawl, South Wales for the 14^th Welsh Open Entertainment Contest. The band made the 165 mile trip along the M4 corridor to defend their titles of the previous year as highest placed 1^st Section Band and Most Entertaining Band.

We set off nice and early from the Lammas Park and had a very smooth journey, arriving at our rehearsal venue, the Porthcawl R.A.F.A. Club, at 11.15am. It gave us time to set up and re-visit Finnegan’s Fish and Chip Shop for our lunch. Rehearsal over, and it was time to get ourselves to the contest venue for the afternoon draw. We arrived just as the last band of the first half were taking the stage to find that we had drawn number 7 which meant that we would be the first band on after the break. It gave us plenty of time to setup the stage, relax and mentally prepare for our performance.

This years contest was a very special occasion because the Welsh TV Channel S4C had decided to make a documentary about the competition which was shown on Saturday 26^th February. As soon as we arrived at the Pavilion we were met by camera crews who were watching and filming our every move.

We took the stage around 4.20pm and settled ready to play our opening number with the cornets and trombones stood around the back half of the band and the tuba section accommodating the front row cornet seats. It was a good opener and nerves settled quickly despite having a camera on a long arm swinging across the stage recording our performance. It was then time for something much lighter with Susan White’s trombone solo ‘We’ve Only Just Begun’ by the Carpenters. It was the fist two numbers that finally made the cut on the TV programme.

Our third number was a completely different style with a trip to New Orleans and the ‘Black Bottom Stomp’. With straw boater hats donned, the Dixieland quartet of Andy Tovey (Soprano), Jolyon Mathews (Cornet), Susan White (Trombone) and Kenny Ralston (Tuba) in place on the steps in front of the stage got us off in great swing style. Though I am a very modest person I do feel that I should give myself a mention for the input and solo work I contributed to this number. It was at our last rehearsal, the day before the contest that I was handed a ‘washboard’ to be played along with the quartet and percussion section, and due to my advanced skill and musicianship I really did put the icing on the cake!

It was then time to slow things down with a beautiful number called ‘Scarlet Ribbons’ which featured Richard Pemberton on Flugel Horn and Susan White on Piano. Some great playing from both which went down well with the adjudicator Derek Broadbent.

Our finale was a wonderful piece of music based around a hymn that would be typically sung in many of the chapels throughout the Welsh valleys, ‘King of Heaven’. The band produced big, controlled sounds throughout and finished to a very responsive audience who told us that we had given a good show with their very generous applause, whistling and whooping.

The hard work had been done, so it was now time to relax with a pint in the bar and a chance to catch up with old friends from my past life as a young bandsman in the South Wales Valleys. This year we took the stage with no less than five Welshmen among our ranks, myself coming from Blaengwynfi, Andrew Richards from Swansea, Ceri Williams from Brecon, Mark Turner (who very kindly helped us out at very short notice) from Neath and Mike Jefferies who was our local boy for the day who was born and bred in Porthcawl.

When the last band had finished their performance all that was left was the nail biting wait for the results. All the bands poured into the auditorium in high anticipation of a good result. To expect a top 3 place in this competition is a massive task due to the strength of the three favourite bands, Tredegar being the British Open Champions with a world ranking of 6^th , BTM being the Welsh League Champions with a world ranking of 17^th and Tongwynlais being qualifiers of the British Open with a world ranking of 21^st.  Staines hold a world ranking of 179^th so to improve on last years 6^th place and retain the prizes won last year would be a great achievement.

The adjudicator came on stage and gave a short talk on the day’s events and the prizes started to be awarded. First out was most entertaining band which went to Tylorstown so we didn’t manage to retain that one. Next out was the best soloist prize, which I had high hopes for with my superb washboarding! Sadly it wasn’t to be, the prize going to BTM’s trombone player. Highest placed 1^st section band and 4^th place….Staines Brass!!! The top three as predicted all along were Tredegar, BTM and Tongwynlais. A great days contesting and a couple of Championship section scalps to boot. The bands contest secretary Ian Graves was presented the Eifion Rogers Cup by Elizabeth Wynne Rogers who is Eifions Grand Daughter.

The journey back to Staines on the coach was high spirited and the band, yet again, gain success in Wales.