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2012 London & Southern Counties Regional Championship — Stevenage preview

The bands of the Southern Confederacy are starting to make more of a mark north as well as west of the Watford Gap...

StevenageAs always the Stevenage Arts & Leisure Centre will be packed to the rafters as a huge field of 81 bands makes its way to the most utilitarian contest venue in the country.

Intense


Dave Hobbs and his team do an amazing job organising this event, and whilst the building may lack the architectural splendour of the Brangwyn Hall in Swansea or the faded glory of the Winter Gardens in Blackpool, the monument to 1970s centralised town planning still hosts a very lively set of contests that are every bit as intense in their rivalry as anywhere in the banding world.

Whizz kids

And whilst a few disgruntled players may feel that performing in the Gordon Craig Theatre doesn’t quite get the adrenaline flowing through the veins quite like St George’s Hall in Bradford, getting a venue that can host such numbers over one weekend for a price that doesn’t bankrupt the hard working Area Committee is a financial balancing act not even the red braced city whizz kids in Canary Wharf could manage better: It does its job and does it rather well.

The bands that come here are doing their jobs rather well too.

Jeremy Wise
Jeremy Wise and Redbridge are flying the Confederate Flag of the South

Numbers up

Numbers are up, with at least five debutants we know of in the Fourth Section, and a couple of returnees to offset the losses of the likes of Cobham, EPB Brass and Chinnor.

After claiming a National title in 2010 through Friary Guildford’s success at Harrogate, the qualifying bands for London and Cheltenham drew a blank – but an encouraging blank at that.

No surprise really that there were midfield finishes at the Royal Albert Hall, but there were solid returns at Cheltenham where four contenders returned with top ten placings.

Confederate


With Redbridge continuing to proudly fly the Confederate Flag of the South at the elite level, there is a desperate need for a high class rival to emerge this weekend to give the Championship Section a less predictable feel, although the First Section certainly has an emerging batch of quality contenders at National level, as does the Second.

And whilst the quantity can sometimes camouflage the quality in the Third and Fourth Sections, there are grounds for optimism there too.

The surroundings therefore may be a bit bland, but the banding itself in these parts, certainly isn’t.  It should make for a cracking weekend of contesting.

Iwan Fox.



The Hepworth Band - A Summer Proms Concert

Sunday 20 July • Hepworth United Sports Club, Far Lane, Hepworth, Holmfirth. HD9 1RN


Petworth Town Band - Ebernoe Horn Fair

Friday 25 July • Ebernoe Cricket Ground GU28 9LD


Petworth Town Band - Dorset House School Fete

Saturday 26 July • Dorset House School RH20 1PB


Haverhill Silver Band - A Nightingale Sang... (an evening concert)

Saturday 2 August • Foakes Hall, Dunmow CM6 1DG


Haverhill Silver Band - East Anglian Beer & Cider Festival

Sunday 24 August • St Edmundsbury Cathedral, Bury St Edmunds IP33 1QX


Moorlands Brass

July 15 • We are a new community band based in Staffordshire moorlands, and are looking for players of all abilities in all sections.So come along and give us a try you will be made very welcome.


Chinnor Silver

July 15 • Our COMMUNITY BAND is meeting again on Monday at 11am (21st) and we would welcome any player (all abilities welcome) to join us.We are a friendly group who just love playing together and chatting during our cake and coffee break.. BONUS its all free


Haverhill Silver Band

July 13 • Haverhill Silver Band (championship section) seeks a SECOND HORN. This is a superb opportunity to join East Anglia's premier brass band on the concert and contest stage (including the Senior Cup and Whit Friday).


Julian Bright


Conductor, Compere/MC, Cornet Soloist


               

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