Despite losing out on the chance to make it five consecutive wins at the recent Dutch National Championships, Brass Band Schoonhoven remains determined to showcase their major title winning talents at the forthcoming Brass in Concert Championship in Gateshead.

First time

It will be the first time that a Dutch band has been invited to play at the contest, and Schoonhoven believes it offers the ideal opportunity to start becoming a more regular future visitor to these contesting shores.

Band President Leon Monteny told 4BR: “It is a great honour to be invited to compete at Brass in Concert, and it is an event everyone at Schoonhoven is looking forward to.

We wish to compete on a more regular basis in the UK, perhaps at the British Open Spring Festival or Butlins, as well as hopefully returning to Brass in Concert in the future.”

Taste of Holland

The four time Dutch champion and podium finisher at the European Championships will give people a musical taste of Holland on the Saturday before they take to the contest stage the following day, with a special ‘Dutch Treats’ coffee concert on The Sage concourse.

24 hours later they will battle with 11 other top ranked bands for the Brass in Concert title, with a programme inspired by their experiences of two concert tours the band undertook to South Africa in 2005 and 2007.

Ground breaking visits

During these ground-breaking visits they travelled into the townships around Cape Town to give lessons to children playing brass instruments and workshops for local conductors.

The inspirational tours, which saw the band perform with wonderful local choirs as well as the Cape Town Philharmonic Youth Orchestra has left a lasting impact on the Dutch players – something they wish to share with in their forthcoming Brass in Concert programme.

We hope our ‘South African Symphony’ will take the audience on an inspiring journey to this fantastic country — just as it did with usBrass Band Schoonhoven

Inspiring journey

Leon told 4BR: “We hope our ‘South African Symphony’ will take the audience on an inspiring journey to this fantastic country — just as it did with us.

It is a concert programme of conflict and reconciliation, of a country that has emerged into becoming a true Rainbow Nation.”