There was an excellent response to the recent Brass Band Conductors' Association (BBCA) 'Pick up the Baton' zoom webinar initiative in conjunction with Brass Bands England.

Thornton lead

Over 160 people took the opportunity to find out more about the topic led by North of England representative and Grimethorpe Colliery Band MD, David Thornton.

He defined the many different roles of the conductor; from leading the band onto the contest and concert stage to providing clarity, knowledge, communication, confidence, people management — and to be a good listener.

David's presentation also covered other aspects such as how to create opportunities to conduct, aided by a discussion with James Holt on the preparation of a rehearsal and score.

Beat patterns

Scotland representative Stuart Black gave basic insight into how to approach the baton, demonstrating beat patterns, basic technique and coordination exercises, whilst Geraint Barnes, BBCA representative for Wales, shared his positive experience of the organisation's mentoring scheme in providing a support network to build relationships with fellow brass band conductors.

Executive committee members and the rest of the regional representatives were also on hand throughout the evening to share their experiences of how they got into brass band conducting and to conclude the webinar with a Q&A.

David's presentation also covered other aspects such as how to create opportunities to conduct, aided by a discussion with James Holt on the preparation of a rehearsal and scoreBBE

Enjoy again

The BBCA 'Picking Up the Baton' webinar can be viewed in full on Facebook: fb.watch/3ofxjyrSxb

If the topic has tickled your fancy to take up the baton, then to find out more go to: bbe.org.uk/national-association-brass-band-conductors/bbca-executive

Find out more

To join the BBCA go to bbe.org.uk/join-us

Annual membership is £44 and includes individual membership of BBE, one professional Enhanced DBS check, access to insurance deals, and discounts to BBCA events.

For more information email member@bbe.org.uk