The South West Brass Band Association online Solo & Quartet contest proved to be a huge success recently with almost 200 video entries submitted for the event which was generously sponsored by Trevada Music and adjudicated by an indefatigable Steve Sykes.
Delight
Not surprisingly, SWBBA Chair, John Woods expressed his delight at the success, telling 4BR: "The entries came from across the banding world, and proved that with an inventive approach these events works so well.
It has been a goal of SWBBA to re-establish an annual Solo & Quartet event and the pandemic enabled this to become a reality. Now we would like feedback (contact: secretary@swbba.com ) from those who took part and who tuned in to enjoy it so that we can consider similar events going forward."
New type of judging
Reflecting on the performances that he had heard, Steve Sykes revealed that he also used technology to the full — using three ipads in tandem; one to watch and listen to the performances, one with the scores and one to write his adjudications!
"It's a new type of adjudicating all together,"he said as he recalled his own slow melody performances from yesteryear. "The old Victorian ballads have gone, so we have to listen to other elements — and we can use the technology to replay performances.
He also said that the quartets were a "surprise"to him and that there were "some really great"performances that impressed him.
Wonderful performances
There were a host of wonderful performances in each class — from Charlotte Corbin of Bilton Silver Band who gave a super rendition of 'Over the Rainbow' to take the Slow Melody 9 Years & Under title, to Nicola Shaw who claimed a double in the Open category Blue Riband classes.
Michael MacDonald of Spennymoor Band was the Slow Melody 10-12 Years winner with his fine performance of 'Softly Awakes My Heart', whilst Morgan Phillips of Lanner & District Silver claimed the Slow Melody 15 Years & Under title with his evocative take on 'Demelza'.
There were a number of mature performances to enjoy in the 18 Years & Under Slow Melody category, with Lia Teague of Camborne Band eventually taking the honours with her tenderly portrayed account of 'The Holy Well'.
Percussion
It was also good to see a number of percussion entries, with Jordan Ashman of the GUS Band taking the 18 Years & Under title and the Open Category with his marimba rendition of 'Hombre D'aout'.
Nadia James of the Marple Band won the 18 Years & Under Air-Vaire category with a polished 'Silver Threads Among the Gold', whilst Lia Teague and Megan Newberry from Camborne and SW Comms Bands expertly teamed up to claim the 18 Years & Under Duet class with 'I know Him So Well'.
The Bodmin Youth Band quartet of George Barnes-Collier and Violet, Rachel and Eva Margetts took the 18 Years & Under Quartet title performing 'The Ash Grove', with Special Awards going to Simon Godfrey, Charlotte Corbin and Leoni Tissie.
Open categories
In the Open categories, Nicola Shaw of Wingates Band took the Slow Melody title with her finely judged rendition of Gounod's 'Ave Maria', whilst her sparkling performance of 'Carnival Cocktail' also took the Air Varie title.
The tuba pairing of Morgan and Richard Hart of the Shirley Band claimed the Open Duet honours with a sprightly 'Allegro' from Telemann's 'Canonic Sonata', with Special Prizes going to Lia Teague, Dylan Brewer and Morgan Hart.
The impressive Northern Quarters Quartet from the Royal Northern College of Music took the Open Quartet honours against seven high quality rivals with their performance of Philip Sparke's, 'Divertimento'.
There were four entries in the Open Ensemble class with Sherborne Town Band claiming victory with their rendition of 'The Girl with the Flaxen Hair'.
Enjoy
The results were announced over three evenings in separate results showcase videos and can be enjoyed again at:
Link to Showcase 1 — All 18yrs and under classes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCf17v8DvLg
Link to Showcase 2 — Open classes for Slow Melody, Air Varie, Duet and Percussion
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkfuC7ukVS0
Link to Showcase 3 — Open classes for Quartet and Ensemble
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbOckQowjOM
Further details can be found at: www.southwestbrassbandassociation.co.uk
The entries came from across the banding world, and proved that with an inventive approach these events works so wellSWBBA
Results:
Slow Melody 9 Years & Under:
(11 entries)
1. Charlotte Corbin
2. Bertie Barzilla
3. Elsie Crane
Slow Melody 10-12 Years:
(27 entries)
1. Michael MacDonald
2. Phoebe Jones
3. Natasha Duggleby
Slow Melody 15 Years & Under:
(18 entries)
1. Morgan Phillips
2. Toula Thomas
3. Chloe Hargreaves
Slow Melody 18 Years & Under:
(15 entries)
1. Lia Teague
2. Megan Newberry
3. Frederik Elgelsen
Percussion 18 Years & Under:
(5 entries)
1. Jordan Ashman
2. Reuben Hesser
3. Callum Hathaway
Air Varie 18 Years & Under:
(10 entries)
1. Nadia James
2. Lia Teague
3. Megan Newberry
Duet 18 Years & Under:
(9 entries)
1. Megan Newberry & Lia Teague
2. Millie & Robert Davenport
3. Maddie Jones & Loveday Davies
Quartet 18 Years & Under:
(1 entry)
1. Bodmin Youth Band
Open Slow Melody:
(36 entries)
1. Nicola Shaw
2. Lia Teague
3. Frederik Engelsen
Open Air Varie:
(24 entries)
1. Nicola Shaw
2. Thomas Dunne
3. Hannah Hawken
Open Percussion:
(2 entries)
1. Jordan Ashman
2. Reuben Hesser
Open Duet:
(13 entries)
1. Morgan & Richard Hart
2. Samantha Ford & Thomas Dunne
3. Alister Rowe & Judith Haye
Open Quartet:
(8 entries)
1. Northern Quarters
2. Quasi Horn Quartet
3. Shirley Band Tuba Quartet
Open Ensemble:
(4 entries)
1. Sherborne Town Band Ensemble
2. Ringwood & Burley Band Ensemble 1
3= Ringwood & Burley Band Ensemble 2
3= Carharrack & St Day Training Band
Special Awards:
Most Promising player in Classes 1a, 1b and 2: Simon Godfrey
Best Solo Performance in Classes 3, 5, 8 and 9: Lia Teague
Most Promising Trombone Player under 18yrs: Charlotte Corbin
Most Promising Tuba player under 18yrs: Leoni Tissie
Best Trombone Overall: Dylan Brewer
Best Tuba Overall: Morgan Hart
