Ulf Rosenberg, the President of the European Brass Band Association, has given an upbeat festive message on behalf of the organisation which he hopes will see "much joy"in the banding world in 2022.

Well prepared

Despite calling 2021 "a difficult year for the European brass band community"- including the cancellation of their own Championship Festival event, he did note the innovative success of Principal Partner, World of Brass in producing a special highlights production, as well as the commitment of others such as Main Sponsor, Geneva Instruments in supporting the successful hosting of the Championship in Birmingham in 2022.

He added that he felt "the excellent team in Brass Bands England, are well prepared to welcome the European bands and audiences to their country; the cradle of the brass band movement."

Further confirmation was given of the event heading to Malmö (Sweden) in 2023, Palanga (Lithuania) in 2024 and Stavanger (Norway) in 2025.

with strong support from the EBBA member countries, country delegates, competing bands and enthusiastic audiences, we hope to look forward to much joy in the coming yearsUlf Rosenberg

Not out of fashion

In closing he said that whilst everyone hoped the pandemic will end soon, it was his belief that despite lockdown restrictions 2021 had shown that, "making live music, coming together to enjoy playing and great festivals, have never gone out of fashion."

He ended by saying that, "…with strong support from the EBBA member countries, country delegates, competing bands and enthusiastic audiences, we hope to look forward to much joy in the coming years."