Brass Bands England has launched a special 'Early Bird' booking scheme to help encourage people to attend its BBE Conference later in the year.

The hybrid event on Saturday 22nd October at the LifeCentre in Sale, Greater Manchester will enable people to participate in person or on-line, with a host of attractions, workshops and presentations on offer.

Ian Bousfield

The theme this year is 'Banding for Life' and will see a keynote presentation made by the internationally acclaimed trombone virtuoso Ian Bousfield.

Delegates will also be able to participate in a selection of workshops and presentations ranging from the teaching of children with hearing disabilities to audience diversification and Climate Change.

The day will end with a panel discussion addressing the question: What challenges do we face encouraging 'Banding for Life'?

Early bird

Early-bird booking is now available only for Brass Bands England Members. For a limited time only, tickets are available at a discounted price of just £5, which includes a full day of sessions, lunch and refreshments.

Early-bird rate expires on Friday 12th August, when Non-Member tickets and Digital Passes will also be available to purchase.

Speaking about the event, Sarah Baumann, BBE's Education &d Development Manager commented: "This year's in-person conference will provide the chance to convene, network, and discuss some of the issues most important to our sector."

Positive change

BBE CEO, Kenny Crookston added: "This event provides us all with an opportunity to input into the future of banding by setting priorities, promoting positive change and learning from each other.

It's vital that we work together and learn from each other to ensure that 'banding for life' continues to be an option for a diverse range of people across the country. I hope that as many bands as possible will make it a priority to attend and to share their own experiences."

This event provides us all with an opportunity to input into the future of banding by setting priorities, promoting positive change and learning from each otherBBE, CEO, Kenny Crookston.

Conference

The LifeCentre is a modern community and conference centre south of Manchester, well equipped with accessible facilities. There will also be live BSL Interpreting in the main hall.

Rooms4Groups have the option to reserve a hotel room at nearby Cresta Court Hotel when you purchase your early-bird ticket.

For those who would like to be involved in this year's conference but can't be there in-person, tickets for a Digital Pass to view the Conference live-stream and session recordings delivered by BrassPass.tv will be available to purchase in August, alongside Non-Members in-person tickets.

You can book your early-bird ticket on the Brass Bands England website.