Brass Bands Northern Ireland (BBNI) recently held their Spring Festival contest, held at the fine setting of the Strule Arts Centre in the heart of Omagh.
13 band's took part, providing plenty of fine music for the supportive audience and adjudicator Dr Robert Childs to compare and enjoy. He was certainly pleased that he had made the trip, congratulating all the bands on their standard of performance, as the 2024/25 contesting year came to a close.
Championship Section:
Six well matched bands competed for the Blue Riband Rothman Trophy, with victory going to 1st Old Boys led by Dr Jonathan Corry, with an excellent performance of Peter Graham's 'Metropolis 1927'.
Aided by their 'Best Percussion', 'Best Basses' and 'Best Soprano, Harry Lloyd, it saw the band claim the title for the sixth time in the last eight competitive years.
It also enabled them to become 2024 BBNI Championship Section Band of the Year for a fourth consecutive year after winning all four qualifying contests. The MD also took home the Harry Brittain Cup as Winning Conductor.
Downshire Brass ended just a point behind with their rendition of 'A King's Lie' aided by the fine contribution of 'Best Soloist', Hannah Calderwood on principal cornet as well as their 'Best Trombone Section'. Third place was claimed by Laganvale (Metal Technology) playing 'Sinfonietta No. 3'.
Paid off
A delighted 1st Old Boys spokesperson later said: "Peter Graham's 'Metropolis 1927' was an exceptionally challenging piece, requiring hard work which paid off!
We're grateful for our fantastic team of Dr Jonathan Corry and Phil Ferguson who have expertly led the band to this win. Our soloists, Tori Lloyd, Brian Downey, Alan Hayworth and Iain Culross were outstanding and massively contributed to this performance, as were our tuba and percussion sections and sop star Harry Lloyd."
Second Section:
Four keenly matched bands battled for the Second Section honours which ended with a delighted Comber Silver taking home the Founders Cup — their first competitive victory under MD Paul Hamilton who took over the baton in 2023.
He was also presented with the Burch Trophy as 'Best Conductor' as he led them to success on Oliver Waespi's 'Friendly Takeover' as he led a performance described by Dr Childs as, "a super performance, full of drama and excitement".
It proved to be good enough to pip defending champion Roughan Silver, who played 'Oceans' by a point, with their principal cornet, Andrew Gordon deservedly presented with the Ross Aiken Memorial Trophy as 'Best Soloist'.
Former champion CWA Brass was third as they picked up the 'Best Horn Section' in playing 'Ex-Terra Lucem' by Jonathan Bates. Just behind them came Ballyduff Silver, who played 'Music for a Festival'.
A spokesperson for the winners later said: "After weeks of practice we're so pleased that Dr Childs gave us first place. The band has been driven by Paul to reach new heights, with a little drama and excitement along the way! Paul's dedication, keen ear and attention to detail had us all wanting this result and raising our game to achieve it."
Third Section:
The day started with the Third Section which was won by Lisburn based Dynamic Brass led by Andrew McQuiggan with a super rendition of Christopher Bond's 'Neverland', described by Dr Childs as "a fine musical performance, and full of detail."
The clear two-point margin of victory saw the band claim the title for the second time in three years. Former winner Wellington Memorial Silver was second playing 'Dimensions' by Peter Graham, aided by their 'Best Trombones' who picked up the Clive McBride Memorial Trophy. Defending champion St. Mark's Silver was third with their own-choice of 'Voices of Youth'.
A delighted spokesperson for Dynamic Brass said: "As always, this result would not have been possible without the dedication of MD Andrew McQuiggan. We are truly blessed to have such a dedicated, enthusiastic and talented conductor. The band have recently gone through a lot of changes and are therefore delighted with the comments from Dr Childs."
Bands of the Year
The Spring Festival event marked the end of the 2024/25 contest season, with the 'Band of Year' titles also allocated. In addition to 1st Old Boys victory, there was a tie for the Second Section title between CWA Brass and Roughan Silver Band, whilst St Mark's Silver took the Third Section honours and the overall BBNI Band of the Year title.
Peter Graham's 'Metropolis 1927' was an exceptionally challenging piece, requiring hard work which paid off!1st Old Boys
Results:
Championship Section:
Adjudicator: Dr Robert Childs
1. 1st Old Boys (Jonathan Corry): 96
2. Downshire Brass (Michael Alcorn): 95
3. Laganvale (Metal Technology) (Charles Fyffe): 94
4. Strabane Brass (Brendan Coyle): 93
5. Third Carrickfergus (Brian Connolly): 91
6. Murley Silver (Kevin Teers): 90
Best Soloist: Hannah Calderwood (Downshire Brass)
Best Percussion: 1st Old Boys
Best Trombone Section: Downshire Brass
Best Basses: 1st Old Boys
Best Soprano: Harry Lloyd (1st Old Boys)
Winning Conductor: Jonathan Corry (1st Old Boys)
Second Section:
Adjudicator: Dr Robert Childs
1. Comber Silver (Paul Hamilton): 95
2. Roughan Silver (Stephen Crooks): 94
3. CWA Brass (Keith Anderson): 93
4. Bullyduff Silver (William Hill): 92
Best Soloist: Andrew Gordon (Roughan Silver)
Best Horn Section: CWA Brass
Winning Conductor: Paul Hamilton (Comber Silver)
Third Section:
Adjudicator: Dr Robert Childs
1. Dynamic Brass (Andrew McQuiggan): 94
2. Wellington Memorial Silver (Stephen Cairns): 92
3. St Mark's Silver (Bob Quick): 90
Best Trombone Section: Wellington Memorial Silver
