Brighouse & Rastrick was one of three leading Yorkshire bands that gained substantive financial assistance from Arts Council England’s Covid Culture Recovery Fund to help initiatives to successfully return to performing to live and online audiences on concert and contesting platforms.

Theirs has been an approach that has attracted its critics; yet they have clearly stated that they have been able to do so with support from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sports and with help from the Covid Culture Recovery Fund in adhering to Covid-19 guidelines, regulations and safeguards.

According to supporters then, any Covid-19 sized elephant in the room had on this occasion come along to be checked, traced and postioned wearing a  Brighouse & Rastrick facemask.

Positive

And whilst a few online eyebrows may have been raised as the band set out its stage formation for this concert for its patrons, the response from an enthusiastic socially distanced audience (as well as from those commenting from home through social media platforms) was overwhelmingly positive.

According to supporters then, any Covid-19 sized elephant in the room had on this occasion come along to be checked, traced and postioned wearing a  Brighouse & Rastrick facemask.

Understandably, given the time away from live performance, things got off to a slightly ‘rusty’ start with Stig Maersk just missing the cue in the précised ‘West Riding'  march to make an exact entrance to the podium, although thereafter he directed with engaging confidence as the band grew in cohesive balance and security.

Debut

Newly appointed principal cornet Tom Smith (who surely holds the record for the longest period of time waiting for a concert debut with the band) on ‘Miss Blue Bonnet’, and Amy Ewen (‘The Swan’) showcased their obvious potential, whilst Ellena Newton (‘Dance Sequence’) and Dave Hebb (‘Czardas’) added to the eclectically chosen repertoire. 

That included the welcome opportunity to hear the elvish dramatism of Danish composer Friedrich Kuhlau’s ‘Elverhoi Overture’, a tenderly portrayed ‘Deep Harmony’  in honour of former West Riding favourites who had passed away in the past year, and a spirited ‘finale’ from ‘Dances & Arias’ that closed the first half in bold style.

The contrasts offered by ‘Fantasy on British Sea Songs’, ‘In Memoriam’ from George Lloyd’s underrated ‘Royal Parks’  and ‘Sweet Georgia Brown’  in the second were neatly portrayed, whilst the robust ‘finale’ from Tchaikovsky’s ‘4th Symphony’  certainly allowed the band to stretch its dynamic legs. 

A celebratory ‘Cossack Fire Dance’  encore and the obligatory ‘Floral Dance’  lollipop rounded things off with a strong musical scent of Brighouse’s determination to return to the concert stage in their own individual fashion.

Iwan Fox  

The concert can be viewed again at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VDjs-BlAE2o