Carlton Main Frickley Colliery Band
The South Elmsall Village Brass Band can be traced back to humble beginnings in 1884 and in 1905 was adopted by the local Frickley Colliery. During the Band’s long and successful history, it has both competed and triumphed at many of the most prestigious competitions in the world. The band’s most recent achievements include being crowned Yorkshire Champions in 2013 and 2015. This partnered with 3rd place at the prestigious British Open Brass Band Championships in 2011 and being crowned the Champion Band of England and Scotland at the National Championships of Great Britain in 2013. With regular appearances on the BBC’s flagship programme Songs of Praise, the band is currently experiencing one of the most successful periods in their history. This has led to Carlton Main Frickley Colliery Band being firmly established as one of the top 10 ranked Brass Bands in the world.
www.carltonmain.co.uk
Whitburn Band
The current Scottish, Scottish Open and Grand Shield champion was formed in the heart of West Lothian in 1870 and originally served as an outlet for members of the mining community to perform at local parades. Its first major contesting impact came in 1954 when it became the first Scottish band to secure a National title by winning the 3rd section in London. Progression to the Championship section followed and in 1968 Whitburn won its first Scottish Championship. Following the appointment of Major Peter Parkes in 1978, Whitburn dominated the Scottish brass band scene and became a regular prizewinner in the major contests in England. It made regular broadcasts and performed in many of the finest concert halls in Europe, and – in 1990 – was runner-up at the European Championships. One of the greatest honours in Whitburn’s history was bestowed on the band in 2002 when it was invited to perform in London as part of Her Majesty the Queen’s Golden Jubilee celebrations. Whitburn Band has been the Champion Band of Scotland on 19 occasions. Today, the band continues to make a significant contribution to cultural life in Scotland, performing regularly at major events such as Scotland’s international rugby games to a television audience of millions.
NASUWT Riverside Band
The band was formed in 1877 and is based in the village of Pelton Fell near Chester-Le-Street. Over the years the band has had a number of names, however since 2008 has been sponsored by National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT). As a result of this new sponsorship the Band is now proudly called the NASUWT Riverside Band. Over the last 4 years, the band has been a principal performer at the Durham International Brass Festival including playing a key role in the Miners Hymns performances in Durham Cathedral 2010 and again in 2014 in the Sage Gateshead and London Barbican. Also in 2014 the band were the first band to perform with British Sea Power – an Indie rock band based in Brighton – and performances were held in the Gala Theatre and the Sage Gateshead. The band has proudly played in the National Brass Band Championships at Royal Albert Hall 3 times in the last 6 years.
Grimethorpe Colliery Band
Formed in 1917, during the First World War, Grimethorpe Colliery Band is a British institution. National and British Open Champions on numerous occasions, the band’s contest successes remain legendary. These include 16 Brass In Concert Championship titles, 11 times Yorkshire Regional Champions, two English National Championship victories, four times British Open Champions and four times National Champion Brass Band of Great Britain. Grimethorpe’s diverse noted concert performances include those at the FIFA World Cup, BAFTA Awards, BBC Proms, Eurovision and London 2012 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony, together with a wealth of national and international television / radio appearances and professional recordings. The band has been the recipient of two gold discs, as well as a BAFTA nomination for its contributions to the global hit movie “Brassed Off” for which Grimethorpe was the focal point. The Royal Albert Hall, Symphony Hall, Barbican, Westminster Abbey, European Parliament, Sydney Opera House and more, have all played host to Grimethorpe. With tours to Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand, and concerts & festival appearances throughout Europe, the band’s performance reputation remains unsurpassed. In addition to continuing to delight audiences across the globe, Grimethorpe also continues to invest in and support its local community in Grimethorpe, Barnsley and South Yorkshire, particularly through its youth music initiatives and community performances, both locally and on a national scale.
For further information on Grimethorpe Colliery Band, visit www.grimethorpeband.com
The Fairey Band
Founded in 1937 by a group of employees at the Fairey Aviation Works in Stockport, the Band achieved many musical successes under the direction of the late, great Harry Mortimer, their Musical Director for over thirty years. Since those early days the Band can boast an unrivalled set of results at the British Open being crowned Champions 16 times, more than any other band during this period. In addition the Band has been National Champions of Great Britain on 9 occasions and had victories at the European Championships, the All England Masters and the English Nationals. Winners of the BBC ‘Best of Brass’ and Granada ‘Band of the Year’ titles add further touches of distinction to this famous Band. In recent years, the Band has enjoyed further recognition outside the confines of the Brass Band movement, with its involvement in the ‘Acid Brass’ project. Under this banner the Band has been able to display its flexibility in adapting to a totally different musical concept. With a group of talented and experienced soloists the Fairey Band is able to deliver an entertaining programme of contrasting musical genres to suit a wide ranging audience.
Derwent Brass
Derwent Brass has proven to be a major success story in the Midland’s proud heritage of brass banding. Formed in 1992 with the aim of producing a quality brass band in Derby, Derwent Brass quickly established itself as a most popular concert attraction. With wide reaching repertoire and innovative programming this has been sustained to this day and the band is constantly in demand across the region, in the UK and occasionally venturing abroad. The band was originally formed as a 3rd section band and under the sole leadership of musical director Keith Leonard quickly climbed to the Championship Section where they are now firmly established. Along the journey the band held the number one position in both 3rd and 2nd section league tables consecutively and have totalled six appearances at the National Final Championships. The band and its soloists continue to decorate the band room with silverware from nationwide contests including the Midland Regional Championships, National Finals Championships, Bolsover Festival of Brass, Leicester BBA, Wychavon, Buxton, ODBBA, NEMBBA, GBBA and more. In its time the band has performed at over 750 events and has shared the stage with over 50 artists and groups. Recently the band were involved in the behind the scenes preparations of the British Sea Power ‘Sea of Brass’ tour and performed with them at the Derby Theatre concert in 2015. The band has performed at the venue on several occasions since, most notably in every one of the 27 shows in the theatre’s award winning production of Brassed Off. Derwent Brass are delighted to be returning to Derby Theatre again in 2017 to perform in COAL.
BRASS PLAYERS
SPRING 2020 TOUR
DUNDEE REP THEATRE, DUNDEE
Alan Douglad
Calum Tonner
(from Whitburn Band)
DERBY THEATRE, DERBY
Adam Rutter
Izzy Rutherford
(from Derwent Brass)
DANCEXCHANGE, BIRMINGHAM
Simon Willis – Euphonium
Claire Taylor – Flugelhorn
(from Grimethorpe Colliery Band)
LYCEUM THEATRE, CREWE
The Fairey Band
MACROBERTS ART CENTRE, STIRLING
Kirkintilloch Band
YORK THEATRE ROYAL, YORK
Toni Durran – Euphonium
Anna Spedding – Flugelhorn
(from Carlton Main Frickley Colliery Band)
THE MAC, BELFAST
Keith Hillier – Euphonium
(from Downshire Brass)
LIGHTHOUSE, POOLE
BEACON ARTS CENTRE, GREENOCK
Kirkintilloch Band
CURVE, LEICESTER
Simon Willis – Euphonium
Claire Taylor – Flugelhorn
(from Grimethorpe Colliery Band)
EDEN COURT THEATRE, INVERNESS
Whitburn Band
AUTUMN 2019 TOUR
NORTHERN STAGE, NEWCASTLE
Fiona Taylor – Flugelhorn
Jamie Beeston – Euphonium
(from NASUWT Riverside Band)
THE PLACE, LONDON
Callum Robb – Flugelhorn
Paula Langford – Euphonium
GULBENKIAN, CANTERBURY
Anna Spedding – Flugelhorn
Toni Durrant – Euphonium
(from Carlton Main Frickley Colliery Band)
NOTTINGHAM PLAYHOUSE
Claire Taylor – Flugelhorn
Simon Willis – Euphonium
(from Grimethorpe Colliery Band)
GRAND THEATRE, BLACKPOOL
Anna Spedding – Flugelhorn
Toni Durrant – Euphonium
(from Carlton Main Frickley Colliery Band)
LAWRENCE BATLEY THEATRE, HUDDERSFIELD
Anna Spedding – Flugelhorn
Rebecca Lundberg – Euphonium
(from The Fairey Band)
SPRING 2019 TOUR
CAST, DONCASTER
Anna Spedding – Flugelhorn
Toni Durrant – Euphonium
(from Carlton Main Frickley Colliery Band)
THE CIVIC, BARNSLEY
Anna Spedding – Flugelhorn
Toni Durrant – Euphonium
(from Carlton Main Frickley Colliery Band)
TRAMWAY, GLASGOW
Caroline Farren – Flugelhorn
Alan Douglas – Euphonium
(from Whitburn Band)