Tag: Concerts

The band are currently rehearsing for a couple of Autumn Concerts that will take place on the 13th and 20th October, both in East Kent. On the 13th the band can be heard at St. Nicholas-at-Wade Church with the concert starting at 7.30pm. Tickets are £10 on the door and just £8 if purchased in advance from St. Nicholas-at Wade Post Office on 01843 844632. On the following Saturday 20th October, the band can be heard at St. Bartholomew’s Church, King Edward Avenue, Herne Bay. Tickets for this concert are just £7.50 and can be purchased from Ken Skinner on 07957 867062 for collection on the night. Some tickets will also be available on the door. Come along and enjoy an entertaining evening of music – it would be great to see you! Refreshments are available at both concerts.

With only just over two weeks to go before the band performs at the iconic Hyde Park Bandstand in London on Sunday 12th August, the band are busy preparing for the day. Not too many brass bands of Snowdown Colliery’s stature get the chance to play in a prime London Park and rightly so, everyone is excited to grasp the opportunity. From Verdi to Abba and Gershwin to Langford, the band are rehearsing a programme that is hopefully appealing to all musical tastes and ideal for a Sunday afternoon bandstand concert. The band will be playing between 3pm & 5pm with a short interval and hope that the recent run of lovely weather will continue to make the day even better. In order to make sure that the band is fully prepared for the London trip an additional rehearsal has been set for Monday 6th August in the bandroom at the usual time of 7.30pm.

The band are to hold a concert in memory of Trevor Attwood who was associated and played with the band for many years and who sadly passed away last year. The concert, that will also feature the Shepway Brass Academy will take place on Saturday 12th May 2018 at Holy Trinity Church, Folkestone, commencing at 7.00pm. The proceeds of the concert will go towards the Shepway Brass Academy as this was Trevor’s families wish following his funeral. An invitation has been extended to Trevor’s family and it is hoped that they will be able to attend. Of course, it goes without saying that if you knew Trevor or were a friend, then it would be great to see you all at the concert given in memory of a genuinely lovely man!

The band hopes to play their part in reviving further interest in brass band concerts at one of London”s most famous bandstands when they perform at the recently refurbished Hyde Park Bandstand later this year. Their invitation came from Sue Price, the Chair of the Friends of Hyde Park & Kensington Gardens, who have been trying to bring back the sound of brass bands on a regular basis to a venue that was once one of the most sought after in the country. Originally built in 1869, it stood in Kensington Gardens before being moved to Hyde Park in 1886, where its octagonal roof was renowned for giving particularly good acoustics for an open air venue. In the heyday of summer brass band tour engagements the likes of Foden”s would perform twice a day to large crowds — even during the Second World War, although according to Harry Mortimer, he recalled being more worried about the sound of V1 doodlebug V1 rockets than any misplaced entries! The bandstand also played host to Fred Astaire and Ginger Rodgers in their 1935 film “Top Hat”, although during the last 25 years or so brass band concerts declined due to cuts in the… Read more“Hyde Park”