On Sunday 6th November Dunston Silver Band (DSB) will be attending the Yorkshire and Humberside Brass Band Association Open Contest for the first time. The contest is held in the Civic Hall in Holmfirth and we are entered into ‘Group A’ meaning we will be competing against not only other second section bands but those in first and championship section too.

To prepare for this challenge the band have put in a lot of hard work on our chosen test piece, Connotations by Edward Gregson. Gregson was commissioned to write Connotations for the 1977 National Brass Band Championship finals, held in the Royal Albert Hall, London. Black Dyke was the winning band on that occasion so DSB have some very big shoes to fill! Gregson himself said of the piece “Connotations suggests more than one way of looking at something, an idea, and this is exactly what the piece is about”. If there is one thing that DSB have been noted for in recent contests it is our ability to portray the story and feel of a piece. Connotations is written as a theme and variations as follows: Introduction – fanfares, a call to attention, Variation 1; Theme – a six-note motif, given a lyrical and restrained first statement; Variation 2 – a delicate toccata; Variation 3 – typically robust in melody and rhythm; Variation 4 – lyrical solos; Variation 5 – a scherzo; Variation 6 – cadenzas; Variations 7-9 –an introduction, fugato and resounding restatement of the theme.

We are also required to play a hymn at the contest and we have chosen to play Whitburn by Sir Henry Williams Baker. Henry Baker is famed for commissioning the first edition of Hymns Ancient and Modern which was to become the standard for the Church of England. The lyrics to the hymn are:

Be with me, Lord, where’er I go;
teach me what thou wouldst have me do;
suggest whate’er I think or say;
direct me in the narrow way.

In the run up to this contest DSB have once again worked with our wonderful friends from The Reg Vardy band. Early in the rehearsal process we were fortunate to have the expertise of Graeme Tindall at a number of rehearsals. His attention to detail and vast experience really set us off in good stead for the work to follow. More recently we have had the privilege of having The Reg Vardy band’s resident conductor, Brendan Wheeler, take us for some rehearsals.  Brendan is a highly regarded Euphonium player and has held positions in a number of top flight bands. Again, we were put through our paces and gained a lot from having Brendan take our rehearsals, he informed us that Connotations was the first test piece he played and won with! So he certainly knows his stuff. Brendan also worked with the band on our hymn playing, a skill which is often overlooked but we have been focussing on in this contest run up. The Reg Vardy band have also very kindly allowed us to use their band room a number of times to rehearse in. This has been vital, especially for our percussion team as the use of a bigger rehearsal space and more percussion instruments really allow us to prepare well for the contest stage.

Thanks must go to DSB’s Musical Director Aidan Hodgson for putting us through our paces with this technically difficult test piece, for putting in a lot of time running sectionals and extra rehearsals and for continuing to organise the excellent opportunities with The Reg Vardy band.

So as we come to the last couple of rehearsals before our 240 mile round trip to Holmfirth, wish us luck!  We will play some time around 2:15pm on Sunday if all goes to schedule. Keep your eyes peeled for the results which will be announced at around 6pm.

Dunston Silver Band © Sue Todd Photography 2016