Reflecting on 2019
As we arrive at the Christmas break, it’s been fun to reflect on what we have achieved in 2019. As well as a regular programme of concerts and performances, this year the band competed in 3 contests, performed at not one but two beer festivals and as of this week played 9 carol gigs throughout December. This year we also successfully became a registered charity (charity number 1185237) and I’m pleased to introduce our new Trustees:
Derek Treadwell – former Chairman and committed follower of the band. Derek still lives locally to Fulham and has a wealth of expertise and knowledge.
Ally Crowther – former Solo Horn with the band for over 10 years. Ally absolutely loves Fulham Brass and is invested in our success. She is a lawyer and excellent musician with a good knowledge of our band.
Andrew Pitt – a passionate follower of the band (as father to our Repiano cornet player) and a musician himself. Former secretary of Launceston and Cornwall Youth Brass bands. He currently runs an amateur choir and so his organisational expertise will be very helpful.
Highlights
At the beginning of the Summer, we were invited to play on the Regent Park Bandstand as part of their Summer programme of weekly music. As well as this, we played at the Great British Beer Festival in Olympia.
After qualifying for the national finals in September we travelled to Cheltenham and achieved a highly respectable 7th place. We’re now looking ahead to working on our next test piece – A tale as yet untold by Philip Sparke – which will be our first contesting performance in the Championship section in March next year.
In October, the band performed a lunchtime concert at Regent Hall on Oxford Street featuring the music of Peter Graham. We were privileged to be joined by Chris Thomas, Principal Trombone with the Cory Band, for a fantastic and enjoyable hour of music performed to a full auditorium.
We finished this year with our Christmas concert at St Etheldreda’s church in Fulham. I was incredibly proud to hear the standard of playing from the band and know that this is the result of hard work and commitment from the whole group. We shared the concert with our friends the Alle Choir who treated us to some festive vocal numbers and left the audience full of Christmas spirit.
The year ahead
2020 will mark the band’s 125th anniversary year and plans are in place to celebrate our big birthday in style. Keep an eye out for news in the new year about exciting new projects, high profile guest soloists and a new look…
In the meantime, thank you to all our friends and followers who have supported us this past year. I’m excited to see what the next twelve months will bring!