Platinum bands march into national final
Three Stafford-based bands scooped platinum awards and a ticket to the final of one of Britain’s biggest music competitions.
A pitch perfect performance by Staffordshire Community Wind Orchestra captured the highest plaudit in a regional heat of the National Concert Band Festival (NCBF), while Stafford Grammar School’s concert and big bands mirrored their success and will join them in Manchester for the national final, where they have repeatedly excelled in recent years.
Founder of the fledgling community orchestra, Gavin Lamplough, claims the secret to their achievement is team spirit.
“There is an eclectic mix of players of different ages, including professional musicians, people who took a break from music but were keen to rekindle their love of playing an instrument, former students or parents of pupils," he said.
"The team element is so important to the group who only got together two years ago, making them the youngest band in the competition."
A blend of music and poetry captured the imagination of judges in the SGS concert band’s five piece weather-themed programme which earned the UK three-times champions a platinum award, as well as a soloist prize for 15-year-old Charlie Dyble for his interpretation of ‘In a Gentle Rain’, by Robert W. Smith.
Billed as the largest event in the country for jazz musicians and wind bands, the contest attracts more than a thousand players, with the Northampton heat featuring schools from several counties.
The school’s Big Band provided a history of jazz from the early 1900s Dixieland style and 1940s’ swing, through to present day fusion, which included George Gershwin’s trumpet solo ‘A foggy day’ performed by 18-year-old Josie Lamplough.
“People have mentioned that we’re making a habit of collecting platinum awards, but that brings with it a different kind of expectation and pressure," added Gavin, the school’s director of music.
"It gives us the desire to attain the same standards year on year but it’s also really difficult when you’re dealing with a constantly evolving group, as pupils leave the school and new children start.
“It’s never been a badge of honour for me. The most important thing by far is to see their beaming smiles and the pride in their faces when then realise they’ve achieved something special.”
The young musicians, aged between 12 and 18, and the adult community orchestra hope to remain on course to wow adjudicators in their encore at the Royal Northern College of Music in April.
