The 2009 Mineworkers Butlins - Skegness
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January 2009 found the band bracing themselves once again as we headed for the seaside glory of Skegness to defend our Mineworkers title! Russell Gray was to conduct us as he had the previous year and hopes were as strong as the wind from the sea as we set out for the bracing east coast. The weekend is always a popular one with the band lots of playing both on stage and socially! Friday night saw our first performance as the reigning champions with a short concert to start the festivities with a flourish. We played a light hearted programme of musical lollipops aimed to please players and punters alike and a fitting tribute to this Queen of seaside towns. On Saturday morning we put the lollipops to one side and began the real business of battling for the Championship. The set piece “Harrison’s Dream” is a work which will test any band. On the day our man of the match was our Solo Euphonium player Robin Taylor who served up a real treat with his virtuoso solo playing. After that we returned to the rehearsal venue for a final polish or two of our entertainments programme. This was a well designed and demanding set crafted by our inspirational MD. We played to win with spirit and a dashing attitude of ‘this is us at our best with nothing to lose’.
- Phoenix Rising – Tom Davoren
- A Letter from Home – Pat Metheny
- Anyone can whistle – arr Snell
- Robin Harry – arr Chettleburgh Xylophone Soloist Emily Cumby
- Black Bottom stomp – Jelly Roll Morton
- The Battle of Bosworth – Lee Baker
Our delivery was excellent and it showed in the results that followed.
The final results found us 5th in the set work; Winners of the Entertainments section; and coming home 3rd overall behind Hepworth and the overall winners Redbridge. At the end of a hard weekend we had the bitter sweet feeling of satisfaction at winning the entertainments section aligned with the loss of the title, but that’s banding for you.
Come and join us again next time – Skegness is so bracing! |