Archive - Thursday, 28 February 2002


Find by date

Other ways to search

Also look for

Never miss anything again. Sign up for our RSS news feeds and Newsletters.

Review: Camborne Town Band, Stroud Sub Rooms

IT MAY have been a cold, foggy night outside the Stroud Subscription Rooms on February 16, but inside one had a chance to reflect on summer days and holidays spent in the delightful county of Cornwall, when the Camborne Town Band provided the music in the latest Stroud Brass Band Festival concerts.

The band, whose last visit to the festival was on February 23, 1986, are the reigning West of England champions, and the quality of the concert was fully in keeping with their achievement.

The choice of items delighted the appreciative audience, all tastes being catered for. Musical director Derek Greenwood must have been highly pleased with the concert.

Not surprising there was a Cornish flavour about some of the numbers - Calling Cornwall and the encore Floral Dance - but there was much, much more, with the musicians having ample opportunity to demonstrate their skill.

Band items in the first half were the march Trelawny, overture to the opera Masaniello, Oklahoma, A Gaelic Blessing, La Danza and Music, while in the second half the band played the march Faith is the Victory, Softly, Softly, Calling Cornwall, One Voice, the march Tannhauser, Evening Song (The Day Thou Gavest Lord is Ended), the finale from the Pineapple Poll suite and Variations on Laudate Dominum.

There were three soloists who each made an important contribution to the successful evening. Jeremy Squibb (soprano) played Bilitis, Claire Retallick (horn) played the finale to Horn Concerto (Strauss) and Robert Jose (euphonium) played Be My Love.

The next Festival concert will be provided by Travelsphere Holidays Band on March 16.

Denis Mason