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New
"IgNobel" Award
As Tracey was borrowing a horn to play at our concert at Sheriff
Hutton, Steve thought he'd give it a bath first! As a result
of his findings he had no hesitation in awarding Josephine
"The Sewerpipe of the Year" award and presenting it
formally to her at the next band practice. We understand he
will also be presenting a bill from Dynarod!
On a more serious note he urged those who didn't know how to
maintain their instruments to attend one of the learner's evenings
about this, or to use his services at the cost of a donation to
band funds!
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WhitFriday
2009
Well, I think we are now just about dried out again now!
This year saw some of the worst weather the Saddleworth contests
have ever seen! We were lulled into a false sense of
security by a sunny practice at Birch but by the time we had
gathered at the start at Denshaw it was tipping it down and even
those with waterproofs were distinctly damp! Never mind, we
still had a fun evening and made a few friends in the
process!.
Our marches were "Teddy Bears Picnic " on the road (It
raised quite a few smiles, given the weather!) and
"Jupiter" on the stand. We got round six villages
(Denshaw, Delph, Dobcross, Greenfield, Friezland and Lydgate) and
did marginally better than last year.
This year we had far fewer visiting players but we are very
grateful to them for filling gaps for us. A notable sight
was our Bb bass on the march: Nigel is more usually to be found on
cornet when he is not conducting! It was a promising debut,
but on balance we definitely need him in the middle!
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Sad News
We are very sorry to
announce the death of Roy Lester. for many years a stalwart of the
Bass section. Roy joined the band in 1986, coming in to
cover for a regular player who had had an accident. At that
stage Roy lived in Thorne, near Doncaster and attendance at band
practice meant a round trip of some 80 miles. The regular
player returned but Roy stayed on and eventually became
Vice-Chairman of the band. He did move to Ryedale so that
attendance became less of an endurance test but the commitment he
initially showed never waned. Eventually he retired from playing
but continued to take a lively interest in the band and its
doings.
Roy died on Wednesday 15th April 2009 and his funeral will be on
Tuesday 21st April at St Mary's Church, Cloughton
at12.30 p.m.
We would like to extend our condolences to Megan and all their
family. Roy was a good friend and we will miss him.
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Well done all!
After an awful lot of very hard work on this year's area test
piece "The Talisman" (generally regarded as an extremely
hard choice for the 4th section!) we had a nice leisurely start
from Dorothy's to get to Darlington for a practice before the
afternoon section of the Northern Area contest. All went
swimmingly until we discovered that we were drawn last so were not
due to play till about 5.30. That's an awful long time to
keep the band out of the Darlington pubs!
However, all went well and we played a good performance and came
off reasonably happy with what we had done and secure in the knowledge
that no following band would play better!
The adjudicator's speech was depressing - he did not seem to think
much of any band, and had very little positive to say, so we were
not very optimistic about our chances. So we were hugely
delighted to find that we had achieved third place with a trophy
and some prize money! Though not off to Harrogate, it is a
wonderful achievement for a young band, and all concerned deserve
the fullest recognition. Thanks, Nigel, for an immense
amount of hard work! Well done to all those who gamely got
to all their rehearsals despite coughs, wounds, slipped discs,
exams etc. And not least thanks to Dorothy for keeping the
whole show organised and to Dennis for infinite patience as he
brought the coach in and out of Darlington all day!
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Congratulations
to Tom and Lucie Whitfield who were married on Friday at Donington Park.
Tom was for many years a key member of the cornet line-up,
and a number of ex-Swinton players were at the wedding including
Jennie Whitfield (bridesmaid) and Matthew Mayo (best man)
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Band Dinner
This year the band dinner will take place at The Cresswell
Arms in Appleton-le-Street on 4th April 7.00 for 7.30 till 12.30.
This promises to be a great evening, but places are limited to 60
so get your forms in as
soon as possible. Cost will depend on which meal you choose
but will be in the region of £13.50 per head.
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Solo
Contest
This year it has been decided to revive the Swinton Solo Contest
which enables all members of the band from the most experienced to
the real beginners to have a go at performing on their own in
front of an audience.
This will take place at 6.00 p.m.on the evening of16th May at the Swinton
Sports Club and promises to be an enjoyable evening for all.
We shall need performers and an audience, so put the date in your
diary now - for entry form click
here!
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YHBBA Workshop
About sixteen of the members of both learners and main band
attended the annual Brass and Percussion workshop at Minsthorpe
last weekend. And thanks to a generous sponsor they attended
it free!
It was a long and very full day, starting at 9.00 a.m. and
finishing with a short concert at about 4.00 p.m. Music
tackled included Melody Box and the overture to Marriage of Figaro
which certainly tested everyone to the full!
We all learnt a lot - certainly our current music seemed
gloriously easy at the next band practice.
Many thanks to all involved in the day, especially Peggy
Tomlinson, who organised it all and the tutors, mainly from
Grimethorpe Band. Roll on next year!
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Good
News!
Jason and Liz have a son! Israel Moses was born 3.10 p.m. on
Saturday, 18th October. Mother and son are doing well.
Congratulations and
best wishes to the new family!
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Autumn is Here!
For its last engagement of the summer the band paid its annual
visit to Stamford Bridge Village Hall, and as usual it was a great
evening. We had a wonderful audience - I think they enjoyed
themselves as much as we did! Now we can look forward to the
outdoor jobs of winter - remembrance and carolling - I don't think
many of us will be playing in shirt-sleeves!
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Hardraw Scar Contest
Last Sunday we were back at Hardraw, despite the weather, for
another go! Fortunately the weather had done its worst so,
while it was more than a little soggy underfoot, we had a good
time. We were drawn fifth which meant an early start for
those who weren't already there (actually they had an early start
too!) and the band was organised and ready to play with plenty of time
to spare. The programme went reasonably well and we were
disappointed to only make fifth place. There was some very
impressive playing from some of the unregistered bands which was
great to listen to. The adjudicator liked our programme, but
felt it might just have overstretched the band a bit. Never
mind we enjoyed playing it! Congratulations to Will on a
superb solo and thanks to Nigel for all the hard work he has put
in on the programme - now we can look forward to Malton - at least
we shouldn't need to wear gumboots for that one, though we might
need hard hats!
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Happy Birthday,
Colin
Life Member and one of the original learners of Swinton Band,
Colin is celebrating his 80th birthday this week! The Band
would like to wish him a very Happy Birthday and many more of them!
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Summer at Last!
Finally summer seems to have arrived and we enjoyed a glorious
afternoon playing in Parliament Street, York, with a great band
and an enthusiastic audience. Several new items found their
way into the programme including the trombone feature "The
Bold Gendarmes"
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Pint Night!
After a thoroughly successful jaunt up to the Blacksmith's Arms in
Swinton to hand over a framed photo of the band, it was decided
that in future Wednesday night is Pint Night! Some or all of the
band now regularly adjourn there after practice for a quick drink
before going our separate ways. Feel free to join us!
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Band
Hoodies!
As we are having
some of the hottest weather this year, it seems appropriate that
band members should invest in nice warm clothes! And so we
have acquired hoodies, with band logo and names on the front and
instrument on the back. They should be just what we want for
Hardraw and carolling but such is the enthusiasm of some members
of the band that they are wearing them in the current heatwave!
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A
Sunny Afternoon at Sewerby
Over the last few years at Sewerby, the weather, so-called
"Global Warming", has meant that we have usually been
playing indoors. This year, despite the weather forecast
which showed our own personalised raincloud directly over
Bridlington, we were able to play to an audience comfortably ensconced
in deckchairs.
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Learners
Band playing out again
For the first time for about ten years the Learners band is strong
enough to take on engagements as well as the main band! Of
course some of the main band turned out to give them some support
as they provided entertainment at old Malton Garden fete, but it
was a great delight to see (and hear) them
as they played a full programme under the baton of Cliff
Hicks. Despite gloomy forecasts the weather held off - just
as well as the band was too big to fit under the shelter provided!
If you missed them and would like to make good this omission, they
will be playing next weekend in Malton Market Place and would be
glad of a good audience!

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Sad News
We are very sorry to have to announce the death of Tommy Dykes, a
long-time player in the band. Tommy was a tremendous
character and well-loved by generations of band
members.
Born in 1940,
Tommy played trombone and Bb bass and was an active member
of the band from the age of 13 until early 1994.
Tommy started work on a farm at Swinton Grange at the age of 15,
but after a spell at Ainsty’s where he met his wife Hazel, he
became a postman until he retired. Tommy always had a cheery smile
and a joke with young and old alike; on his round he made many a
lonely person’s day.
In band, Tommy
was great with the youngsters, recruiting them, helping them with
their music and taking them to Band engagements, and was a great
ambassador for Swinton Band. Tommy was always the life and soul of
the party and will be greatly missed.
At Tommy’s funeral, the band attended to play some of his
favourite pieces. It
was a great occasion – thanks to all those who turned out!
It was good to see the return of some old friends from the
past to help us – you’re always welcome!
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We
HAVE a new Musical Director!
We are delighted to announce that after taking us to Malton
Brass and to the Area Contest, Nigel Sutherland cannot bear to be
parted from us and has agreed to take on the arduous role of
Musical Director!!
We look forward to continuing the good times and hard work we have
had over the last six months or so with Nigel as we prepare for
the Whit Friday contests and a busy summer!
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Whit-Friday
at Saddleworth
This year for the first time ever we actually got organised and
went to Saddleworth to participate in one of the best free shows
on earth! We had a great time and managed to do seven
contests before it got too dark to continue!
We
played
"Castell Coch" on the stand and marched to the
theme music from "Wallace and Gromit" which proved very
popular with the crowds.
We were very lucky to have plenty of willing helpers
from other bands (many ex-Swinton members) who made it possible
for us to do this - thank you all very much indeed! Next year-
same again?
For more pictures of our trip click
here
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Concert
at Thornton-le-Dale
Saturday saw Nigel's first outing with us as our M. D. as we were
pleased to welcome Dan Hunt back as our guest soloist for a
concert in Thornton-le-Dale Village Hall. It was a great (if
very warm!) evening with a highly appreciative audience.
As ever,
Dan 's solos were the high point of the evening, ranging from the
tear-jerker "Myfanwy" to the showy "La Belle Americaine",
both delighting the audience and showing the band what could be
achieved! Thank you, Dan for a truly memorable evening.
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Players
awards
Trophies for attendance and contribution to the band were
awarded at the Band Dinner
Congratulations to the worthy winners:
Senior Award – Mike
Senior Attendance – Anna
Rollinson Award – Ellis
Junior Award – Josephine
Junior Attendance – Josephine
Learner Attendance – Niamdh
Best Learner– Thomas C.
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Band Dinner
For the first time for
a long time this year's Band Dinner actually took place in
Swinton, at the Sports Club, and was a great success. After
an excellent meal, trophies were presented to various
deserving band members by our Chairman, Jane. This was
followed by a surprise announcement from Nigel, that he would like
to accept the post of M.D. which was greeted with delight by
everyone! After the usual keenly fought "Tie "
competition, won this year by ex- baritone player Ed, the evening
was given over to dancing and general merriment! Thank you,
Steve and Dorothy for organising a great evening!
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Gaps in the band!
As a result of people going off to University and increasing work
commitments we really need some more cornet players, especially on the front row. We
are looking for two or three strong players to support and
encourage our young cornet section. As of September we shall
also be looking to fill the principal euphonium and 1st baritone
seats! We are very happy to welcome university students studying in the
area even if you can't play during the vacations - after all, that
is when our resident students return! So if you feel Swinton
might be the band for you, contact Dorothy
or come to a Monday or Wednesday evening practice.
There are also a few places available for new learners of any age
from 8 to 80. If you've always fancied having a go at a
brass instrument, now is your chance. Contact Dorothy
or come and meet us at the Bandroom on Saturday evenings!
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