Each year we do a charity fundraising concert and this year our we chose to support the new 
Christie Cancer Care Centre Macclesfield.  It is always a pleasure to perform on our "home ground"
in Whaley Bridge, and the Uniting Church is the perfect venue for a sociable Sunday afternoon occasion.

The concert was well attended and the programme much enjoyed, especially our own Whaley Bridge March.
And £600 was collected for The Christie Charitable Fund, with a further £75 to be added in respect of Gift Aided donations. What a fantastic result! Huge thanks to everyone for their generosity.

And last but certainly not least, the "support Crew."
Just as important as the players, they make things happen.
A round of applause for Sheila, Jenny, Sue, Tracey and Enid for welcoming people as they arrived, serving refreshments during the interval and clearing up afterwards. 
And to Sam for the "technical" bit running the PA system, which worked brilliantly providing the speaker remembered to turn the microphone on! 

In February, seven members of the band - Laurie and Javan on Cornet, Carolyn and Lorraine on tenor horns, Jane on baritone, Karen on euphonium and Jerry on bass - made a recording to accompany folk song.
The song, entitled "Do I Know My Way,"  was written and performed by Lorraine's cousin David Booth, and Mat Bayfield, the other half of the folk duo Bayfield Booth. 

We were greatly saddened to hear last week that Mat had passed away. Although most of us had met him only once, during the recording session, he made a lasting impression with his engaging personality and musical ability.

As a tribute to Mat, the recording was played during our Concert for Christie's last weekend.  It is a lovely song and the audience listened spell bound to the combination of brass and voices.

Thank you, Mat, for giving us the opportunity to make music with you.

The Band was honoured to be invited to participate in this service of thanks to all the organisations and individuals who helped to avert disaster when the dam was damaged in the summer.
Not only was the church full to capacity, but there was live streaming in the upstairs hall and on WB website, and the audience included many local VIPs.  No pressure then!

After a short selection of pieces while the guests assembled, we accompanied the hymn and the National Anthem (two verses!) during the service.  And as a grand finale afterwards, the first public performance for decades of The Whaley Bridge March, which went down very well. And good experience in preparation for next Sunday's fundraising concert when it will feature once again.   

Many thanks to John for helping us out on euphonium.

Alwyn Beard and his family go back a long way with Whaley Bridge Band, and it was a privilege and a pleasure for a ensemble of players to join them to celebrate Alwyn's 90th birthday.  The arrival of the band at Trinity Church just as the party started came as a complete surprise to Alwyn having been secretly arranged by his sons Paul and John, with John making a guest appearance on Solo Horn.

Many thanks to Sheila for selecting the programme and conducting, and to all the players for making this a really special occasion.

During the events at Toddbrook Reservoir, the whole county had eyes on Whaley Bridge.  Despite the torrential rain on Wednesday 31st July which caused the damage to the dam, we still managed to get to rehearsal in our bandroom in Kettlehulsme that evening, even though the road had been closed due to flooding earlier in the day.  And many of the players even drove through the centre of Whaley, little knowing at that stage of the danger they were in.

By Tuesday of the following week the rescue was still ongoing and it was uncertain whether the roads would be open by Wednesday, which would be our final rehearsal for our scheduled engagement at Chatsworth on Saturday.  Reluctantly we decided to err on the side of caution and cancel the rehearsal, and therefore also the Chatsworth engagement.  A difficult decision, but without that final rehearsal we wouldn't do ourselves justice in such a prestigious location.  And Chatsworth, of course, were totally sympathetic and fully understanding given the circumstances, and will invite us back next year.

The sun shone for the Band's annual performance in the bandstand in Buxton Pavilion Gardens.  A good  crowd enjoyed the varied programme and contributed generously to band funds.  A real pleasure to perform for such an appreciative audience.

This year the Band played on the Carnival field at Whaley Bridge Bowling Club instead of leading the the parade.  A break with tradition but a great success, enabling the audience to enjoy a varied programme of music rather than just a few bars as the band marched passed. So a new tradition established for next year. 

A new location for the Whaley Bridge Well Dressing this year at the "Art Box" on the station approach. The Blessing Ceremony was well attended and a small ensemble from the Band accompanied the hymns. 

Whaley Bridge paid tribute on the 75th anniversary of D Day with a small celebration at the War Memorial in the park, with Laurie on hand to play the Last Post & Reveille..

Our first engagement of the year, St Patrick's Night at Kettleshulme Village Hall.
And what a good night it was, to be sure.
Certainly a colourful occasion with the band "Wearing of the Green" in a magnificent array of costumes.  
And a varied programme of Irish music, north and south, old and new with plenty of opportunity for the audience to join in with Danny, Molly and well known Irish figures.

Many thanks to our friends helping us out, Mike on Rep, Andy on Bass Trombone and Dave on Eb bass.