Thursday 6th March 2008

Blaenavon Town Band visit the Dark Side

Paul Lovatt-Cooper's Dark Side of the Moon is the Third Section Test Piece for the 2008 National Qualifyers.  The Welsh Qualification contest is being held at the Brangwyn Hall in Swansea on Saturday 8th and Sunday 9th March.

The Area Contest hasn't been a very successful contest for the band in recent years.  We last qualified 6 years ago in 2002 under the baton of Bryn Davies.  Since then a string of MDs have come and gone and we have never had a smooth run up to the Area contest and the results have reflected this.

This year things are a bit different.  New MD Lyndon Price (pictured) came to the band just after the new year and has already been successful at the GBBA Contest in Coleford.  The preparations for the Area have been a lot smoother than in recent years and the band is confident of putting on a good performance.

Lyndon and the players have been working really hard preparing the Test Piece for the Contest.  Tuning and Intonation have been key to the preparations and lots of work has been put in to get the tuning and intonation right.

This years Third Section comprises 9 bands:

1. Blaenavon Town    -    Lyndon Price

2. Goodwick Brass    -    Gareth Ritter

3. City of Cardiff Mellingriffith    -    Gareth Ritter

4. Gwaun Cae Gurwen    -    G. Davies

5. Ogmore Valley    -    Ivor Barnett

6. Porthaethwy Menai Bridge    -    Chris Williams

7. Royal Buckley    -    Duncan Beckley

8. Royal Oakley    -    J. Jones

9. Ynyshir Clarity DIS    -    Graham Sheppard

The section starts at 11:30am on Saturday 8th March.