It was another great contesting weekend again for Lofthouse Brass Band on March 5th at Huddersfield Town Hall as they came fifth in the Third Section at Yorkshire Regional Championships.
Seen by many as a difficult challenge for the band giving its first public performance of Dan Price’s Darkwood in the third section, a section higher than in previous years, the band rose to the challenge that was presented.
A challenging piece, MD Andrew Whitaker was pleased with the overall performance of the band on the day and found the general comments made by adjudicators Glynn Williams and Jim Davis extremely beneficial. “The feedback was excellent. The band has had to work incredibly hard to make sure we were ready for this contest given we were competing in a higher section for the first time in a number of years, but they have risen to the challenge once again and this now puts us in a perfect position to move further up the ladder with promotion into the second section. I am especially thrilled that our principal euphonium, Robert Blackburn, won the best soloist for a first-class performance, a well-deserved award”.
Third Section:
Test Piece: ‘Darkwood’ (Dan Price)
Adjudicators: Jim Davies and Glyn Williams
1. West Yorkshire Police (Kevin Wadsworth)*
2. BD1 Brass (Lee Skipsey)*
3. Wetherby Silver (Derek Warley)
4. Barnsley Brass (William Rushworth)
5. Lofthouse 2000 (Andrew Whitaker)
6. Rockingham (Adam Whittle)
7. Dodworth Colliery M.W. (Eliot J Darwin)
8. Maltby Miners (Terry Clifford)
9. Dinnington (Lindon Bolt)
10. Oughtibridge (Gavin Somerset)
11. Dronfield Genquip (Robert Straw)
12. Barnsley Metropolitan (Alex Francis)
13. Armthorpe Elmfield (Haydn Griffiths MBE)
*Top two bands qualify bands for National Final in Cheltenham
Best Soloist: Bob Blackburn (euphonium) — Lofthouse 2000
Youngest Player: Robert Thorpe (aged 10 ) — Rockingham