Robert Lloyd - a Sir Gar Blog of random news . . . and some Clecs!

St David’s Day concert and celebration of Amelia Earhart (Burry Port’s moment in world history), featuring Burry Port Town Band, Burry Port, Burry Port Junior Band and the brass ensemble of the Band of the Royal Air Force Regiment, at Memorial Hall, Burry Port. It is so often the case that inspirational stories lend themselves to equally inspirational tributes. It was certainly the case at Burry Port Memorial Hall when Burry Port Town Band staged the Welsh premiere of ‘Stillness’ a special composition celebrating the achievement of Amelia Earhart, the first woman to cross the Atlantic in a plane. Burry Port’s part in the Earhart story is well documented. In 1928, a seaplane carrying Earhart landed in the estuary and was later towed into Burry Port harbour. Nearly 89 years later, composer Tom Davoren was finally able to stage a ‘homecoming’ for his 15-minute-long musical tribute. Tom, who hails from Gower and made his first connection with Burry Port Town Band as a musician at th...

Burry Port Town Band Christmas Gala concert at the Memorial Hall with special guests Cor Aelwyd y Waun Ddyfal, from Cardiff, and Burry Port Junior Band. Burry Port Town Band and their special guests served up a festive treat at the Memorial Hall in the town. It was an evening which demonstrated why the band has true championship status. It was also an evening to introduce young talent to the stage in the shape of the Burry Port Junior Band and the beginner’s class from music rehearsals. And it gave the packed house at the Memorial Hall the chance to hear the excellent Cor Aelwyd y Waun Ddyfal mixed choir from Cardiff. Festive fun was the order of the day and the band set the tone with Shostakovich’s Festive Overture, followed by Away in a Manger (featuring Flugelhorn Soloist Jane Stredwick, Hwiangerdd Mair (an arrangement by choir member Jayne Thomas) and Irving Berlin’s White Christmas (which even included a couple of sing-a-long verses!). Cor Aelwyd y Waun Ddyfal were under t...

Burry Port Town Band are ready to host their summer concert in Burry Port Memorial Hall, on Saturday, July 23. The concert will offer the audience the chance to exclusively preview the band's programme for this year's National Eisteddfod of Wales competition. Burry Port Band are the reigning 2015 Eisteddfod champions and return to the contest in Abergavenny at the end of July to defend their title with a show-stopping programme. On top of this, the concert will feature some classic brass band music, as well as some jazz and popular numbers, and will undoubtedly have something to please all ears. What's more, the band are delighted to announce that their musical guests for the evening will be Côr Lleisiau’r Cwm. The ladies choir from Dyffryn Aman will be bringing their own fabulous sounds to the concert, under the experienced leadership of musical director Catrin Hughes.  Robert Lloyd will also return as compere for another year, bringing his light-hearted touch...

Review: Burry Port Town Band, A Choired Taste, Sophie McLaughlin in an ‘Audience with Burry Port Town Band’ at QE High School, Carmarthen. It was the night ‘Girl Power’ met the ‘Best of Brass’ at QE High School, Carmarthen. Burry Port Town Band’s status as one of the best brass bands in the UK is well known – and they lived up to top billing in stirring concert which deserved a bigger audience. They shared the stage with the 70 ladies of A Choired Taste, the Carmarthen choir led by one of the winners of the BBC’s Unsung Hero Award for Music, Sarah Kirby. They provided the ‘razzle’ to the band’s ‘dazzle’ – or was it the other way around? Whatever it was, it worked a treat and the razzle-dazzle went down a storm. Band Burry Port Town Band opened up with Men of Harlech, All Through The Night, Myfanwy and a storming Delilah, which was something of a tribute to the winning Welsh football team! A Choired Taste started their set with a Happy Mash-Up (Sarah Kirby loves her Mash-Up medl...

Côr Meibion Llanelli brought him home - and, boy, what a homecoming it was for West End and Broadway singing star John Owen-Jones. The Burry Port singing sensation, who has starred in Les Miserables and The Phantom of The Opera, was the special guest at Côr Meibion Llanelli's 50th anniversary concert at the Selwyn Samuel Centre, Llanelli. John Owen-Jones wasn't just the icing on the cake for the choir's 50th birthday; he was the dazzling candle power that set the evening alight. His cascade of West End stardust had the audience of 500 at the Selwyn Samuel on their feet for a well-deserved standing ovation. Singer, showman, entertainer, John Owen-Jones brought it all to Côr Meibion Llanelli's 48th annual concert. It was first class, a master-class and world class. From the opening bars of Kiss of a Spiderwoman, he had the audience tied into his wonderful web of musical magic. This was the singer's final Llanelli appearance before a tour of Japan and...

Burry Port Town Band are gearing up for their third West Wales Solo and Ensemble Day on Saturday 25th January in the Memorial Hall, Burry Port starting at around 10am This is an important event for the band and the town as it offers an opportunity for budding brass players (of all ages!) from South Wales the chance to perform. There is some excitement about the event already building in bandrooms across South Wales, with Youth Bands from Ceredigion, Carmarthenshire, Pembrokeshire, Swansea and the Valleys regions wanting to attend and already busy practicing their performances. The band are looking forward to entries in a variety of classes for solos, duets, trios, small and large ensembles and finally full Youth bands. The organisers have engaged some talented local adjudicators for this event and believe it will be an ideal opportunity for youth bands, players and ensembles the chance to show their talents to a wider audience. It's not too late to enter! Entries should be i...

Burry Port Town Band are looking forward to their forthcoming Summer Concert on Saturday 29th June in the Memorial Hall, Burry Port starting at 7:30pm. Conducted by Musical Director Nigel Seaman, the programme will be varied and entertaining, featuring music from the movies together with some more traditional brass band repertoire. Pre-concert drinks will be served from 6pm and patrons benefit from a pre-concert talk with Mr Nigel Seaman. The band will be joined by our special guests, Hywel Girls Choir and Hywel Boys Singers, making it a very special evening. The Burry Port Youth Band will also be playing a key part. Tickets are available from Burry Port Premier Stores, Elgan Jones Butchers, Saith Gallery, Edmond John on 01554 833749 or online from tickets@burryporttownband.co.uk and are priced at £10 'Early Bird' prior to the concert or £12.50 on the door, with children welcome free of charge. Band Chairman, Graham Howe said: "The band have been working hard this y...

It's been a busy few weeks for the Burry Port Town Band, having recently held the successful Youth Solo and Ensemble Day with more than 140 young brass players taking part in the festival held in the Memorial Hall, Burry Port. There wasn't much time to catch a breath before the band started its preparations for the Welsh Regional Championships in Swansea. The set test piece was certainly a test! It was Philip Sparke's Harmony Music - and what a test it transpired to be for all the bands. It was Burry Port's first return to the Championship section since 2010 and the band was in determined mood to deliver a prize-winning performance. Burry Port picked up a fourth prize and in the process beat the world's No1 band, Cory (as according to the 4barsrest.com  world rankings). There's a report of the event here - http://4barsrest.com/news/detail.asp?id=16691#.UU7iCxzQDYQ The Band's Chairman, Graham Howe commented: "Our Musical Director should be c...

The Burry Port Town Band held their second youth music event at the Memorial Hall, Burry Port. The West Wales Brass Festival saw an encouraging field of entries, which doubled from last year's event. There was an exceptional group of adjudicators lined up for the day - Mr Alan Bourne, Mr Matthew Jenkins to adjudicate the solo, duet and trio classes; Mr Tom Davoren and Mr Nigel Seaman to adjudicate the Ensembles and Youth Band sections. It meant that all the entrants received two sets of encouraging and supportive feedback on their performances. Tom said: "It was a real pleasure coming back to Burry Port to adjudicate this event again this year and it is totally heartening to see Burry Port Town Band looking outside the tempting boundaries of self-preservation to benefit brass playing of all levels throughout West Wales. The day was both fun-filled and musically exciting and I can’t wait to come back next year!” Graham Howe, the band's chairman commented; "We...

The Burry Port Town Band are gearing up for their second Solo and Ensemble Day on Saturday 2nd February in the Memorial Hall, Burry Port, starting at around 10am. This is an important event for the band and the town as it offers an opportunity for budding brass players (of all ages!) from South Wales the chance to perform. There is some excitement about the event already building in bandrooms across South Wales, with youth bands from Ceredigion, Carmarthenshire, Pembrokeshire, Swansea and the Valleys regions wanting to attend and already busy rehearsing for their performances. The band are looking forward to entries in a variety of classes for solos, duets, trios, small and large ensembles and, finally, full youth bands and are very excited that they’ve engaged some talented, local adjudicators for this event. It will be an ideal opportunity for youth bands, players and ensembles the chance to show their talents to a wider audience. It's not too late to enter! Entries should...

At the third and final leg of the 2012 Welsh League series at the SEWBBA Brass Band Festival in the World Heritage town of Blaenavon, Burry Port Town Band delivered a purposeful performance of Philip Sparke's ‘Year of the Dragon’ to win the Championship Section and the coveted Dewar Challenge Cup. In the process, Burry Port Town Band reclaimed the overall Championship Section Welsh League honours by winning all three legs of this year’s series following victories at SEWBBA Ebbw Vale and WWBBA Fishguard competitions. Burry Port’s solo trombone player Geraint Thomas took the ‘Best Trombone’ Award for his fine personal delivery of the fearsome solo in the work’s middle movement. There was further success in the Youth Section, with Burry Port's Soprano Cornet player, Jayne Thomas conducting the West Glamorgan Training Band to further success with their outstanding Silver Award. Graham Howe, the band's chairman, said: "The band has worked hard all year to deliver some stunn...

The Burry Port Town Band has announced the appointment of Nigel Seaman as its new Musical Director. Current Musical Director Michael Thorne has had to relinquish his role due to increased work commitments. He will now be engaged as the Band's Principal Guest Conductor and is looking forward to help out in concerts and contests in the his new role. Nigel said: "I've enjoyed working with the band recently and so I was delighted to have been able to accept the band's offer of the post of Musical Director, and I have set several new aims for the band in the next few years and I'm looking forward to working with this group of musicians, building on the fantastic work that Mike has already done." Chairman Graham Howe added: "We were all saddened by the news that Mike's workload has meant we had to make some changes. A huge thank-you to Michael, who has worked tirelessly for the band, and we're all over the moon that his involvement will continue as P...

Saturday 27th October the Burry Port Town Band will host 'An Audience with the Band' at the St Mary's Church, Burry Port (7pm). The keynote feature of this event will be a discussion and performance of Tom Davoren's recently commissioned First Section National Finals music, Vivat! Tom, a rising star of the brass band world, although still in his twenties, was commissioned to write this by the National Brass Band Championships of Great Britain and also has his own strong links with Burry Port Town Band, as when he was growing up on the Gower Peninsular he joined the Burry Port Youth Band before progressing to the Senior Band on Tuba. Now studying for his PhD at Bristol University under Professor John Pickard, Tom is delighted he can spend some time with the band and take part in this exciting new format to present the true reflection of what a modern brass band can be. Graham Howe, the Band's Chairman added "that we're excited by this new format event, we ho...

Burry Port Town Band travelled to Cheltenham to compete against the best First Section bands in the country in the National Brass Band Championships of Great Britain. All 17 bands performed the set test piece “Vivat!”, a specially commission work from the pen of former Burry Port junior and senior band member Tom Davoren.  Having been drawn to play 16th out of the 17 bands, Burry Port had to endure a very long wait to perform, and did not take the stage until just after 8pm. However, the hanging around proved to be worth it with the band delivering a majestic performance of the piece, all the way through from the quiet, exposed opening movement “In Memoriam”, a test of nerves for even the most experienced players, to the pomp and thrills of the “Coronation” and “Jubilate” movements, with the final note drawing enthusiastic applause from the large audience.  In their general remarks, adjudicators Frank Renton and Kevin Wadsworth commented that although many bands were...

Burry Port Town Band have launched their 40th Anniversary photograph search. The band are looking for pictures that people might have in their home albums of the band from the last 40 years. The Band's Chairman Graham Howe thought that it would be a "fantastic idea to see if people in the area might have old pictures of the band which we could then put into an exhibition celebrating the 40 years of Burry Port Town Band." Photographs can be either dropped off at the Saith Gallery, Burry Port which is open from 1pm to 7pm Mondays, 11am to 7pm Tuesday to Saturday and from 11am to 4pm on Sundays for the attention of the band, or emailed to photos@burryporttownband.co.uk , or if you're on Facebook, they can be added to the band's Facebook page. Graham added: "We're really looking forward to seeing the pictures people might have taken over the last 40 years and thanks to Roz Moreton of the Saith Gallery for helping us with this project."

Burry Port Town Band has an exciting opportunity to display the collection of prize winning silverware at the Saith Gallery, Burry Port from Friday 27th July. The collection stems from their recent successes in West Wales, South East Wales, Welsh Regional and British Open competitions and includes many of the individual performance awards the band's soloists have also won in those competitions. Roz Moreton the owner of the gallery believes that it is important to support the band any way it can. She said: "The Saith Gallery is proud to present this year's accomplishments of the Burry Port Town Band. It is a perfect fit to have all the Burry Port Town Band trophies on display amongst all the visual arts that have been created locally by artist and craft makers. It just shows what outstanding talented people we have in our wonderful town." The band's chairman, Graham Howe, added: "It is great to have such brilliant support from the local businesses whi...

Burry Port Town Band are looking forward to their forthcoming 40th Anniversary Concert on Saturday 4th August in the Memorial Hall, Burry Port. The band will be joined by their guests, Pontarddulais Male Voice Choir, and, making it a very special evening, the band's Youth Band, Tenuto. Tickets are available from Burry Port Premier Stores, Elgan Jones Butchers, Edmond John on 01554 833749 or online from tickets@burryporttownband.co.uk and are priced at £10 'Early Bird' prior to the concert, or £12.50 on the door, with children welcome free of charge. This will be a busy weekend for the band as the following day they travel to the Vale of Glamorgan to compete at the National Eisteddfod. The programme from the Eisteddfod will feature as part of the concert. The Band's Chairman, Graham Howe said "The band have been working hard this year, which has resulted in winning many awards and we're really looking forward to be able to play for our home audienc...

Burry Port Town Band travelled to Blackpool to compete in the Senior Trophy contest, part of the British Open Spring Festival at the Winter Gardens. Happily for the band, the recent run of success continued with an excellent second place in a strong field of 20 Championship bands from all corners of the UK. Performing the set test piece “Chivalry”, Martin Ellerby’s tribute to the cinematic era made famous by Errol Flynn, the band delivered an exciting and colourful account described by the banding Press as “majestic” with “lots to admire”, which included fine contributions from each of the band’s soloists. The band's Chairman, Graham Howe, said: "Our thanks has to go to Michael Thorne, our Musical Director, who has been working hard to develop the band over the last year and this result is testament to that work." The band now look forward to their next major engagement, the Annual Summer Concert at the Memorial Hall Burry Port (Saturday 4th August) followed by t...

Burry Port Town Band received a very generous donation from the Burry Port Charity Fund of £500. This money has now been put to the purchase of five cornets for young learners and now the band are looking for five young learners who perhaps don’t get the opportunity to learn in the local primary schools and would like to join the enthusiastic Junior Band Club. The Junior Band Club will run from 6:30pm on Tuesdays, at our Bandroom in Morlan Terrace, Burry Port. Each weekly session will be split into three sections, the first 20 minutes will be tuition followed by a break where the use of the band's snooker table will allow the group to socialise and make friends with other brass players from the area, then the final 20 minutes will be a full Junior Band ensemble lead by one of the tutors or a guest conductor. Burry Port Town Junior Band’s Senior Tutor, Tara Smith said: "This is a fantastic opportunity for those children in local schools who don’t benefit from brass tuitio...

Burry Port Town Band have been crowned Welsh First Section Champions, after beating off the challenge of six other bands at the Welsh Regional Brass Band Championships in Swansea’s Brangwyn Hall. Having finished the 2011 season in fine style, winning the last two contests of the year, the band maintained their fine run of form in a result which earned them a qualifying place at the National Brass Band Championships of Great Britain in Cheltenham in September, and which also ensured that they regained their Championship Section status after just two years in the First Section. The band’s Soprano Cornet player Jayne Thomas also added to her growing collection of “Best Instrumentalist” awards, picking up where she left off at the Blaenavon contest in November. Gareth John, the band’s spokesman, said, "The band has really been building towards this performance over the last two months or so. We finished the 2011 season in good form, winning the last two contests of the year and w...