Trophy win for school band

Date published: 29 January 2012

Wardle High School Youth Brass Band beat of stiff competition in a brass band festival and won the George Rowell memorial trophy and £600.

The national champions, conducted by Lee Rigg, took part in The Butlins Youth Brass Band Festival last weekend and came second.

The Festival was adjudicated by Barry Thompson and Mark Walters and was part of the 2012 Butlins Mineworkers Festival, an event that took over the Butlins resort in Skegness for the weekend.

Wardle High School competed with brass bands including St Helen’s Youth Brass and Lions Youth Brass in their debut performance at the festival and put on a spectacular show featuring Peter Graham’s ‘Dimensions.’

The award is yet another success for the band, who earlier in the school year took to the stage to perform in front of a 4,500 audience at the Music for Youth School Proms at the Royal Albert Hall.

Director of Performing Arts, Janet Emsley, said: “We have had a brilliant weekend at Butlins, the students enjoyed the leisure facilities on Saturday then had a rehearsal on Saturday night.

“Their performance in the Youth Section on Sunday was stunning, they thoroughly deserved to be in the placings and their debut performance in this contest was outstanding.

“I have nothing but praise for their behaviour and their playing, they are a credit to the school.”