A celebratory end to 2011 for Tyldesley Band

A packed Formby Hall where festively entertained on Sunday, December 18^th by Tyldesley Band bringing to an end a highly successful year for these local musicians. The Band had won contests at Preston, Tameside and Fleetwood earlier in the year making 2011 one of the best in the Bands history.

Conductor Rob Taylor had put together a programme with Christmas celebrations as its theme and which was characterised by considerable audience participation both in the form of carol singing and a more energetic number entitled ‘Snow Waltz’. The latter involved a degree of gymnastics with ‘left, right, forwards, backwards, up, down’ on Robs command.

Two enjoyable solo pieces featured in the first half – first Peter Jackson on bass trombone playing ‘Frostie the Snowman’ and secondly Stuart Speakman on flugel horn playing ‘A Winters Tale’.

The atmospheric arrangement of Ray Woods ‘Cossack and Slovanik Dance’ brought the concert to its first half conclusion in fine style.

‘Christmas Festive Overture’ a composition by Leroy Anderson was a good number to start the second half with and this was followed by ‘Jingle Bells’ which was provided with accompaniment by seven children and one ‘suspect child/adult’ playing a variety of instruments with varying degrees of enthusiasm. This foot tapping number went down well with the audience.

Michael Jackson gave a fine solo euphonium rendition of ‘Merry Christmas’. Michael is studying for a Masters degree in music at the University of Salford. Sandy Smiths arrangement of ‘Santa Claus Phobia’ followed before a second round of carol singing which in turn was followed by Mel Torme’s melodious ‘The Christmas Song’.

The final concert numbers provided an opportunity for five youngsters from the audience to develop some musical skills by accompanying the band with tambourines, shakers and a cow bell. Serious faces gradually became less so and when the cow bell head flew off the mallet, hilarity reached a climax especially so since the ‘T’ shirt of one of the participants proudly proclaimed – ‘This is what perfection looks like’!