Concert: a Night at the Movies
Waltham band's first indoor concert since Christmas 2019, "A Night at the Movies", was held at the Loddon Hall, Twyford, on 21st May. Once again the band was joined by The Barberettes ladies' a capella choir, who provided a set in the middle of each half.
All but one of the band's numbers were film themes or pieces featured in films, opening with The Great Escape and closing with Highland Cathedral (from Four Weddings and a Funeral). The exception was Christopher Bond's Neverland, written as a test piece for the national brass band championships. It has a very filmic feel, based on the tale of Peter Pan, and basically, we love playing it. Films old and new featured - from Tara's Theme (Gone with the Wind) to West Side Story, and there was some classic menace with Jaws and Zulu. A fine duet, As Long As He Needs Me (from Oliver!) was played by Peter Yates (cornet) and Gerry Townsend (soprano cornet).
TikTok is the mini-movies, yes? So The Wellerman had every right to be on the Barberettes' menu, along with Skyfall, Moon River and other more typical movie numbers.
While Covid regulations may have been abolished, the pandemic is still with us, so there was no way the band would be squeezing onto the stage along with a full percussion section. Thus the brass was seated in front of the stage, and percussion on it, while the choir's staging was set up to the side of the band. There was a welcome problem just before the concert started: we needed to set out a dozen more chairs for the audience! It was such a pleasure to play to a full house, and the band played at its best, with an enthusiastic response.