Posted on Sunday September 20th, 2020
We're excited to be releasing another new video from our archives today!🎬 Our musical-themed concert back in Spring 2017 featured a whole host of fabulous music, including this beautiful arrangement of one of Andrew Lloyd Webber's most popular hits - Don't Cry For Me Argentina from Evita. Listen out for some lovely instrumental solos and some very subtle percussion!🎵 Enjoy!
Posted on Sunday September 13th, 2020
The results are in!🌻 After months of horticultural expertise, tender care and fierce competition, the sunflowers have been independently verified (well...we've looked at the pictures) and we're excited to be able to announce the winners of the inaugural WCB Lockdown Sunflower Growing Competition! Are you ready?! Drum roll please🥁...
🥉 In third place, at an impressive 255cm - Sally
🥈In second place, at a mighty 280cm - Elaine Robinson
🥇and in first place, at a whopping 297cm, big congratulations to Steve Stevenson!🏆
Take a look through our photo gallery for all of our entrants with sunflowers epic, tiny and in one case, not even definitely a sunflower (hi Phil)! Big congratulations🎉 to all of our competitors - we'll see you at our glittering sunflower competition awards ceremony just as soon as things are back to normal...😃
Congratulations to everybody who took part it was fun and and so enjoyable watching them grow. Well done to you all.🌻
Well done everyone! And thank you Owen for sunflower spectacular management! 🌻🌻🌻🌻😀
Great fun and well done all! 🌻
Well done Steve 🌻
Well done everyone! Good job Steve Stevenson.
Well done everyone, great work!!! 🌻❤️
Well done Steve and thanks Owen
Brilliant! The scientist within is dying to know if there is any correlation between instrument played and sunflower-growing ability?!
Well done
I hope we'll be drug testing the winner?
Fantastic, well done everyone!
Well done Steve.
Posted on Sunday August 30th, 2020
CANCELLED! It probably doesn't come as a huge surprise but due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, we have taken the decision to cancel our Autumn Concert in October. Although recent weeks have seen some relaxing of lockdown restrictions and new guidelines from the government with respect to amateur music-making, we do not feel that we would currently be able to perform a concert that was safe for us and safe for our audience and as such, have had to cancel the performance. Whilst we're all incredibly passionate about our music, the safety of the band and our audiences has to be our No.1 priority and as such, rehearsals and performances just aren't possible yet.
In more positive news, we are currently in discussions about a possible first opportunity for a small WCB ensemble to play together live in the coming months which might give us the chance to start exploring performing together again - we'll be sure to keep you up to speed!
Don't forget to like the band (or follow us on Twitter or Instagram) to keep up to date with our latest progress towards making more music!
Posted on Sunday August 16th, 2020
A sprinkling of magic for you this week, with a trip back to our Spring Concert in 2014 and our sparkling performance of Paul Dukas' fabulous Sorcerer's Apprentice!
Do you have a favourite piece of magical music? Let us know in the comments!✨🎶✨
Posted on Sunday August 9th, 2020
If we're honest, the trouble with trumpet players is that if left to their own devices without the structure of weekly rehearsals, they tend to, um, get a little bit out of control. Here are Gregor and Owen who apparently decided that the most constructive use of their time during a global pandemic was to experiment with new facial hair styles. We understand that their partners weren't all that impressed...😂🎺🧔🏻
I rather like them guys! I tried, but just ended up looking about 120 years old. 😂
Annie West where are your photos? 😂😂😂
Eh? What?
Posted on Sunday August 2nd, 2020
As you're probably aware, all ensemble wind and brass playing is currently forbidden due to the potentially enhanced risk of spreading Coronavirus. Whilst the government has commissioned some scientific research to clarify exactly how dangerous flutes are (don't laugh...they're apparently seen as particularly risky), we at WCB wondered whether there might be an alternative solution, so we set our best creative problem-solving experts onto the case and we think we've cracked it - here's principal trumpet Gregor demonstrating what is clearly the ideal way to get band rehearsals back on track! 😷🎺
Sounds a bit like me now - without the mask! 😉
It's the latest type of Mute 🔇
Nutter!!!!
Posted on Thursday July 30th, 2020
MAMBO!!! A quick trip back into the archives today, to our 2017 Spring Concert, entitled A Night in the West End! A friend of the band has recently been kind enough to edit together the videos from this concert (thanks Simon!), so we'll be sharing some of these over the coming months - here's our spectacular opening, the instantly recognisable Mambo from Leonard Bernstein's fabulous West Side Story! Enjoy!
youtu.be/T7PdzkRxODU
Posted on Sunday July 19th, 2020
With all live WCB music-making on hold for almost 4 months now, we thought that it was about time that we gave you an update on how the band's doing and the ways in which our members are keeping musically active without any rehearsals or concerts - here's our chairman Phil and a few of our members to bring you up to speed...enjoy!
PS...we're not just on Facebook - find us in these places too...!
Website: www.woodleyconcertband.org.uk/
Twitter: twitter.com/woodleyband
Instagram: www.instagram.com/woodleyband/
YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/WoodleyConcertBand
Annie West you are a legend! Or maybe Kev is the legend for getting involved in the madness! 😂
Love the raffle so much!
Owen Lloyd I didn't know you have another little one!! Congratulations😍 Time goes so quickly. Brilliant video!😆 xx
“It’s a balance issue” 🤣🤣🤣
Posted on Wednesday July 15th, 2020
Last week, we were delighted to be featured in Woodley Town Council's newsletter, the Woodley Herald. Circulated to approximately 10,000 homes in Woodley, the update features a picture of Owen, one of our trumpeters, playing the Last Post during the VE Day commemorations back in May. We know that the renditions of the Last Post played by a number of our players on this important occasion were greatly appreciated by local residents across Berkshire so we're very pleased to be recognised by being featured in our local newsletter. Those of you who've witnessed Owen running a raffle will understand when we say that we reckon he could give Tony the Town Crier a run for his money too...!📣
Posted on Sunday July 12th, 2020
[WCB Minitour Weekend] Our final post of the weekend and a trip to the lovely Isle of Wight in 2011 with one performance at Rylstone Gardens in Shanklin, and a second (just about) at the Needles Battery. Lots of rain, but lots of fun too!
Thanks so much for joining this weekend as we've looked back over more than 10 years of WCB's trips - we that you've enjoyed it and hopefully next year, we'll be able to make some new memories!
Didn’t rain did if ? on a WCB tour?..............
Posted on Sunday July 12th, 2020
[WCB Minitour Weekend] "With planning progressing well for our first international tour in 2010, we realised that we were a bit short in the trumpet department, so I asked my brother Dave if he fancied coming along. He said yes and whilst on the trip (to Ghent, in Belgium), he met one of our then oboists, Ellie. They hit it off and are now happily married, all thanks to WCB!"💕
Cath, Flute
Posted on Sunday July 12th, 2020
[WCB Minitour Weekend] "When you look back it, quite a few of my memories seem to involve slightly sub-optimal weather. Our trip to the Isle of Wight in 2011 ran into all sorts of interesting challenges, starting on Day 1 with needing to plead with the people who looked after Rhylstone Gardens Bandstand in Shanklin to open the bandstand so that we could perform in the rain to an audience that started off being almost entirely composed of WCB supporters who we'd brought along in the coach! The bandstand's never going to win an award for 'most picturesque place to play' but when you've all made such an effort to get there, the show must go on!"🌧️🎵☔
Gregor, Trumpet
Posted on Sunday July 12th, 2020
[WCB Minitour Weekend] As a band, we don't seem to be very good at remembering our uniforms when we venture out of Berkshire - we can recall at least four occasions in recent years when someone's found themselves without their concert dress in some far-flung bandstand.
"We got to Stratford-upon-Avon in 2018," says flautist Cath, "and realised that both Gregor and I had left our uniforms in the boot of the car where we'd picked up the coach. There followed a mad dash to M&S to procure trousers for both of us and a shirt for me - Gregor borrowed a shirt from a fellow trumpeter which was about 3 times too big and we redistributed band jackets from less obvious locations in the band! Needless to say, nobody noticed and the large audience were as enthusiastic as ever!"
Posted on Sunday July 12th, 2020
[WCB Minitour Weekend] "One of my highlights of our trip to Kent in 2014 was seeing Gregor and Owen wandering round the Dane John Gardens in Canterbury with post horns, serenading the assembled crowds with the Post Horn Galop in surround sound! A great memory!"
Ursula, Flute
Posted on Sunday July 12th, 2020
[WCB Minitour Weekend] 2015 and beautiful weather for our trip to glorious Worcestershire! A bandstand in the middle of a pond in Worcester and a flute-eating dog in Malvern - never a dull moment!