Brass Bands England would like to invite you to support an exciting national campaign to ensure a safe and sustainable future for our band, and for brass bands across England.

Brass bands exist in every corner of the country, with over 30,000 people of all ages and standards taking part in weekly activity – rehearsing, performing and providing entertainment for their local community.

Without urgent support, we risk losing this forever.

Brass bands saw their main source of income disappear in an instant when they ceased being able to perform in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. And many are still struggling to survive. A significant loss in income, paired with necessary expenditure needed to make rehearsal spaces Covid-safe, means that many bands are in a perilous financial situation.

#BrassBandsAtChristmas showcases our country’s amazing brass band heritage whilst also raising funds to protect its future, something that is vital after the struggles that bands of all ages and abilities have and continue to face.

And what better time to celebrate brass bands than at Christmas? A period when bands traditionally go out "caroling" to spread festive cheer to our communities.

That’s why we’ve joined hundreds of bands across the country in fundraising for our future. Want to lend your support? Please visit Crowdfunder.co.uk/brackleybandxmas

Our first Christmas Concert under the baton of Shaun Humphries opened with Cossack Sleigh Rideand was followed by a gorgeous arrangement by Barrie Gott of Silent Night, performed by our solo baritone player Nick Wilson. The Community Carols on the piazza yesterday acted as a great warm up for the people of Brackley who were in fine voice for the first of a number of audience carols. Stop the Cavalry and The Christmas Songwere next before Christmas Bolero which showcased one of our guest players Katie Gardner on side drum. This is a clever arrangement which interweaves ‘The Holly and the Ivy’ and ‘We Wish You A Merry Christmas’ with the well-known classical piece of music which will now forever be associated with Torville and Dean’s famous gold medal performance at the 1984 Sarajevo Olympics.

In the beautiful St Peter’s Church in Brackley the Band kicked off the evening’s concert and their first under the baton of Shaun Humphries with a rousing march, Castell Coch. This was followed by a jazzed-up arrangement of Here, There and Everywhere performed by our first soloist Steve Utley, who can also be heard performing with The Great Central Big Band, based at the Band Club in Brackley. Jesus Christ Superstar was next, a medley of songs from the musical and a challenging blow for the Band.

Brackley & District Band and the Stowe Brass Musicians were delighted to have had the opportunity to work with Steven Mead, a world-famous euphonium soloist and tutor at the wonderful Stowe School during our Masterclass and evening concert on Saturday. The opportunity came about since our Musical Director Micah Parsons once studied under Steven as a young euphonium player.