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Part III of an American perspective - The All England Masters (very long)

This should be my final chapter on our trip for the Brass Band List.

We left Huddersfield by train for Cambridge on the 29th, and that evening
were guests of
Rod (aka Grandad) and his wife Jean for dinner and lots of band talk.  It
was a great
night, and I hope we can return the favor for them in the States some time.
I really
appreciate the chance to meet people through the list (Thanks Nigel!).  It
added so
much to our trip to be pre-introduced to people at the various places we
were going.
We felt really at home by the time we hit the Masters, that is other than
constantly
walking into traffic - Cambridge has lots of one way streets on top of
driving on the
other (WRONG) side of the road - we never knew where the next car was
coming
from!

The first band played at 10:00am.  Again, I am doing this from memory so
forgive me if I
have some of the details wrong...The first band was Ever Ready.  I cant
imagine the
pressure of being the first out, debuting a new piece in front of the
composer, the
judges and the crowd.  I didnt really like their performance, I think
because of the piece
itself.  I have never been much for the hard to play, hard to listen to
pieces so common
to contests, and until I had heard the whole thing through I was afraid we
would be
listening to cacophony all day, while paying handsomely for the privilege.
Once the
second band started to play I could look ahead through the rough spots to
the more
musical sections.  Of the next two bands, I liked Wooley Pritchard Sovereign
and my
husband felt Wingates was much better.  The judges agreed with him.

When Fodens came on we were completely blown away.  There is a very quiet
section
somewhere in the middle of the piece, which is very gentle and lyrical, and
sounds very
far away.  By my opinion Fodens did that part better than anyone else in the
contest.  It
was perfectly balanced, sounding as if it came from a single piece of
brass...One of
those times the hair stands up on the back of your neck.  I found myself
starting to like
the piece.

We missed the next 3 bands to stretch our legs, get lunch and try to find
people we
were supposed to meet...No luck, it was like looking for a needle in a
haystack.  The
majority of Wingates were in the pub next door enjoying a well deserved pint
(this is one
of those plot development points that only becomes significant later - keep
it in the back
of your mind as you read on).  One of the bands we missed was Sellers
Engineering.
The man sitting next to us raved about how well they had done, taking a
completely
different interpretation than the previous groups.  From their placement
evidently the
judges didnt agree with that interpretation - another one of the dangers of
premiering a
piece for a contest.

We watched Rothwell, Camborne Town and Bodmin Town, and I was starting to
wonder how the judges could ever keep the bands straight overall.  I cant
recall
anything good or bad to distinguish these 3 bands in my mind.

Brighouse and Rastirck were next, and they really played well start to
finish.  I
found I liked a lot more of the piece than I thought originally, but it took
a band playing
really cleanly to make it sound like something.  My husband said the
composer gave
them a standing ovation when they finished.  Their soloists were phenomenal.
What an
incredible band!

British Telecom had a tough act to follow, but did quite well.  I am partial
to BT anyway
because Sam Harrison is their flugel player, as well as being the all round
nice person
whos postings we have all come to appreciate.  BT was one of the bands who
acted
like they enjoyed being there, and they were excited about performing.  The
higher
ranked bands tended to be more reserved to the audience.  We especially
liked Sams
Flugel solo, and the guy sitting next to us commented how good it was before
we even
said we knew Sam....OK so its the same guy who raved about Sellers
performance...nobodys right all the time:)

We decided we would take another break, and found that after great weather
our whole
trip, it had turned wretched.  The organizers had planned how to keep the
band
members dry between the warm-up hall and the contest, and the audience had
dry
comfortable seats at the venue.  But, unless you intended to watch EVERY
band who
performed, there was nowhere to go that wasnt really crammed full of people
or really
wet.  We had heard a lot about the atmosphere at the Masters, and came
prepared with
a list of people to meet who we had spoken to through the list, or were
friends of our
Musical Director, Keith Wilkinson.  Given the way everyone was packed in, we
didnt
meet anybody we were supposed to.  We did strike up a lot of fun
conversations with
perfect strangers while we were looking though.  At this time, now
mid-afternoon,
several from Wingates were still bending an arm in the pub.  (Im not
picking on
Wingates, they had plenty of company, its just that this part of the story
relates to one of
theirs...stay tuned)

We came back in rather wet, and watched Marple.  They seemed to have quite a
competent performance, but they didnt impress me as particularly exciting.
Ill take an
enthusiastic performance over a technically perfect one any day, which is
why Ill never
be a judge.

We specifically planned to watch SWT Woodfalls, since Steve Sykes had been
so
entertaining at the NABBA contest in Chicago.  He came out and directed
quite
appropriately, which of course didnt show anything of his personality.  I
dont know what
I was expecting, but I confess I was disappointed, since he is a very funny
man.  I know,
this part is ME being unrealistic.

GUS got my pick for most spirited performance of the day.  There is an
excitement that
translates to the audience when a band is really focused on a peak
performance.  I felt
like we were on stage with GUS, the intensity was palpable.  They really
deserved their
placement, and the recognition.  I found their director distracting to
watch, at last I think
it was theirs...weve been back long enough now that my husband and I have
been
arguing about the details and who was who.  This is that part of the
entertainment of the
trip that will stay with us for years...being competitive people we dearly
love a good
argument ;o)

We were starting to hit the home stretch.  My backside was beginning to feel
molded to
the chair, and there were only one or two comfortable positions left for our
feet.  Phil, my
6' 5" husband, was beginning to make audible creaking sounds every time he
straightened his back.  I could see the judge on the left hand side in
silhouette
stretching between each band.  Those poor judges, no breaks for any reason!

Ransome played, followed by Williams Fairey.  The crowd seemed to love
Faireys, the
music sounded great, but I was beginning not to care.  Besses peaked my
interest
again, and then Yorkshire Building Society came on...they were amazing.
Until the last
4 measures I would have said that there was no way to pick between them and
Brighouse and Rastrick, but then YBS did something that no other band
did....they
saved something for the very end.  The piece had a big finish, and I thought
I had heard
other bands play it well.  YBS put the type of emphasis on it that drew you
to your feet.  I
saw the composer leap up, we leaped up, as did most of the audience.  I have
seen
sneers on this list about their renta-crowd and orchestrated applause
but by my
opinion they determined their position right there.  There is just no
arguing with that type
of finish.  A strong beautiful moment mid-piece, of which B&R, YBS and other
bands
had plenty of, can never have the impact of the strong finish, because it is
left literally
ringing in the judges ears.

Tough luck JJB Sports Leyland to follow YBS.  Before they even started their
performance they had a problem - appeared to be a sticking valve in one of
the
baritones or euphs.  The audience sat in silence watching it play out in
pantomime.  The
director picked up his stick, and put it down again, turning to the stricken
player.  A
silent conversation accompanied by much moving of valves, was followed by
the horn
being passed down the line to the band expert.  He pulled out the valve and
put it in
again, and a contest official came on stage.  The horn was reassembled and
passed to
another band expert as another official moved by each judging tent to let
them know of
the delay.  The first official left the stage as the horn returned to the
player, who looked
dejected.  He continued to try to work the valve up and down with every eye
in the place
on him.  The first official charged triumphantly back on to the stage,
brandishing a
borrowed horn, to general applause.  The contest could go on.  I felt so
sorry for the
band members, if I was sitting on that stage, my concentration would be
shot!  They
played remarkable well, but there was no catching up to YBS.  I think their
place should
have been higher then 12th, they were certainly better than SWT Woodfalls
and
Wingates.  (No, I dont hate Wingates! - but I have empirical evidence that
at least one
of their members was STILL actively supporting the local pub at this time -
6+ hours after
their performance).

We left for a few minutes while the stage was reset for the high school band
who would
entertain while the judges were tallying/deliberating.  We were treated to
our first real
dose of the announcer...where did they get this guy?  He didnt seem to get
that we had
already listened to HOURS of brass music, and the schedule was running late,
and we
wanted to listen to HOURS more brass music, and then go home.  We didnt
want to
hear him babble.....OK - so the confinement was getting to me.  I was
getting more than
a little fussy (those who know me well would probably use a less polite
term).  My
husband decided I needed a pint.  He bravely fought his way into the pub -
My hero!

The high school band, a national champion, was a nice way to keep people
entertained
while we waited for the judges decisions.  It was neat to see such a strong
program for
youth.

After the places were announced, we headed out to make one last chance at
finding
those we wanted to meet.  By now it was pouring rain...a real duck drowner
(quaint mid-
western term - do you know it in the UK?).  We stood in the hall outside the
theater and
a member of Wingates noticed my accent...yes, this is my Wingates story...I
get the
feeling we shouldnt use his name, he plays tenor, and he couldnt believe
we had come
from the states to see a brass band contest.  It was obvious he had had a
long day, but
he was thrilled that banding would get international attention.  Thats
brilliant, brilliant
he said.  All the way from the states?  We chatted briefly, during which
time my
husband and I were wondering about the symptoms of alcohol poisoning, and at
what
point one should be concerned about calling an ambulance.  He invited our
band for an
exchange, and I checked the reaction of his pupils as we turned toward the
light - still
working....and he was still standing.  Hell probably be OK.  We politely
said goodbye,
and fought our way through to the pub to make one last ditch effort to find
people,
among them Colin Randle, who I had promised a hat to.  No luck.  Several
more all day
pub inhabitants were obviously reaching their limits.  My way out of the pub
was blocked
by a bandsmen and his girlfriend engaged in enthusiastically checking each
others
embouchure.  I waited patiently till my husband pushed past with the
suggestion that
they Get a room.  Were we ever that young?  We reached the street, and
over my
shoulder I hear Brilliant, abslolutely brilliant!  Our friend from
Wingates was back.  We
had exhausted all polite conversation, but he hung on.  We have a website
he said,
Its really terrible, but its a website.  I said we have a website, also,
CVBB.com for
Cuyahoga Valley Brass Band.  The conversation devolved to See Bee Bee Bee?
No,
CVBB, Cuyahoga Valley Brass Band like on my shirt.  BBCB?  CVBB...  Cee
Vee...?  Here take one of our hats, see - Cuyahoga Valley Brass
Band?...CVBB.com
Brilliant!  Anyway, if you know the bandsman in question...ask him where
he got the
hat.  Ill bet you a pint he has no clue!

We tried to find somewhere to eat dinner before the gala concert, but the
rain was
keeping all the nearby establishments packed.  We ended up buying something
called
kebabs, which we call gyros from a street vendor.  We ate standing in a
doorway
only partly out of the rain.  We asked a stranger to take a picture of us
soaking wet,
which we may scan and send to the rogues gallery.  Every moment is an
adventure!

The gala concert started slowly.  They had the high school band play again,
and they
were good for a high school band, but we had just seen them play.  They even
repeated
some of the numbers.  But then, Eikanger was fantastic!  They played an
eclectic mix of music,
that revived us after a day of hearing the same piece over, and over, and
over...It may
still be ringing around between my ears.   They opened with Olympic
Fanfare, and all
their bell-front brass were standing at the back of the band.  The power of
the sound
literally pinned us to our seats.  My other favorites were Arctic Funk,
and a Flugel solo
called Nordic Night.  They had an outstanding trombone soloist, and a tuba
soloist
who toyed with the audience as he played Figaro.  Adagio for Strings was
well done,
but we heard a better arrangement of it from Brass Band of Columbus at the
NABBA
contest in April.  The only work I didnt care for was the one where they
amplified (way
over-amplified) their solo cornet, I think to make it sound like a dance
band.  Does a
competent solo cornet need amplification?  Was it an artistic choice?  Why
bother?

We were sad to see Eikanger close their performance, but very glad to be up
and
moving again, and out of the auditorium seats.  I managed to convince one
more
person I was a truly flaky American before the night was done.  We walked a
bit looking
unsuccessfully for a cab, ending up in front of a Holiday Inn.  I went in
and asked the
desk clerk where we might find a cab, and she directed me to a phone to call
one.  I
realized I didnt know the address of the hotel, and there might be more
than one
Holiday Inn, so I turned and asked By the way, where are we?.  She looked
at me like
I had lost my senses, and said cautiously Would it be all right if I called
a cab for you?.
I got the impression she was deciding between calling a cab and calling
security - we
opted for the cab :o)

Well, thats everything we did band related.  Unless anyone wants to discuss
things we
found amusing through our travels (does everyone have toast for breakfast
EVERY
day? - why does everyone in Yorkshire call you LUVY? - What do you call a
sheep that
falls over when its fur is wet and gets stuck and cant get up? - why is a
mailcarrier called a Posty? - the possibilities are
endless!) I guess I will sign off until the next time we do anything
exciting.

Thanks to everyone who played while we were there, talked good naturedly to
us and other strangers, and to all who gave us advice
about where to go and what to see.  It was great!

By the way, Colin Randle and Dave Sheedy, I still have hats for you.  Do you
want them by mail?

Mary Ellen Lathrop
2nd Horn
Cuyahoga Valley Brass Band


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