Description

The RAF Halton Area Voluntary Band is based in Wendover near Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire.

Its members come from all walks of life, including the Armed Forces and the Civil Service. The majority of the band are local civilians who travel from a wide area to meet every Tuesday evening.

The rehearsals are held at RAF Halton and we play from 19.30 to 21.30, with a break for a coffee and a chat!

The band can provide a wide variety of ensembles to suit any musical event.

The current Bandmaster is David Richards GCGI who has only been in post since the start of October. He has joined us after serving 36 years within RAF Music Services.

The band was originally formed in the 1920’s as an amateur musical outlet for the RAF apprentices, who learnt their various technical trades at Halton.

In those long-gone days, each wing had its own band, who would march the apprentices to various parts of the camp for different lessons, parades etc.

As Halton is no longer an apprentice training station, its members, whilst still amateurs, are drawn from a wider spectrum of service life. In fact, due to the increased number of civilians (civil servants and contractors etc.) that now work on military establishments, the membership of the band now includes ex-service and civilian musicians as well.

The band performs at many different types of function each year, from official parades, air shows and concerts, to church services, formal dinners and receptions.

The band is often to be seen during the summer months at bandstands around the country, especially in London and on the south coast.

In recent years the band has toured abroad, playing concerts in Norway, France, Germany, Malta and Austria. October 2007 saw the band on a duty tour in Cyprus, playing for an investiture, for the British High Commission in Nicosia and at two service charity concerts.

The present band is drawn from other RAF stations besides Halton. These include Benson, High Wycombe, Northolt, Brize Norton and MOD in London. This means that some band members regularly travel more than 30 miles to attend the weekly rehearsals and engagements.lessons, parades etc.

If you play a woodwind, brass or percussion instrument to grade 5 or above come along and join us

Description

Jephson Gardens is a beautiful formal Victorian park in the centre of Leamington Spa. It's the perfect place for a relaxing stroll or family picnic. Lots of colourful flowerbeds and interesting sculptures make for a great day out.

The gardens are open every day from 8am. Closing times vary between 4pm and 9pm depending on the time of year. See entrance gates for current closing times.

There are multiple car parks nearby, some of which are free and other are pay and display.

as well as the bandstand, facilities in the gardens include...
Glasshouse - interesting tropical plants, goldfish pond and observation beehive
The Aviary Café – beautiful Victorian tea pavilion
Jephson's event venue – weddings, conferences and celebrations
Leam Boat Centre - boating in Mill Gardens
The Sensory Garden - taste garden, mirrored arch and colourful planting
East Lodge - art studio run by Leamington Studio Artists
East Lodge Garden - beehive with insect-friendly planting and gazebo from Chelsea Flower Show
Trees – around 140 species of native and non-native trees
Formal flowerbeds - colourful summer and winter bedding displays
Explore the sculpture collection and find the rhino, dragon and hedgehog
Watch ducks and geese on the lake
Play area in Mill Gardens

Jephson Gardens,

Leamington Spa,

Warwickshire,

England,

CV32 4AA.